Soil Science & Plant Nutrition
Soil fertility, nutrient cycles, fertilization and soil conservation.
Soil science studies soils as the physical, chemical and biological basis of plant production: soil formation and classification, soil organic matter and carbon, nutrient and water dynamics, and degradation processes such as erosion, compaction and salinization.
Plant nutrition covers how plants take up and use nutrients - nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and micronutrients - and how mineral fertilizers, organic amendments, biological nitrogen fixation and microbial inoculants can supply them efficiently with minimal losses to the environment.
Studying soil science & plant nutrition
Degree programs in this subject often run under these names:
What you typically learn
- Soil formation, classification and mapping
- Soil chemistry, physics and biology
- Plant nutrition and fertilizer use
- Soil organic matter and carbon
- Erosion, degradation and soil conservation
- Soil and plant analysis in the laboratory
Where graduates typically work
- Fertilizer industry and agricultural advisory
- Environmental consulting and land remediation
- Soil surveys and land-use planning authorities
- Laboratories for soil and plant analysis
- Agricultural and environmental research
Curricula differ by country and institution - the program pages linked below have the details.
Where to study soil science & plant nutrition
58 programs in 25 countries. See all 58 programs
Where research is heading
Typical research questions
- How can nutrient use efficiency be raised while reducing losses to water and air?
- Under which conditions do soils gain or lose organic carbon?
- How effective are organic amendments and microbial inoculants compared with mineral fertilizers?
- How can erosion and soil degradation be measured, mapped and prevented?
Publications per year
Papers whose main topic belongs to this field, 2010–2025.
Research fronts: fastest-growing topics
Papers 2024–2025 compared with 2021–2022, topics with at least 500 recent papers.
| Topic | 2021–2022 | 2024–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Humic Substances and Bio-Organic StudiesHumic Substances · Shilajit · Antioxidant · Anti-inflammatory | 762 | 1,258 | +65% |
| Agricultural Science and FertilizationSoil Fertility · Crop Productivity · Organic Manure · Integrated Nutrient Management | 2,193 | 3,486 | +59% |
| Soil Science and Environmental ManagementSoil Quality · Water Productivity · Conservation Agriculture · Quality Management | 602 | 871 | +45% |
| Agriculture, Plant Science, Crop ManagementOrganic Fertilizers · Nutrient Sources · Seed Yield · Microbial Inoculant | 1,432 | 2,044 | +43% |
| Composting and Vermicomposting TechniquesComposting · Maturity Assessment · Organic Waste · Microbial Activity | 2,621 | 3,549 | +35% |
| Plant Growth and Agriculture TechniquesSoil Fertility · Plant Nutrition · Organic Farming · Crop Production | 7,981 | 10,405 | +30% |
Largest topics
By number of papers 2024–2025.
- Soil Carbon and Nitrogen DynamicsSoil Carbon Sequestration · Nitrogen Cycle · Microbial Communities · Climate Change 13,304
- Plant Growth and Agriculture TechniquesSoil Fertility · Plant Nutrition · Organic Farming · Crop Production 10,405
- Soil erosion and sediment transportSoil Erosion · Agricultural Sustainability · Land Use Change · Sediment Transport Models 6,120
- Plant nutrient uptake and metabolismNitrogen · Phosphorus · Root Architecture · Sugar Signaling 4,127
- Soil Geostatistics and MappingDigital Soil Mapping · Geostatistics · Remote Sensing · Soil Properties 3,928
- Legume Nitrogen Fixing SymbiosisLegumes · Symbiosis · Nitrogen Fixation · Rhizobium 3,900
Highly cited recent papers
Most-cited articles and reviews published 2024–2025. Citation counts favor reviews and papers published early in the window.
- Soil organic matter priming: The pH effects
- Role of Soil Microbiota Enzymes in Soil Health and Activity Changes Depending on Climate Change and the Type of Soil Ecosystem
- Soil phosphorus transformation and plant uptake driven by phosphate-solubilizing microorganisms
- Biochar Production and Characteristics, Its Impacts on Soil Health, Crop Production, and Yield Enhancement: A Review
- Nutrient-induced acidification modulates soil biodiversity-function relationships
- Global turnover of soil mineral-associated and particulate organic carbon
All study programs in soil science & plant nutrition
- Agronomía (Agronomy) Bachelor Universidad de Buenos Aires · Argentina Taught in Spanish
- Bachelor of Agricultural Sciences Bachelor Adelaide University · Australia Taught in English
- Bachelor of Agricultural Science Bachelor The University of Queensland · Australia Taught in English
- Bachelor of Agricultural Science Bachelor The University of Sydney · Australia Taught in English
- Agricultural Science Bachelor The University of Western Australia · Australia Taught in English
- B.Sc. Ag. (Hons.) (Agriculture) Bachelor Bangladesh Agricultural University · Bangladesh
- Bachelier bioingénieur (Bioscience Engineering) Bachelor University of Liège · Belgium Taught in French
- Engenharia Agronômica (Agronomic Engineering) Bachelor Universidade de São Paulo · Brazil Taught in Portuguese
- Engenharia Agronômica (Agronomic Engineering), Botucatu campus Bachelor Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp) · Brazil Taught in Portuguese
- Agronomia (Agronomy) Bachelor Universidade Federal de Viçosa · Brazil Taught in Portuguese
- Agronomia (Agronomy) Bachelor Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul · Brazil Taught in Portuguese
- General Agronomy Bachelor Agricultural University Plovdiv · Bulgaria
- B.Sc. (Hons.) Agriculture Bachelor Tamil Nadu Agricultural University · India
- B.Sc. (Hons.) Agriculture (Tamil medium) Bachelor Tamil Nadu Agricultural University · India Taught in Tamil
- Scienze agrarie, forestali e ambientali (Agricultural, Forest and Environmental Sciences) Bachelor University of Naples Federico II · Italy Taught in Italian
- Scienze e tecnologie agrarie (Agricultural Sciences and Technologies) Bachelor University of Padua · Italy Taught in Italian Program document (PDF)
- Agronomija (Agronomy) Bachelor Vytautas Magnus University · Lithuania Taught in Lithuanian
- Bachelor of Agricultural Science Bachelor Universiti Putra Malaysia · Malaysia
- Ingeniería Agronómica, especialidad Suelos (Agronomic Engineering, Soil Science) Bachelor Chapingo Autonomous University · Mexico Taught in Spanish
- Bachelor of Agricultural Science Bachelor Lincoln University · New Zealand Taught in English
- Bachelor of Agricultural Science (BAgSci) Bachelor Massey University · New Zealand Taught in English
- Rolnictwo (Agriculture) Bachelor Poznań University of Life Sciences · Poland Taught in Polish
- Rolnictwo (Agriculture) Bachelor University of Agriculture in Krakow · Poland Taught in Polish Program document (PDF)
- Rolnictwo (Agriculture) Bachelor University of Life Sciences in Lublin · Poland Taught in Polish
- Rolnictwo (Agriculture) Bachelor University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn · Poland Taught in Polish Program document (PDF)
- Rolnictwo (Agriculture) Bachelor Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences · Poland Taught in Polish
- Engenharia Agronómica (Agronomic Engineering), Instituto Superior de Agronomia Bachelor University of Lisbon · Portugal Taught in Portuguese
- Agricultură (Agriculture) Bachelor University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Cluj-Napoca · Romania
- Agricultură (Agriculture) Bachelor University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest · Romania Taught in Romanian
- BScAgric Plant and Soil Sciences Bachelor Stellenbosch University · South Africa
- BScAgric Applied Plant and Soil Sciences Bachelor University of Pretoria · South Africa Taught in English Program document (PDF)
- Bachelor of Science in Agronomy Bachelor Sokoine University of Agriculture · Tanzania Taught in English
- Агрономія (Agronomy) Bachelor National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine · Ukraine Taught in Ukrainian Program document (PDF)
- Agriculture (BS) Bachelor Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College · United StatesCollege / polytechnic Taught in English
- Soil and Crop Sciences (B.S.) Bachelor Colorado State University · United States Taught in English
- Agronomy (B.S.) Bachelor Iowa State University · United States Taught in English
- Agronomy (B.S.) Bachelor Kansas State University · United States Taught in English
- Crop and Soil Sciences (B.S.) Bachelor Michigan State University · United States Taught in English
- Crop and Soil Sciences (B.S.): Agronomy Bachelor North Carolina State University · United States Taught in English
- Plant and Environmental Soil Science Bachelor Texas A&M University · United States Taught in English
- Horticulture and Crop Science (B.S.), Agronomy specialization Bachelor The Ohio State University · United States Taught in English
- Agronomy (B.S.) Bachelor University of Nebraska–Lincoln · United States Taught in English
- BSc Agriculture (Hons) in Agronomy Bachelor University of Zimbabwe · Zimbabwe Taught in English
- Master of Agricultural Sciences Master The University of Melbourne · Australia Taught in English
- Master of Bioscience Engineering: Agro- and Ecosystems Engineering Master KU Leuven · Belgium Taught in English
- Agriculture Master University of Copenhagen · Denmark Taught in English
- Agricultural Sciences Master University of Helsinki · Finland Taught in Finnish, Swedish and English
- Ingénieur en agronomie (Agricultural Engineer) Master UniLaSalle · France Taught in French
- Agrarwissenschaften (Agricultural Sciences) Master Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel · Germany
- Agricultural Sciences Master University of Hohenheim · Germany
- Scienze agrarie, forestali e ambientali (Agricultural, Forest and Environmental Sciences) Master University of Naples Federico II · Italy Taught in Italian
- Scienze e tecnologie agrarie (Agricultural Sciences and Technologies) Master University of Padua · Italy Taught in Italian Program document (PDF)
- Agronomy Master Vytautas Magnus University · Lithuania Program document (PDF)
- Ingénieur d'État en Agronomie (State Engineer in Agronomy) Master Institut Agronomique et Vétérinaire Hassan II · Morocco Taught in French Program document (PDF)
- Rolnictwo (Agriculture) Master University of Life Sciences in Lublin · Poland Taught in Polish
- Rolnictwo (Agriculture) Master University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn · Poland Taught in Polish Program document (PDF)
- Rolnictwo (Agriculture) Master Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences · Poland Taught in Polish
- Integrative Plant Science (MPS) Master Cornell University · United States Taught in English