Soil series profile
Tavares soil series
Tavares is a moderately well drained soil with a fine sand surface, mapped on 400,769 acres in 32 counties in FL. Hydrologic group A.
- Drainage class
- Moderately well drained >99% of mapped acres
- Hydrologic group
- A 100% of mapped acres
- Typical topsoil pH
- 5.0 very strongly acidic · range 4.8–5.5
- Mapped area
- 401k acres in 32 counties, 1 state
Typical Tavares profile
Texture and pH by depth
Show as a table
| Depth | Texture | pH | Clay | Sand | Organic matter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–5 in (A) | Fine sand | 5.5 | 2% | 97% | 2% |
| 5–80 in (C) | Fine sand | 5.2 | 2% | 96% | 0.1% |
What this means
What Tavares soil means for gardens, lawns and septic systems
For gardens
Typical topsoil in Tavares soils is very strongly acidic: pH 5.0 (most land between 4.8 and 5.5). 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 100% of mapped Tavares 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 fine sand (66% of mapped Tavares acres).
>99% of mapped Tavares acres is moderately well to excessively drained, which suits most garden plants.
For lawns and yards
100% 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 >99% of the acres in mapped Tavares soils very limited, <1% 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 Tavares soil is found
Mapped acres
Tavares is mapped in Florida.
| County | Acres | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|
| Polk County, FL | 59,866 | 5.1% |
| Pasco County, FL | 41,004 | 8.6% |
| Marion County, FL | 32,920 | 3.1% |
| Lake County, FL | 29,704 | 4.9% |
| Citrus County, FL | 29,309 | 7.1% |
| Orange County, FL | 29,222 | 5.1% |
| Putnam County, FL | 21,558 | 4.6% |
| Alachua County, FL | 20,696 | 3.6% |
| Volusia County, FL | 18,776 | 2.7% |
| Levy County, FL | 18,270 | 2.5% |
| Sumter County, FL | 15,352 | 4.3% |
| Hillsborough County, FL | 13,546 | 2.0% |
| Highlands County, FL | 11,142 | 1.7% |
| Seminole County, FL | 9,883 | 5.0% |
| Hernando County, FL | 8,785 | 2.8% |
| St. Johns County, FL | 7,505 | 1.9% |
| Hardee County, FL | 7,201 | 1.8% |
| Pinellas County, FL | 6,504 | 3.0% |
| Osceola County, FL | 5,661 | 0.7% |
| Manatee County, FL | 4,065 | 0.8% |
| DeSoto County, FL | 3,973 | 1.0% |
| Brevard County, FL | 2,204 | 0.3% |
| Sarasota County, FL | 1,722 | 0.4% |
| Flagler County, FL | 1,329 | 0.4% |
| Glades County, FL | 143 | 0.0% |
| Indian River County, FL | 123 | 0.0% |
| Charlotte County, FL | 103 | 0.0% |
| Martin County, FL | 83 | 0.0% |
| Lee County, FL | 44 | 0.0% |
| Collier County, FL | 42 | 0.0% |
| Broward County, FL | 27 | 0.0% |
| Hendry County, FL | 6 | 0.0% |
Septic absorption fields
NRCS rating, share of Tavares acres
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Not limited | 0.0% |
| Somewhat limited | 0.1% |
| Very limited | 99.9% |
Drainage, water table and flooding
Share of Tavares acres
- Depth to seasonal high water table
- About 4.8 feet (57 in) (median where reported).
- Flooding
- Not mapped as flooding on most acres.
- Slope
- Typically 2–3% (median 3%).
- Topsoil organic matter
- Median 1.5%.
Drainage class
Show as a table
| Category | Share of acres |
|---|---|
| Excessively drained | 0.0% |
| Somewhat excessively drained | 0.0% |
| Well drained | 0.0% |
| Moderately well drained | 99.7% |
| Somewhat poorly drained | 0.3% |
| 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) | 100.0% |
| 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% |
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 Tavares (component kind "Series") in SSURGO: 400,769 acres.
- Method
- Shares are by mapped acres of Tavares components. The profile comes from the single largest Tavares component. Full methodology.