Soil structure, pore space key to proper soil function “Soft and crumbly.” “Like cottage cheese.” “Like a sponge.” “Loose and full of holes.” Those and other common descriptions of what healthy soil looks and feels like refer to good soil structure. Soil structure, the arrangement of the solid parts of the soil and the pore space between them, is critical to how the soil functions. When the solid parts—sand, silt and clay particles—cling together as coarse, granular aggregate