Soil series profile
Anselmo soil series
Anselmo is a well drained soil with a fine sandy loam surface, mapped on 566,475 acres in 56 counties across 4 states. Hydrologic group A.
- Drainage class
- Well drained 100% of mapped acres
- Hydrologic group
- A 98% of mapped acres
- Typical topsoil pH
- 6.7 neutral · range 6.5–6.7
- Mapped area
- 566k acres in 56 counties, 4 states
Typical Anselmo profile
Texture and pH by depth
Show as a table
| Depth | Texture | pH | Clay | Sand | Organic matter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–7 in (H1) | Fine sandy loam | 6.5 | 14% | 70% | 1.5% |
| 7–14 in (H2) | Fine sandy loam | 7.0 | 14% | 70% | 0.75% |
| 14–22 in (H3) | Sandy loam | 7.2 | 14% | 67% | 0.75% |
| 22–80 in (H4) | Loamy sand | 7.2 | 8% | 84% | 0.25% |
What this means
What Anselmo soil means for gardens, lawns and septic systems
For gardens
Typical topsoil in Anselmo soils is neutral: pH 6.7 (most land between 6.5 and 6.7), the range most vegetables, flowers and lawn grasses prefer.
Sandy topsoil covers 51% of mapped Anselmo acres. It drains fast and warms early in spring, but dries out and loses nutrients quickly: mulch, compost and steady watering help. The most common surface texture is fine sandy loam (88% of mapped Anselmo acres).
100% of mapped Anselmo acres is moderately well to excessively drained, which suits most garden plants.
For lawns and yards
98% of mapped acres is in hydrologic group A, where water soaks in fast. Lawns there dry out quickly; deeper, less frequent watering and organic matter help.
For a septic system
For conventional septic absorption fields, NRCS rates 94% of the acres in mapped Anselmo soils very limited, <1% somewhat limited and 6% not limited.
Where the soil is very limited (slow permeability, a high water table, flooding, shallow bedrock or steep slopes), alternative systems such as mound or sand-filter designs are common and cost more.
Only a licensed site evaluation or perc test at the actual lot decides whether a system is allowed and which design.
Where Anselmo soil is found
Mapped acres
Anselmo is mapped in South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming and Kansas.
| County | Acres | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|
| Todd County, SD | 128,481 | 14.5% |
| Tripp County, SD | 68,917 | 6.7% |
| Goshen County, WY | 36,395 | 2.6% |
| Lincoln County, NE | 29,540 | 1.8% |
| Holt County, NE | 28,181 | 1.8% |
| Jackson County, SD | 26,118 | 2.2% |
| Cherry County, NE | 25,725 | 0.7% |
| Bennett County, SD | 24,276 | 3.2% |
| Gregory County, SD | 24,129 | 3.7% |
| Oglala Lakota County, SD | 23,473 | 1.6% |
| Custer County, NE | 21,967 | 1.3% |
| Boyd County, NE | 18,249 | 5.4% |
| Rooks County, KS | 13,775 | 2.4% |
| Keya Paha County, NE | 12,974 | 2.6% |
| Brown County, NE | 12,154 | 1.6% |
| Dawson County, NE | 9,868 | 1.5% |
| Buffalo County, NE | 9,357 | 1.5% |
| Logan County, NE | 8,212 | 2.2% |
| Phelps County, NE | 6,111 | 1.8% |
| Mellette County, SD | 5,813 | 0.7% |
| Phillips County, KS | 5,590 | 1.0% |
| Greeley County, NE | 5,501 | 1.5% |
| Norton County, KS | 3,725 | 0.7% |
| Sheridan County, NE | 3,575 | 0.2% |
| Graham County, KS | 3,207 | 0.6% |
| Gosper County, NE | 1,737 | 0.6% |
| Wheeler County, NE | 1,606 | 0.4% |
| Adams County, NE | 1,058 | 0.3% |
| Ellis County, KS | 887 | 0.2% |
| McPherson County, NE | 768 | 0.1% |
| Morrill County, NE | 658 | 0.1% |
| Sherman County, NE | 636 | 0.2% |
| Furnas County, NE | 611 | 0.1% |
| Red Willow County, NE | 586 | 0.1% |
| Smith County, KS | 455 | 0.1% |
| Arthur County, NE | 309 | 0.1% |
| Garden County, NE | 287 | 0.0% |
| Hooker County, NE | 212 | 0.0% |
| Mitchell County, KS | 190 | 0.0% |
| Rock County, NE | 163 | 0.0% |
| Antelope County, NE | 158 | 0.0% |
| Box Butte County, NE | 145 | 0.0% |
| Sheridan County, KS | 118 | 0.0% |
| Thomas County, NE | 100 | 0.0% |
| Grant County, NE | 100 | 0.0% |
| Lyman County, SD | 88 | 0.0% |
| Blaine County, NE | 63 | 0.0% |
| Valley County, NE | 43 | 0.0% |
| Trego County, KS | 38 | 0.0% |
| Boone County, NE | 34 | 0.0% |
| Haakon County, SD | 33 | 0.0% |
| Decatur County, KS | 29 | 0.0% |
| Loup County, NE | 27 | 0.0% |
| Merrick County, NE | 12 | 0.0% |
| Howard County, NE | 11 | 0.0% |
| Keith County, NE | 3 | 0.0% |
Septic absorption fields
NRCS rating, share of Anselmo acres
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Not limited | 6.3% |
| Somewhat limited | 0.2% |
| Very limited | 93.5% |
Drainage, water table and flooding
Share of Anselmo acres
- Depth to seasonal high water table
- None reported within about 6.5 feet (median where reported).
- Flooding
- Not mapped as flooding on most acres.
- Slope
- Typically 1–13% (median 5%).
- Topsoil organic matter
- Median 1.5%.
Drainage class
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Excessively drained | 0.0% |
| Somewhat excessively drained | 0.0% |
| Well drained | 100.0% |
| Moderately well drained | 0.0% |
| Somewhat poorly drained | 0.0% |
| Poorly drained | 0.0% |
| Very poorly drained | 0.0% |
Hydrologic soil group
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| A: fast infiltration (mostly sandy or gravelly) | 98.0% |
| B: moderate infiltration | 2.0% |
| C: slow infiltration | 0.0% |
| D: very slow infiltration (clayey, shallow or wet) | 0.0% |
| A/D: D as is, A if drained | 0.0% |
| B/D: D as is, B if drained | 0.0% |
| C/D: D as is, C if drained | 0.0% |
Sources & data dates
- Source
- USDA NRCS Soil Survey Geographic Database (SSURGO), queried through Soil Data Access. Public domain.
- Data date
- SSURGO as published on November 3, 2026 (most recent survey area update October 26, 2026). NRCS refreshes SSURGO each October.
- Scope
- All map unit components named Anselmo (component kind "Series") in SSURGO: 566,475 acres.
- Method
- Shares are by mapped acres of Anselmo components. The profile comes from the single largest Anselmo component. Full methodology.