I used soil characteristics fairly generically so I'll explain--and it's a lot more complex than I suggest in the following sentences; my explanation is by no means complete. Let me know if you have questions or if I'm not clear. The source of geologic material that a local soil was produced from over millions of years is generally the same and if the terrain was basically flat, the characteristics of that soil would change very little over time unless it experiences lots of surface runoff that exports nutrients (in the soil naturally) that get dissolved in the water--same deal with ag nutrients. Basic flatland with little runoff doesn't exist in many places. More often, we have undulating or mixed landscapes where water runs off to export nutrients and small particles. In areas where there is abundant rainfall and you have a positive water balance (gain more water from precip than you loose to evapotranspiration, and other losses), the nutrients get leached from the soil and the soil gets less fertile over time. In areas with less precip, you can actually have a negative water balance (you loose more water on average than you gain from precip--this is the case here and much of the Northern Great Plains). The benefit of a negative water balance area is that the soils are poorly leached at best so the soils maintain their fertility for a very LONG time. For my area, it's significant that most of our precip falls during the growing season so crops, and even keeping bees, is possible BUT strong inter-annual events like the Dust Bowl of the 30's could shut both activities down during severe drought.
Adding to the complexity of "soil characteristics" is that because water doesn't move across most of our landscapes equally, it removes fine soil particles and nutrients from some places and deposits them somewhere else. The result is a mosaic of soil characteristics spatially that affects our bees through their influence on plants. Get a soil map sometime and look at the variation in soil types and characteristics for your area. A NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service--have offices in all counties and are housed with Farm Service Agency [FSA]. If you have bees just in one location, it won't make any difference but if you have them in several areas, or have the option to move them, it is often helpful to explain some of the variations in honey crops, etc. In my area, thanks to the melting glacier 12,000 years ago, I have bees in areas that have light soils (sandier due to erosion and less fertile) and heavy soils (much higher clay content due to reduced or no erosion and higher fertility). When it's wet, bees in both locations do well but when it's drier, the bees near the heavier soils do better. Clay hangs on to water better and dries out much slower than light sandy soils--keeps the plants secreting nectar longer. Superimposed on all of this are natural climate cycles (drought to wetter periods) from year-to-year and within season. Makes things interesting for beekeepers because, unlike farmers, we can move our bees down the road a few miles and generally do better if we know where the conditions are that complement any given weather pattern we may be experiencing.
If you drive from most anywhere in Minnesota to most anywhere in North Dakota, you can visually see when you go from a positive to a negative water balance area. Here, the line is clear. Don't look at shelter belts or other trees planted by humans--look just at the native trees. Coming from MN you will see lots of trees because most of MN is in a moisture surplus area but when you get to the negative water balance in ND, the first thing you'll miss are the trees. Simply not enough water to get them started and support them long enough to get their roots deep enough to survive when it dries due to drought. Same deal in the arid western states that have grass/shrub plants down low and nice forests as you go up in elevation; the extra moisture that hits the ground up high pushes the water balance to positive and trees are a visual result.
Sorry for the long explanation.
