Soil series profile
Hickory soil series
Hickory is a well drained soil with a silt loam surface, mapped on 1,339,050 acres in 103 counties across 3 states. Hydrologic group B.
- Drainage class
- Well drained >99% of mapped acres
- Hydrologic group
- B 97% of mapped acres
- Typical topsoil pH
- 5.9 moderately acidic · range 5.6–6.6
- Mapped area
- 1.3M acres in 103 counties, 3 states
Typical Hickory profile
Texture and pH by depth
Show as a table
| Depth | Texture | pH | Clay | Sand | Organic matter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–4 in (A) | Silt loam | 5.8 | 15% | 25% | 4% |
| 4–12 in (E) | Loam | 5.8 | 13% | 42% | 1% |
| 12–26 in (Bt1) | Clay loam | 5.4 | 30% | 33% | 0.6% |
| 26–46 in (Bt2) | Clay loam | 5.4 | 28% | 36% | 0.3% |
| 46–60 in (Bt3) | Clay loam | 5.8 | 27% | 33% | 0.1% |
What this means
What Hickory soil means for gardens, lawns and septic systems
For gardens
Typical topsoil in Hickory soils is moderately acidic: pH 5.9 (most land between 5.6 and 6.6). Many vegetables grow well here, and some gardens benefit from a little lime. Test before adding any.
Loamy topsoil (loam, silt loam and similar) covers >99% of mapped Hickory acres: generally the easiest soil to garden, holding moisture without staying waterlogged. The most common surface texture is silt loam (80% of mapped Hickory acres).
>99% of mapped Hickory 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 81% of the acres in mapped Hickory soils very limited, 19% 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 Hickory soil is found
Mapped acres
Hickory is mapped in Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. The 60 counties with the most Hickory acres:
| County | Acres | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|
| Macoupin County, IL | 75,214 | 13.7% |
| Fulton County, IL | 65,337 | 12.2% |
| Fayette County, IL | 56,272 | 12.3% |
| Schuyler County, IL | 44,823 | 16.5% |
| Hancock County, IL | 37,821 | 7.6% |
| Montgomery County, IL | 36,168 | 8.1% |
| Mercer County, IL | 35,384 | 10.2% |
| Knox County, IL | 33,738 | 7.4% |
| Effingham County, IL | 32,114 | 10.5% |
| Clark County, IL | 31,408 | 10.0% |
| Shelby County, IL | 31,189 | 6.4% |
| Brown County, IL | 29,205 | 15.4% |
| Greene County, IL | 28,270 | 8.3% |
| Parke County, IN | 27,447 | 9.9% |
| Marion County, IL | 27,159 | 7.5% |
| Ripley County, IN | 26,979 | 9.5% |
| Madison County, IL | 26,838 | 6.0% |
| McDonough County, IL | 26,689 | 7.1% |
| Washington County, IL | 24,638 | 7.0% |
| Owen County, IN | 23,945 | 9.8% |
| Morgan County, IL | 22,522 | 6.2% |
| Rock Island County, IL | 22,172 | 8.5% |
| Peoria County, IL | 21,667 | 5.6% |
| Bond County, IL | 21,537 | 8.9% |
| Clay County, IL | 20,253 | 6.8% |
| Jefferson County, IL | 19,623 | 5.5% |
| Putnam County, IN | 18,579 | 6.1% |
| Henry County, IL | 17,358 | 3.4% |
| Adams County, IL | 17,006 | 3.3% |
| Williamson County, IL | 16,830 | 6.4% |
| Perry County, IL | 16,574 | 6.1% |
| Cumberland County, IL | 16,325 | 7.4% |
| Warren County, IL | 16,321 | 4.7% |
| Jasper County, IL | 15,778 | 5.0% |
| Vigo County, IN | 14,478 | 5.7% |
| Jennings County, IN | 14,311 | 5.9% |
| Jackson County, IL | 14,200 | 4.0% |
| Richland County, IL | 14,017 | 6.1% |
| Morgan County, IN | 13,978 | 5.5% |
| Warren County, OH | 13,673 | 5.4% |
| Jersey County, IL | 13,514 | 5.8% |
| Henderson County, IL | 12,196 | 5.3% |
| Highland County, OH | 11,695 | 3.3% |
| Sullivan County, IN | 11,494 | 4.1% |
| Randolph County, IL | 10,823 | 3.0% |
| Scott County, IL | 10,649 | 6.8% |
| Clermont County, OH | 10,626 | 3.7% |
| Greene County, IN | 10,542 | 3.1% |
| Crawford County, IL | 9,828 | 3.5% |
| Wayne County, IL | 9,362 | 2.1% |
| Christian County, IL | 9,212 | 2.0% |
| Jefferson County, IN | 9,134 | 4.0% |
| Sangamon County, IL | 8,907 | 1.6% |
| Wabash County, IL | 8,662 | 6.1% |
| Brown County, IN | 8,548 | 4.3% |
| Clay County, IN | 8,139 | 3.7% |
| Pike County, IL | 7,976 | 1.6% |
| White County, IL | 7,707 | 2.5% |
| Franklin County, IL | 6,702 | 2.6% |
| Monroe County, IL | 6,641 | 2.7% |
Septic absorption fields
NRCS rating, share of Hickory acres
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Not limited | 0.0% |
| Somewhat limited | 18.9% |
| Very limited | 80.8% |
| Not rated | 0.3% |
Drainage, water table and flooding
Share of Hickory 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 14–48% (median 27%).
- 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 | 99.8% |
| Moderately well drained | 0.0% |
| Somewhat poorly drained | 0.0% |
| Poorly drained | 0.0% |
| Very poorly drained | 0.0% |
| Not rated | 0.2% |
Hydrologic soil group
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| A: fast infiltration (mostly sandy or gravelly) | 0.0% |
| B: moderate infiltration | 96.9% |
| C: slow infiltration | 2.8% |
| 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% |
| Not rated | 0.3% |
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 Hickory (component kind "Series") in SSURGO: 1,339,050 acres.
- Method
- Shares are by mapped acres of Hickory components. The profile comes from the single largest Hickory component. Full methodology.