Abstract
The two Oxisols studied, one very sandy (Bayamón) and the other high in clay (Catalina), tended to dewater at low tensions, whereas soil water release in the Ultisols extended over a wider range of tensions. The sandy soil failed to release appreciable water above 1 bar of tension. Field capacity was established at 1/15 bar for the sandy soil and 1/20 bar for the clayey soils. The available water stored in the top 30 cm of the soil profile was determined to be 3.6, 5.0, 5.5, and 6.0 cm for Bayamón, Humatas, Torres, and Catalina, respectively. For Bayamón and Catalina, the two Oxisols, the bulk of the water was released between field capacity and 1 bar. In contrast to the Oxisols, a high proportion of the water in the Ultisols, Humatas and Torres, was available only at tensions above 1 bar. The Catalina soil was by far the best in terms of water supplying characteristics, while Humatas and Bayamón were the worst.