Temperature variations in a fine sandy loam

Abstract

Six plots on the McMaster University campus were instrumented with thermocouples down to a depth of 225 cm. The choice of instruments and procedures was outlined and justified. A complete description of the site soil and climatic characteristics was made. Throughout the year soil temperature observations were taken to provide a complete picture of the conditions prevailing. In addition to studying the annual march of temperature, experiments were conducted by applying simple surface treatments to test plots and comparing the results with an untreated control plot. These experiments were conducted both over a period of weeks and on the daily scale.