Soil series profile
Barnes soil series
Barnes is a well drained soil with a loam surface, mapped on 1,882,539 acres in 69 counties across 3 states. Hydrologic group B.
- Drainage class
- Well drained 100% of mapped acres
- Hydrologic group
- B 79% of mapped acres
- Typical topsoil pH
- 7.0 neutral · range 6.8–7.0
- Mapped area
- 1.9M acres in 69 counties, 3 states
Typical Barnes profile
Texture and pH by depth
Show as a table
| Depth | Texture | pH | Clay | Sand | Organic matter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–7 in (Ap) | Loam | 7.0 | 23% | 40% | 4% |
| 7–16 in (Bw) | Loam | 7.0 | 26% | 38% | 2% |
| 16–37 in (Bk) | Loam | 7.9 | 26% | 38% | 1.5% |
| 37–79 in (C) | Loam | 7.9 | 26% | 38% | 0.3% |
What this means
What Barnes soil means for gardens, lawns and septic systems
For gardens
Typical topsoil in Barnes soils is neutral: pH 7.0 (most land between 6.8 and 7.0), the range most vegetables, flowers and lawn grasses prefer.
Loamy topsoil (loam, silt loam and similar) covers 100% of mapped Barnes acres: generally the easiest soil to garden, holding moisture without staying waterlogged. The most common surface texture is loam (95% of mapped Barnes acres).
100% of mapped Barnes acres is moderately well to excessively drained, which suits most garden plants.
For lawns and yards
Most land is in hydrologic groups B and C, where rain soaks in at a moderate pace.
For a septic system
For conventional septic absorption fields, NRCS rates 26% of the acres in mapped Barnes soils very limited, 75% somewhat limited and 0% not limited.
Only a licensed site evaluation or perc test at the actual lot decides whether a system is allowed and which design.
Where Barnes soil is found
Mapped acres
Barnes is mapped in North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota. The 60 counties with the most Barnes acres:
| County | Acres | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|
| LaMoure County, ND | 172,391 | 23.7% |
| Stutsman County, ND | 154,961 | 10.9% |
| Barnes County, ND | 145,876 | 15.3% |
| Dickey County, ND | 102,140 | 14.2% |
| Brown County, SD | 93,289 | 8.5% |
| Clark County, SD | 78,418 | 12.7% |
| Ransom County, ND | 65,411 | 11.9% |
| Nelson County, ND | 62,174 | 9.8% |
| Walsh County, ND | 61,855 | 7.5% |
| Cavalier County, ND | 60,202 | 6.2% |
| McHenry County, ND | 57,770 | 4.8% |
| Steele County, ND | 55,435 | 12.2% |
| Deuel County, SD | 52,305 | 13.1% |
| Lincoln County, MN | 50,273 | 14.6% |
| Cass County, ND | 49,646 | 4.4% |
| Brookings County, SD | 45,478 | 9.0% |
| Ward County, ND | 43,149 | 3.3% |
| Codington County, SD | 38,219 | 8.7% |
| Grand Forks County, ND | 35,135 | 3.8% |
| Wells County, ND | 31,794 | 3.9% |
| Murray County, MN | 30,947 | 6.9% |
| Griggs County, ND | 27,114 | 6.0% |
| Renville County, ND | 26,073 | 4.6% |
| Day County, SD | 25,404 | 3.8% |
| Foster County, ND | 24,659 | 6.0% |
| Lyon County, MN | 24,046 | 5.3% |
| Ramsey County, ND | 23,821 | 3.1% |
| Pope County, MN | 23,022 | 5.4% |
| Bottineau County, ND | 22,060 | 2.1% |
| Benson County, ND | 16,565 | 1.8% |
| Grant County, SD | 15,585 | 3.6% |
| Sargent County, ND | 12,801 | 2.3% |
| Rolette County, ND | 12,594 | 2.2% |
| Douglas County, MN | 11,689 | 2.9% |
| Clay County, MN | 11,055 | 1.7% |
| Kingsbury County, SD | 10,015 | 1.9% |
| Towner County, ND | 9,218 | 1.4% |
| Yellow Medicine County, MN | 8,341 | 1.7% |
| Hamlin County, SD | 8,204 | 2.5% |
| Otter Tail County, MN | 8,198 | 0.7% |
| Pipestone County, MN | 8,184 | 2.7% |
| Roberts County, SD | 8,173 | 1.2% |
| Sheridan County, ND | 7,792 | 1.2% |
| Becker County, MN | 6,565 | 0.8% |
| Grant County, MN | 6,436 | 1.8% |
| Richland County, ND | 4,507 | 0.5% |
| Eddy County, ND | 4,440 | 1.1% |
| Mahnomen County, MN | 3,540 | 1.0% |
| Stearns County, MN | 3,351 | 0.4% |
| Stevens County, MN | 2,851 | 0.8% |
| Spink County, SD | 2,787 | 0.3% |
| Lac qui Parle County, MN | 2,551 | 0.5% |
| Pierce County, ND | 2,011 | 0.3% |
| Swift County, MN | 1,446 | 0.3% |
| Burke County, ND | 1,437 | 0.2% |
| Traverse County, MN | 1,359 | 0.4% |
| Norman County, MN | 1,351 | 0.2% |
| Wilkin County, MN | 1,047 | 0.2% |
| McLean County, ND | 1,019 | 0.1% |
| Marshall County, SD | 1,007 | 0.2% |
Septic absorption fields
NRCS rating, share of Barnes acres
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Not limited | 0.0% |
| Somewhat limited | 74.5% |
| Very limited | 25.5% |
Drainage, water table and flooding
Share of Barnes acres
- Depth to seasonal high water table
- About 4.9 feet (59 in) (median where reported).
- Flooding
- Not mapped as flooding on most acres.
- Slope
- Typically 2–12% (median 4%).
- Topsoil organic matter
- Median 4%.
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) | 0.1% |
| B: moderate infiltration | 78.6% |
| C: slow infiltration | 21.3% |
| 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 Barnes (component kind "Series") in SSURGO: 1,882,539 acres.
- Method
- Shares are by mapped acres of Barnes components. The profile comes from the single largest Barnes component. Full methodology.