Soil series profile
Nobscot soil series
Nobscot is a well drained soil with a sand surface, mapped on 637,095 acres in 45 counties across 3 states. Hydrologic group A.
- Drainage class
- Well drained >99% of mapped acres
- Hydrologic group
- A 98% of mapped acres
- Typical topsoil pH
- 6.5 slightly acidic · range 6.5–6.5
- Mapped area
- 637k acres in 45 counties, 3 states
Typical Nobscot profile
Texture and pH by depth
Show as a table
| Depth | Texture | pH | Clay | Sand | Organic matter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–12 in (A) | Sand | 6.5 | 3% | 96% | 0.75% |
| 12–24 in (E) | Sand | 6.5 | 4% | 94% | 0.75% |
| 24–41 in (Bt1) | Sandy loam | 5.8 | 12% | 65% | 0.25% |
| 41–69 in (Bt2) | Loamy sand | 5.8 | 8% | 83% | 0.25% |
| 69–80 in (BC) | Fine sand | 6.7 | 3% | 94% | 0.25% |
What this means
What Nobscot soil means for gardens, lawns and septic systems
For gardens
Typical topsoil in Nobscot soils is slightly acidic: pH 6.5, the range most vegetables, flowers and lawn grasses prefer.
Sandy topsoil covers 97% of mapped Nobscot 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 sand (53% of mapped Nobscot acres).
>99% of mapped Nobscot acres is moderately well to excessively drained, which suits most garden plants.
For lawns and yards
98% of mapped acres is in hydrologic group A, where water soaks in fast. Lawns there dry out quickly; deeper, less frequent watering and organic matter help.
For a septic system
For conventional septic absorption fields, NRCS rates 97% of the acres in mapped Nobscot soils very limited, 0% somewhat limited and 0% not limited (3% 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.
Where Nobscot soil is found
Mapped acres
Nobscot is mapped in Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas.
| County | Acres | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|
| Roger Mills County, OK | 101,285 | 13.8% |
| Major County, OK | 83,221 | 13.7% |
| Ellis County, OK | 78,098 | 9.9% |
| Beckham County, OK | 62,162 | 10.8% |
| Stonewall County, TX | 49,133 | 8.4% |
| Dewey County, OK | 44,258 | 6.9% |
| Wheeler County, TX | 44,015 | 7.5% |
| Woodward County, OK | 42,106 | 5.1% |
| Blaine County, OK | 33,917 | 5.7% |
| Cottle County, TX | 16,155 | 2.8% |
| Jones County, TX | 13,991 | 2.4% |
| Haskell County, TX | 11,892 | 2.1% |
| Motley County, TX | 11,619 | 1.8% |
| Garza County, TX | 6,420 | 1.1% |
| Childress County, TX | 4,685 | 1.0% |
| Donley County, TX | 3,925 | 0.7% |
| Harmon County, OK | 3,640 | 1.1% |
| Greer County, OK | 3,615 | 0.9% |
| Knox County, TX | 3,523 | 0.6% |
| Hardeman County, TX | 3,011 | 0.7% |
| Hall County, TX | 2,771 | 0.5% |
| Hemphill County, TX | 2,378 | 0.4% |
| King County, TX | 2,154 | 0.4% |
| Wilbarger County, TX | 1,626 | 0.3% |
| Mitchell County, TX | 1,242 | 0.2% |
| Gray County, TX | 1,118 | 0.2% |
| Woods County, OK | 1,052 | 0.1% |
| Collingsworth County, TX | 1,036 | 0.2% |
| Fisher County, TX | 837 | 0.1% |
| Kent County, TX | 506 | 0.1% |
| Scurry County, TX | 357 | 0.1% |
| Foard County, TX | 324 | 0.1% |
| Alfalfa County, OK | 248 | 0.0% |
| Jackson County, OK | 247 | 0.0% |
| Clark County, KS | 136 | 0.0% |
| Borden County, TX | 77 | 0.0% |
| Coke County, TX | 50 | 0.0% |
| Custer County, OK | 42 | 0.0% |
| Comanche County, KS | 40 | 0.0% |
| Briscoe County, TX | 38 | 0.0% |
| Crosby County, TX | 37 | 0.0% |
| Cotton County, OK | 35 | 0.0% |
| Harper County, OK | 35 | 0.0% |
| Tillman County, OK | 25 | 0.0% |
| Barber County, KS | 14 | 0.0% |
Septic absorption fields
NRCS rating, share of Nobscot acres
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Not limited | 0.0% |
| Somewhat limited | 0.0% |
| Very limited | 96.8% |
| Not rated | 3.2% |
Drainage, water table and flooding
Share of Nobscot 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 3–10% (median 3%).
- Topsoil organic matter
- Median 0.8%.
Drainage class
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Excessively drained | 0.0% |
| Somewhat excessively drained | 0.0% |
| Well drained | 99.6% |
| Moderately well drained | 0.0% |
| Somewhat poorly drained | 0.0% |
| Poorly drained | 0.0% |
| Very poorly drained | 0.0% |
| Not rated | 0.4% |
Hydrologic soil group
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| A: fast infiltration (mostly sandy or gravelly) | 98.3% |
| B: moderate infiltration | 0.0% |
| C: slow infiltration | 0.0% |
| 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% |
| Not rated | 1.7% |
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 Nobscot (component kind "Series") in SSURGO: 637,095 acres.
- Method
- Shares are by mapped acres of Nobscot components. The profile comes from the single largest Nobscot component. Full methodology.