On the fractal dimensions of some transient soil properties

Abstract

SUMMARY Spatial variation of soil properties can be studied by use of the concept of fractals, and the overall roughness of a surface characterized by its fractal dimension. Soil surface strength was recorded by both cone penetrometer and field shear vane, along a series of transects, at 10 cm spacings. In the natural state, such data gave fractal dimensions very close to 2, implying an almost totally random data set, and only the deliberate action of cultivations introduced an order of persistence. Microtopography, measured by a profile meter at 1 cm intervals, had fractal dimensions of 1.7 on two separate sites. Problems are identified specifically in the choice of a suitable model for fitting the semi‐variogram, and in the collection of an efficient data set.