Soil series profile
Bowbells soil series
Bowbells is a moderately well drained soil with a loam surface, mapped on 1,592,879 acres in 46 counties across 4 states. Hydrologic group B.
- Drainage class
- Moderately well drained 92% of mapped acres
- Hydrologic group
- B 77% of mapped acres
- Typical topsoil pH
- 6.7 neutral · range 6.7–6.7
- Mapped area
- 1.6M acres in 46 counties, 4 states
Typical Bowbells profile
Texture and pH by depth
Show as a table
| Depth | Texture | pH | Clay | Sand | Organic matter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–6 in (Ap) | Loam | 6.7 | 24% | 28% | 4% |
| 6–23 in (Bt) | Clay loam | 7.0 | 30% | 30% | 3% |
| 23–36 in (Bk) | Clay loam | 7.9 | 30% | 38% | 1% |
| 36–79 in (C) | Clay loam | 7.9 | 28% | 38% | 0.5% |
What this means
What Bowbells soil means for gardens, lawns and septic systems
For gardens
Typical topsoil in Bowbells soils is neutral: pH 6.7, the range most vegetables, flowers and lawn grasses prefer.
Loamy topsoil (loam, silt loam and similar) covers 100% of mapped Bowbells acres: generally the easiest soil to garden, holding moisture without staying waterlogged. The most common surface texture is loam (98% of mapped Bowbells acres).
100% of mapped Bowbells 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 23% of the acres in mapped Bowbells soils very limited, 77% 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 Bowbells soil is found
Mapped acres
Bowbells is mapped in North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Wyoming.
| County | Acres | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|
| McLean County, ND | 189,155 | 14.1% |
| Williams County, ND | 159,962 | 12.0% |
| Edmunds County, SD | 112,686 | 15.4% |
| Mountrail County, ND | 107,113 | 9.1% |
| Burleigh County, ND | 99,249 | 9.6% |
| Faulk County, SD | 97,843 | 15.3% |
| McPherson County, SD | 80,121 | 11.0% |
| Ward County, ND | 79,231 | 6.1% |
| Kidder County, ND | 64,471 | 7.6% |
| Stutsman County, ND | 63,402 | 4.5% |
| Campbell County, SD | 43,174 | 9.1% |
| Sheridan County, ND | 42,150 | 6.8% |
| Logan County, ND | 41,410 | 6.7% |
| Divide County, ND | 38,535 | 4.7% |
| McIntosh County, ND | 33,806 | 5.6% |
| Mercer County, ND | 33,367 | 5.0% |
| Roosevelt County, MT | 31,270 | 2.1% |
| Burke County, ND | 29,939 | 4.2% |
| Emmons County, ND | 26,054 | 2.7% |
| McKenzie County, ND | 23,096 | 1.3% |
| Wells County, ND | 22,715 | 2.8% |
| Sheridan County, MT | 22,164 | 2.1% |
| LaMoure County, ND | 17,223 | 2.4% |
| Dickey County, ND | 15,541 | 2.2% |
| Oliver County, ND | 15,356 | 3.3% |
| Richland County, MT | 14,998 | 1.1% |
| Daniels County, MT | 13,448 | 1.5% |
| Walworth County, SD | 13,123 | 2.9% |
| Dunn County, ND | 12,341 | 1.0% |
| Brown County, SD | 10,647 | 1.0% |
| Potter County, SD | 8,537 | 1.5% |
| McCone County, MT | 7,282 | 0.4% |
| Morton County, ND | 6,994 | 0.6% |
| Valley County, MT | 3,357 | 0.1% |
| Toole County, MT | 2,976 | 0.3% |
| Blaine County, MT | 2,941 | 0.1% |
| Spink County, SD | 2,596 | 0.3% |
| Dawson County, MT | 1,485 | 0.1% |
| McHenry County, ND | 1,162 | 0.1% |
| Glacier County, MT | 581 | 0.0% |
| Chouteau County, MT | 438 | 0.0% |
| Foster County, ND | 431 | 0.1% |
| Liberty County, MT | 333 | 0.0% |
| Hill County, MT | 144 | 0.0% |
| Phillips County, MT | 23 | 0.0% |
| Park County, WY | 12 | 0.0% |
Septic absorption fields
NRCS rating, share of Bowbells acres
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Not limited | 0.0% |
| Somewhat limited | 76.7% |
| Very limited | 23.3% |
Drainage, water table and flooding
Share of Bowbells acres
- Depth to seasonal high water table
- About 4.3 feet (51 in) (median where reported).
- Flooding
- Not mapped as flooding on most acres.
- Slope
- Typically 1–7% (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 | 7.9% |
| Moderately well drained | 92.1% |
| 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) | 0.0% |
| B: moderate infiltration | 76.7% |
| C: slow infiltration | 23.3% |
| 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 Bowbells (component kind "Series") in SSURGO: 1,592,879 acres.
- Method
- Shares are by mapped acres of Bowbells components. The profile comes from the single largest Bowbells component. Full methodology.