Soil series profile
Cowarts soil series
Cowarts is a well drained soil with a loamy sand surface, mapped on 1,166,473 acres in 90 counties across 5 states. Hydrologic group C.
- Drainage class
- Well drained 97% of mapped acres
- Hydrologic group
- C 77% of mapped acres
- Typical topsoil pH
- 5.3 strongly acidic · range 5.0–5.3
- Mapped area
- 1.2M acres in 90 counties, 5 states
Typical Cowarts profile
Texture and pH by depth
Show as a table
| Depth | Texture | pH | Clay | Sand | Organic matter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–9 in (H1) | Loamy sand | 5.2 | 7% | 84% | 0.75% |
| 9–16 in (H2) | Sandy loam | 5.0 | 13% | 68% | 0.25% |
| 16–34 in (H3) | Sandy clay loam | 5.0 | 30% | 56% | 0.25% |
| 34–60 in (H4) | Sandy clay loam | 5.2 | 27% | 56% | 0.25% |
What this means
What Cowarts soil means for gardens, lawns and septic systems
For gardens
Typical topsoil in Cowarts soils is strongly acidic: pH 5.3 (most land between 5.0 and 5.3). Most vegetables and lawn grasses do best around 6.0 to 7.0, so lime is often needed; blueberries, azaleas and rhododendrons like it as it is.
Sandy topsoil covers 81% of mapped Cowarts 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 loamy sand (78% of mapped Cowarts acres).
100% of mapped Cowarts acres is moderately well to excessively drained, which suits most garden plants.
For lawns and yards
On 77% 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 37% of the acres in mapped Cowarts soils very limited, 55% somewhat limited and 7% not limited.
Only a licensed site evaluation or perc test at the actual lot decides whether a system is allowed and which design.
Where Cowarts soil is found
Mapped acres
Cowarts is mapped in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina. The 60 counties with the most Cowarts acres:
| County | Acres | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|
| Pike County, AL | 75,546 | 19.9% |
| Taylor County, GA | 64,525 | 26.7% |
| Barbour County, AL | 57,826 | 12.1% |
| Stewart County, GA | 55,820 | 21.8% |
| Crawford County, GA | 47,180 | 22.9% |
| Covington County, AL | 46,608 | 7.9% |
| Macon County, AL | 31,992 | 9.3% |
| Emanuel County, GA | 31,445 | 8.1% |
| Marion County, GA | 25,581 | 11.0% |
| Randolph County, GA | 25,019 | 10.8% |
| Laurens County, GA | 24,631 | 5.5% |
| Treutlen County, GA | 24,316 | 20.9% |
| Screven County, GA | 23,284 | 6.6% |
| Jenkins County, GA | 22,832 | 11.5% |
| Quitman County, GA | 20,836 | 24.3% |
| Toombs County, GA | 19,836 | 9.4% |
| Lee County, AL | 19,801 | 5.8% |
| Telfair County, GA | 19,735 | 7.9% |
| Burke County, GA | 19,006 | 4.1% |
| Dodge County, GA | 18,281 | 6.7% |
| Turner County, GA | 17,104 | 10.8% |
| Wilcox County, GA | 16,773 | 7.9% |
| Crisp County, GA | 16,401 | 10.9% |
| Bulloch County, GA | 15,976 | 4.1% |
| Russell County, AL | 15,453 | 4.3% |
| Montgomery County, GA | 14,964 | 10.8% |
| Gadsden County, FL | 14,704 | 4.5% |
| Washington County, GA | 14,702 | 3.9% |
| Grady County, GA | 13,756 | 5.7% |
| Talbot County, GA | 13,632 | 5.5% |
| Johnson County, GA | 13,232 | 8.0% |
| Wheeler County, GA | 12,996 | 7.5% |
| Bullock County, AL | 12,260 | 3.5% |
| Clay County, GA | 11,992 | 11.2% |
| Chattahoochee County, GA | 11,730 | 8.9% |
| Tallapoosa County, AL | 11,722 | 2.9% |
| Worth County, GA | 11,636 | 3.7% |
| Decatur County, GA | 11,246 | 3.5% |
| Twiggs County, GA | 11,033 | 5.1% |
| Allendale County, SC | 10,625 | 2.8% |
| Ben Hill County, GA | 10,072 | 7.1% |
| Bibb County, GA | 9,750 | 6.2% |
| Washington County, FL | 9,620 | 2.5% |
| Jeff Davis County, GA | 9,175 | 4.3% |
| Candler County, GA | 8,620 | 6.4% |
| Dooly County, GA | 8,013 | 3.6% |
| Appling County, GA | 7,590 | 2.3% |
| Johnston County, NC | 7,496 | 1.6% |
| Wilkinson County, GA | 7,211 | 2.9% |
| Webster County, GA | 7,182 | 6.3% |
| Jefferson County, GA | 7,118 | 2.4% |
| Glascock County, GA | 7,028 | 8.6% |
| Marlboro County, SC | 6,807 | 2.3% |
| Coffee County, GA | 6,746 | 1.8% |
| Colquitt County, GA | 6,732 | 2.2% |
| Houston County, AL | 6,633 | 2.0% |
| Tift County, GA | 6,506 | 4.2% |
| Tattnall County, GA | 6,124 | 2.2% |
| Darlington County, SC | 6,009 | 1.8% |
| Walton County, FL | 5,691 | 0.8% |
Septic absorption fields
NRCS rating, share of Cowarts acres
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Not limited | 7.4% |
| Somewhat limited | 55.2% |
| Very limited | 37.4% |
Drainage, water table and flooding
Share of Cowarts acres
- Depth to seasonal high water table
- About 3.6 feet (43 in) (median where reported).
- Flooding
- Not mapped as flooding on most acres.
- Slope
- Typically 3–19% (median 7%).
- Topsoil organic matter
- Median 1.2%.
Drainage class
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Excessively drained | 0.0% |
| Somewhat excessively drained | 0.0% |
| Well drained | 97.2% |
| Moderately well drained | 2.8% |
| 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 | 22.8% |
| C: slow infiltration | 77.1% |
| 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 Cowarts (component kind "Series") in SSURGO: 1,166,473 acres.
- Method
- Shares are by mapped acres of Cowarts components. The profile comes from the single largest Cowarts component. Full methodology.