Soil series profile
Harney soil series
Harney is a well drained soil with a silt loam surface, mapped on 3,889,386 acres in 51 counties across 2 states. Hydrologic group C.
- Drainage class
- Well drained 100% of mapped acres
- Hydrologic group
- C 100% of mapped acres
- Typical topsoil pH
- 6.3 slightly acidic · range 6.3–6.7
- Mapped area
- 3.9M acres in 51 counties, 2 states
Typical Harney profile
Texture and pH by depth
Show as a table
| Depth | Texture | pH | Clay | Sand | Organic matter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–6 in (Ap) | Silt loam | 6.3 | 24% | 8% | 2.3% |
| 6–11 in (A) | Silty clay loam | 6.8 | 28% | 5% | 1.75% |
| 11–14 in (Bt1) | Silty clay loam | 7.1 | 37% | 4% | 1.35% |
| 14–27 in (Bt2) | Silty clay loam | 7.3 | 39% | 4% | 0.7% |
| 27–35 in (Bk) | Silty clay loam | 7.9 | 32% | 5% | 0.6% |
| 35–79 in (C) | Silt loam | 7.9 | 24% | 6% | 0.4% |
What this means
What Harney soil means for gardens, lawns and septic systems
For gardens
Typical topsoil in Harney soils is slightly acidic: pH 6.3 (most land between 6.3 and 6.7), the range most vegetables, flowers and lawn grasses prefer.
Loamy topsoil (loam, silt loam and similar) covers 100% of mapped Harney acres: generally the easiest soil to garden, holding moisture without staying waterlogged. The most common surface texture is silt loam (88% of mapped Harney acres).
100% of mapped Harney acres is moderately well to excessively drained, which suits most garden plants.
For lawns and yards
On 100% 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 96% of the acres in mapped Harney soils very limited, 4% somewhat limited and 0% 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 Harney soil is found
Mapped acres
Harney is mapped in Kansas and Nebraska.
| County | Acres | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|
| Ford County, KS | 346,419 | 49.3% |
| Ness County, KS | 341,530 | 49.7% |
| Rush County, KS | 264,482 | 57.6% |
| Hodgeman County, KS | 238,951 | 43.4% |
| Jewell County, KS | 224,030 | 38.5% |
| Mitchell County, KS | 214,626 | 47.9% |
| Pawnee County, KS | 204,397 | 42.5% |
| Osborne County, KS | 200,550 | 35.1% |
| Barton County, KS | 179,975 | 32.0% |
| Meade County, KS | 175,543 | 28.0% |
| Ellis County, KS | 152,785 | 26.5% |
| Russell County, KS | 145,628 | 25.8% |
| Rooks County, KS | 142,904 | 25.0% |
| Smith County, KS | 130,629 | 22.8% |
| Lane County, KS | 115,889 | 25.2% |
| Lincoln County, KS | 112,558 | 24.5% |
| Ellsworth County, KS | 105,744 | 23.1% |
| Trego County, KS | 99,816 | 17.4% |
| Gray County, KS | 85,172 | 15.3% |
| Clark County, KS | 82,844 | 13.3% |
| Kiowa County, KS | 76,672 | 16.6% |
| Edwards County, KS | 75,040 | 18.9% |
| Gove County, KS | 68,072 | 9.9% |
| Phillips County, KS | 28,298 | 5.0% |
| Finney County, KS | 11,772 | 1.4% |
| Decatur County, KS | 10,895 | 1.9% |
| Graham County, KS | 9,704 | 1.7% |
| Seward County, KS | 7,478 | 1.8% |
| Cloud County, KS | 7,012 | 1.5% |
| Howard County, NE | 5,619 | 1.5% |
| Norton County, KS | 4,712 | 0.8% |
| Furnas County, NE | 3,659 | 0.8% |
| Ottawa County, KS | 3,567 | 0.8% |
| Frontier County, NE | 3,382 | 0.5% |
| Republic County, KS | 1,962 | 0.4% |
| Comanche County, KS | 1,504 | 0.3% |
| Gosper County, NE | 1,352 | 0.5% |
| Haskell County, KS | 1,326 | 0.4% |
| Harlan County, NE | 691 | 0.2% |
| Franklin County, NE | 626 | 0.2% |
| Sheridan County, KS | 621 | 0.1% |
| Lincoln County, NE | 594 | 0.0% |
| Red Willow County, NE | 179 | 0.0% |
| Webster County, NE | 61 | 0.0% |
| Wichita County, KS | 35 | 0.0% |
| Phelps County, NE | 26 | 0.0% |
| Dawson County, NE | 19 | 0.0% |
| Stafford County, KS | 12 | 0.0% |
| Rice County, KS | 11 | 0.0% |
| McPherson County, KS | 7 | 0.0% |
| Pratt County, KS | 3 | 0.0% |
Septic absorption fields
NRCS rating, share of Harney acres
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Not limited | 0.0% |
| Somewhat limited | 4.4% |
| Very limited | 95.6% |
Drainage, water table and flooding
Share of Harney 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 1–5% (median 2%).
- Topsoil organic matter
- Median 2.3%.
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) | 0.0% |
| B: moderate infiltration | 0.0% |
| C: slow infiltration | 100.0% |
| 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 Harney (component kind "Series") in SSURGO: 3,889,386 acres.
- Method
- Shares are by mapped acres of Harney components. The profile comes from the single largest Harney component. Full methodology.