There is a wide range of climatic and soil conditions in Sri Lanka. Nine out of the ten soil orders of Soil Taxonomy (USDA) are encountered in the country. The general climate is tropical. The rainfall is distinctly bimodal for most parts of the country. The annual rainfall ranges from 875 mm to 5000 mm. The elevation ranges from sea level to 2,515 meter above sea level. Most important soil orders are Alfisols, Ultisols and Oxisols. The soil orders Histosols, Entisols, Inceptisols and Vertisols are also used for a range of agricultural purposes, the main use being rice cultivation. The important great soil groups of Sri Lanka with the equivalent great soil groups of Soil Taxonomy (USDA, 1975) are presented and the distribution of the soils is indicated. Most of the management problems are on Alfisols, Oxisols, Histosols, and Vertisols, and are related to the physical properties and their interaction with the climate especially the rainfall. Further the problems of irrigated agriculture on these soils are discussed. The problems of the use and management of the Histosols and the associated Inceptisols and Entisols are related to the rainfall, flooding, tidal movements and the general setting of these soils in the landscape in the coastal plain which has an advancing coastline.