Soil Survey of Nueces County, Texas 2
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SOIL SURVEY Nueces County, Texas UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Soil Conservation Service In cooperation with Texas Agricultural Experiment Station Soil Survey of Nueces County, Texas 2 HOW TO USE THE SOIL SURVEY REPORT HIS SURVEY of Nueces County will serve several groups of readers, particularly farmers T and ranchers who want information to help them plan the kind of management that will protect their soils and provide good yields. The survey describes the soils, shows their location on a map, and tells what they will do under different kinds of management. Locating the soils To find what kinds of soils you have on your farm, first locate the general area of your farm on the index to map sheets, which is near the back of the report. A numbered rectangle on the index will tell you what sheet of the large soil map your farm is on. After you turn to the map sheet that shows your farm, you will find that the soils have been outlined and that there is a symbol for each kind of soil. Use the soil legend to find the names of the soils on your farm. Then turn to the “Guide to Mapping Units” near the back of the report to find pages where your soils are described in detail. Suppose, for example, an area located on the map has the symbol VcA. The legend of the detailed map shows that this is the symbol for Victoria clay, 0 to 1 percent slopes. This soil is described in the section “Descriptions of the Soils,” beginning on the page listed in the “Guide to Mapping Units.” The guide also tells you that this soil is in capability unit IIs-1 and gives the page where that unit is discussed. A capability unit is a group of soils that are suitable for about the same uses, that produce about the same yields, and that respond to similar management in about the same way. Finding information This report contains sections that will interest different groups of readers, as well as some sections that may be of interest to all. Farmers and those who work with farmers will want to learn about the soils in the section “Descriptions of the Soils,” and then turn to the subsection “Management of Soils for Agriculture.” In this way, they learn about the soils, how they can be managed, and what yields can be expected. All the soils and many of the land types in the county are grouped by capability units. Table 2 tells how much a farmer can expect to harvest from each soil in the county under two levels of management. Soil scientists and others interested in the scientific aspects of soils will find information about how the soils were formed and how they are classified in the section “Formation and Classification of Soils.” Engineers and builders will want to refer to the subsection “Engineering Applications.” Tables in that section show characteristics of the soils that affect engineering. Planners of urban developments will find information in the subsection “Urban and Suburban Uses of Soils.” Students, teachers, and other users can learn about the soils and their management in various parts of this report, depending on their particular interests. Newcomers in Nueces County will be especially interested in the section “General Soil Map,” where broad pattern of soils are described. They may also be interested in the sections “General Nature of the County” and “Additional Facts About the County.” This soil survey was made as a part of the technical assistance furnished by the Soil Conservation Service to the San Diego-Agua Dulce Soil Conservation District. Help in farm planning can be obtained from members of the Soil Conservation Service in the district, the county agricultural agent, or the staff of the State agricultural experiment station. Fieldwork for this survey was completed in 1960. Unless otherwise indicated, statements in this report refer to the conditions in the county at the time the survey was in progress. Cover picture: Harbor of Corpus Christi, looking west, 1959. Most of the county lies between 15 and 150 feet above the sea and is nearly level or gently sloping. Soil Survey of Nueces County, Texas 3 Contents Page General nature of the county 6 Physiography, relief, and drainage------------------------------------------------------- 6 Climate ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6 How soils are mapped and classified -------------------------------------------------- 9 General soil map----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10 1. Miguel-Willacy association ------------------------------------------------------------- 11 2. Lomalta association --------------------------------------------------------------------- 11 3. Trinity-Frio-Zavala association -------------------------------------------------------- 12 4. Clareville-Orelia association ----------------------------------------------------------- 13 5. Willacy-Clareville-Orelia association ------------------------------------------------- 13 6. Victoria association---------------------------------------------------------------------- 14 7. Orelia-Banquete association----------------------------------------------------------- 15 8. Galveston-Mustang-Tidal flats association ----------------------------------------- 16 Descriptions of the soils 17 Banquete series ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 17 Clareville series ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 18 Clareville complexes ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18 Clayey alluvial land--------------------------------------------------------------------------- 20 Coastal beach --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 20 Coastal dunes --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 20 Frio series ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21 Galveston series------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 21 Gullied land ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22 Gullied land, saline --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22 Hidalgo series --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 23 Lomalta series--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 24 Made land-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 25 Miguel series ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 25 Mustang series-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 26 Nueces series --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 27 Oil-waste land -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 27 Orelia series ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 27 Pits ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 28 Point Isabel series---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 28 Sandy sloping land --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 29 Spoil banks ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 29 Tidal flats --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 29 Trinity series ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 30 Urban land ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 30 Victoria series --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 31 Willacy series---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 32 Zavala series ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 32 Use and management of soils 33 Management of soils for agriculture------------------------------------------------------- 33 Principles of soil management--------------------------------------------------------- 33 Capability groups of soils --------------------------------------------------------------- 36 Capability units in Nueces County ---------------------------------------------------- 39 Soil Survey of Nueces County, Texas 4 Predictions of yields---------------------------------------------------------------------- 50 Engineering applications -------------------------------------------------------------------- 50 Engineering descriptions of soils ------------------------------------------------------ 51 Engineering interpretations------------------------------------------------------------- 52 Urban and suburban uses of soils--------------------------------------------------------- 52 Urban structures, recreational sites, and transportation facilities ----------------------------------------------------------------- 53 Septic tank disposal systems ---------------------------------------------------------- 54 Formation and classification of soils 55 Factors of soil formation--------------------------------------------------------------------- 55 Climate --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 55 Living organisms --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 56 Parent materials ---------------------------------------------------------------------------