Soil moisture content, determined by the moisture equivalent method (ME), is associated with field capacity (FC) in temperate soils. The FC matric potential of soils developed under tropical and humid conditions has higher values, in the range of -10 to -6 kPa. To establish a relationship between FC of Oxisols and Quartzipsamments with ME a review of M.S. and Ph.D. theses submitted to the faculty of the Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil, was done. Appropriate data should include soil classification, clay content, FC, and ME. Under these conditions, 80 Oxisols, and 8 Quartzipsamments were selected. Results suggest the use of the equation FC = 0.081 + 0.888 ME (R² = 0.910), with FC and ME expressed in kg kg-1. The intercept, different from zero and positive, confirms that FC occurs at greater potential values than -33 kPa.
soil water; maximum water availability
