Soil series profile

Brewster soil series

Brewster is a well drained soil with a gravelly clay loam surface, mapped on 621,532 acres in 11 counties across 3 states. Hydrologic group D.

#412 by mapped area loamy-skeletal Aridic Lithic Haplustolls (Mollisols)

Drainage class
Well drained
>99% of mapped acres
Hydrologic group
D
>99% of mapped acres
Typical topsoil pH
7.0
neutral · range 6.9–7.0
Mapped area
622k
acres in 11 counties, 3 states

Typical Brewster profile

Texture and pH by depth

Typical Brewster soil profile by depth 0 in 20 in 40 in 60 in 0–7 in · A1 · pH 7.0 · 28% clay Gravelly clay loam 7–79 in · R Bedrock
Depth to scale. More strongly shaded layers hold more clay. Horizon names are the soil survey's (A = topsoil, B = subsoil, C = parent material).
Show as a table
Typical Brewster horizons (representative values)
Depth Texture pH Clay Sand Organic matter
0–7 in (A1) Gravelly clay loam 7.0 28% 38% 2.5%
7–79 in (R) Bedrock Not reported Not reported Not reported Not reported

Representative values from the most extensive Brewster map unit (Brewster association, hilly, survey area TX243). Other map units of this series vary within the series range.

Hands holding dark garden soil
Stock photo for illustration, not a sample of this soil series. Credit on the Sources & method page.

What this means

What Brewster soil means for gardens, lawns and septic systems

For gardens

Typical topsoil in Brewster soils is neutral: pH 7.0 (most land between 6.9 and 7.0), the range most vegetables, flowers and lawn grasses prefer.

Loamy topsoil (loam, silt loam and similar) covers 99% of mapped Brewster acres: generally the easiest soil to garden, holding moisture without staying waterlogged. The most common surface texture is very gravelly loam (31% of mapped Brewster acres).

>99% of mapped Brewster acres is moderately well to excessively drained, which suits most garden plants.

For lawns and yards

On >99% of mapped acres, rain soaks in slowly (hydrologic groups C and D, including dual groups that are D until drained). Expect runoff and puddles after heavy rain: core-aerate compacted lawns and keep ground sloping away from foundations.

For a septic system

For conventional septic absorption fields, NRCS rates 99% of the acres in mapped Brewster soils very limited, 0% somewhat limited and 0% not limited (1% not rated, such as urban land, pits or water).

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.

Generated from the mapped numbers above using fixed rules, not a site visit. See how these notes are written.

Where Brewster soil is found

Mapped acres

Brewster is mapped in Texas, Arizona and New Mexico.

Counties with the most mapped Brewster soil
County Acres Share of county land
Jeff Davis County, TX 250,371 17.3%
Presidio County, TX 157,515 6.7%
Brewster County, TX 133,890 3.4%
Reeves County, TX 36,900 2.2%
Hudspeth County, TX 13,003 0.4%
Pecos County, TX 9,133 0.3%
Gila County, AZ 5,813 0.4%
Doña Ana County, NM 5,299 0.2%
El Paso County, TX 4,070 0.6%
Graham County, AZ 4,032 0.2%
Otero County, NM 1,508 0.0%

Septic absorption fields

NRCS rating, share of Brewster acres

Not limited 0%
Somewhat limited 0%
Very limited 99%
Not rated 1%
Septic tank absorption field rating across mapped Brewster acres. Scale 0 to 100% of mapped land.
Show as a table
Septic tank absorption field rating across mapped Brewster acres.
CategoryShare of acres
Not limited0.0%
Somewhat limited0.0%
Very limited98.7%
Not rated1.3%

Drainage, water table and flooding

Share of Brewster 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 8–40% (median 20%).
Topsoil organic matter
Median 3%.

Drainage class

Excessively drained 0%
Somewhat excessively drained 0%
Well drained >99%
Moderately well drained 0%
Somewhat poorly drained 0%
Poorly drained 0%
Very poorly drained 0%
Not rated <1%
Drainage class across mapped Brewster acres. Scale 0 to 100% of mapped land.
Show as a table
Drainage class across mapped Brewster acres.
CategoryShare of acres
Excessively drained0.0%
Somewhat excessively drained0.0%
Well drained99.7%
Moderately well drained0.0%
Somewhat poorly drained0.0%
Poorly drained0.0%
Very poorly drained0.0%
Not rated0.3%

Hydrologic soil group

A: fast infiltration (mostly sandy or gravelly) 0%
B: moderate infiltration 0%
C: slow infiltration 0%
D: very slow infiltration (clayey, shallow or wet) >99%
A/D: D as is, A if drained 0%
B/D: D as is, B if drained 0%
C/D: D as is, C if drained 0%
Not rated <1%
Hydrologic soil group across mapped Brewster acres. Scale 0 to 100% of mapped land.
Show as a table
Hydrologic soil group across mapped Brewster acres.
CategoryShare of acres
A: fast infiltration (mostly sandy or gravelly)0.0%
B: moderate infiltration0.0%
C: slow infiltration0.0%
D: very slow infiltration (clayey, shallow or wet)99.2%
A/D: D as is, A if drained0.0%
B/D: D as is, B if drained0.0%
C/D: D as is, C if drained0.0%
Not rated0.8%

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 Brewster (component kind "Series") in SSURGO: 621,532 acres.
Method
Shares are by mapped acres of Brewster components. The profile comes from the single largest Brewster component. Full methodology.

Independent reference site. No government affiliation or endorsement.

Full narrative description: USDA Official Soil Series Description for Brewster.