Brian J. Andraski 1991 <p><span>Samples were collected from major strata in the upper 5 m of an alluvial soil profile in the Amargosa Desert of southern Nevada to compare rubber-balloon and drive-core bulk-density measurement methods. For strate where the fine soil was &lt;82% sand and &lt;15% clay, differences between total and fine-soil bulk-density values determined by the two methods were typically &lt;10 and 15%, respectively, even where rock-fragment content was as great as 48% by volume. Outside this range of fine-soil texture, where soil consistency was either very loose or very hard, the core method appeared to sample inaccurately, resulting in bulk-density values &gt;0.30 Mg m</span>⁻³<span><span>&nbsp;</span>less than those determined by the balloon method. Under the severe sampling conditions encountered, large decreases in the relative accuracy of the core method were not directly related to rock-fragment content, but were related to extremes in the cohesiveness of the strata sampled.</span></p> application/pdf 10.2136/sssaj1991.03615995005500040048x en Soil Science Society of America Balloon and core sampling for determining bulk density of alluvial desert soil article