Soil series profile
Poynor soil series
Poynor is a well drained soil with a very gravelly silt loam surface, mapped on 920,322 acres in 43 counties across 3 states. Hydrologic group B.
- Drainage class
- Well drained 100% of mapped acres
- Hydrologic group
- B 99% of mapped acres
- Typical topsoil pH
- 4.8 very strongly acidic · range 4.5–5.4
- Mapped area
- 920k acres in 43 counties, 3 states
Typical Poynor profile
Texture and pH by depth
Show as a table
| Depth | Texture | pH | Clay | Sand | Organic matter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–4 in (A) | Very gravelly silt loam | 5.0 | 12% | 22% | 0.75% |
| 4–10 in (E) | Very gravelly silt loam | 4.8 | 10% | 12% | 0.75% |
| 10–28 in (Bt1) | Very gravelly silty clay loam | 4.8 | 28% | 9% | 0.25% |
| 28–79 in (2Bt2) | Clay | 4.3 | 60% | 10% | 0.25% |
What this means
What Poynor soil means for gardens, lawns and septic systems
For gardens
Typical topsoil in Poynor soils is very strongly acidic: pH 4.8 (most land between 4.5 and 5.4). 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.
Loamy topsoil (loam, silt loam and similar) covers 100% of mapped Poynor acres: generally the easiest soil to garden, holding moisture without staying waterlogged. The most common surface texture is very gravelly silt loam (54% of mapped Poynor acres).
100% of mapped Poynor 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 27% of the acres in mapped Poynor soils very limited, 73% somewhat limited and 0% not limited.
Only a licensed site evaluation or perc test at the actual lot decides whether a system is allowed and which design.
Where Poynor soil is found
Mapped acres
Poynor is mapped in Missouri, Virginia and Arkansas.
| County | Acres | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|
| Douglas County, MO | 108,034 | 20.7% |
| Texas County, MO | 99,325 | 13.2% |
| Camden County, MO | 83,300 | 19.9% |
| Howell County, MO | 71,897 | 12.1% |
| Wright County, MO | 58,632 | 13.4% |
| Oregon County, MO | 55,726 | 11.0% |
| Shannon County, MO | 49,437 | 7.7% |
| Pulaski County, MO | 48,700 | 13.9% |
| Laclede County, MO | 41,191 | 8.4% |
| Benton County, MO | 40,023 | 8.9% |
| Ripley County, MO | 38,598 | 9.6% |
| Reynolds County, MO | 38,343 | 7.4% |
| Ozark County, MO | 35,449 | 7.4% |
| Wayne County, MO | 29,848 | 6.2% |
| Christian County, MO | 24,601 | 6.8% |
| Carter County, MO | 21,402 | 6.6% |
| Phelps County, MO | 16,964 | 3.9% |
| Madison County, MO | 14,076 | 4.4% |
| Bollinger County, MO | 7,119 | 1.8% |
| Dent County, MO | 6,365 | 1.3% |
| Barry County, MO | 5,892 | 1.2% |
| Iron County, MO | 5,000 | 1.4% |
| Butler County, MO | 4,266 | 1.0% |
| Newton County, MO | 3,045 | 0.8% |
| Smyth County, VA | 2,674 | 1.5% |
| Lawrence County, MO | 1,815 | 0.5% |
| McDonald County, MO | 1,760 | 0.5% |
| Webster County, MO | 1,645 | 0.4% |
| Sharp County, AR | 808 | 0.2% |
| Stone County, MO | 719 | 0.2% |
| Randolph County, AR | 657 | 0.2% |
| Taney County, MO | 655 | 0.2% |
| Crawford County, MO | 511 | 0.1% |
| Cape Girardeau County, MO | 464 | 0.1% |
| Hickory County, MO | 458 | 0.2% |
| Stone County, AR | 260 | 0.1% |
| St. Francois County, MO | 200 | 0.1% |
| Greene County, MO | 134 | 0.0% |
| Dallas County, MO | 126 | 0.0% |
| Washington County, MO | 81 | 0.0% |
| Henry County, MO | 78 | 0.0% |
| Perry County, MO | 43 | 0.0% |
| Franklin County, MO | 0 | 0.0% |
Septic absorption fields
NRCS rating, share of Poynor acres
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Not limited | 0.0% |
| Somewhat limited | 72.7% |
| Very limited | 27.3% |
Drainage, water table and flooding
Share of Poynor 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 6–25% (median 12%).
- Topsoil organic matter
- Median 2%.
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 | 98.6% |
| C: slow infiltration | 0.0% |
| D: very slow infiltration (clayey, shallow or wet) | 1.4% |
| 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 Poynor (component kind "Series") in SSURGO: 920,322 acres.
- Method
- Shares are by mapped acres of Poynor components. The profile comes from the single largest Poynor component. Full methodology.