we're looking at a piece of property on the nash county gis site, and they'll map soil types for you but the legend isn't very helpful in explaining what the different types are. it only says things like GuB, GrC, etc and i'm having a hard time finding an explanation for these codes w/ google. can anybody help me out?

10/4/2007 9:41:15 AM

Go to the natural resources library and find the soil survey for Nash County. Its a book of soil maps for the whole county. They're normally very old. The one I use at work for Wake County is from the 70's. It'll have detailed descriptions of each soil type, including what types of land use they are appropriate for.

10/4/2007 9:56:49 AM

i'm in rocky mount, and i'm assuming that this natural resources library you speak of is on ncsu campus, so that's a no go. but thanks anyway (:

or if anyone knows what the following codes mean, that'd work too. the list is very hard to read so i had a hard time telling o from a in some cases:

GeE
GuB
BoB or BaB
GgE
GoA or GaA

*crosses fingers*

[Edited on October 4, 2007 at 10:17 AM. Reason : ]

10/4/2007 10:04:31 AM

Well, your local library is always worth a try.


Is this helpful?

http://digital.lib.ecu.edu/historyfiction/fullview.aspx?id=len

[Edited on October 4, 2007 at 10:20 AM. Reason : .]


CHECK THIS OUT. YOU CAN SEARCH FOR THEM HERE (I THINK):
http://ortho.ftw.nrcs.usda.gov/cgi-bin/osd/osdname.cgi

[Edited on October 4, 2007 at 10:34 AM. Reason : .]

10/4/2007 10:17:57 AM

call off the dogs...found it.

10/4/2007 11:44:36 AM

I'm a soil science major....

10/4/2007 8:16:24 PM

each county has it's own bullshit codes for soil types


the legend should at least give you an idea

what are you looking for?

I know a little bit about soil types, I might can help depending on what you're trying to figure out

10/4/2007 8:18:47 PM

If you are looking to buy a chunk of land Im going to give you some really good free advice. Stop what you are doing til you get it mapped by a Liscensed Soil Scientist or some one from the health department if its a single lot or if you only need one house site.

[standard spill given to everyone about soil]
Nash County has three or four soil systems coming together. Part of it is coastal plain, part of it is acid crystaline like the red stuff here in raleigh, some of it is slate belt similar to what is around chapel hill. I have found areas that are shallow to rock, clay that is expansive, and high water tables. It is a very complex place from a soil standpoint. generally you only find one or two of these limiting factors at a time.

it is also important to consider that the map you are using was made for what you are using it for but does not have the resolution you need, the lines can be substantially off since it was drawn with a pencil on an air photo, symbols can be transposed. Some soil surveys are pretty close, Person county was done really well, I have seen clients get burned bad by buying based on the Johnston county soil survey. Also, all soils have a range of characteristics, GeB( assuming its Georgeville) can be deep red clay from 40 to 60 inches, GoA ( assuming its Goldsboro) can have a seasonal high watertable from 18 to 30 inches, 30 is great for regular cheap septic systems, if its at 18 you are looking at a much more expensive/complicated system. and if its actually Rains series that has been mapped as goldsboro, you are SOL.

[/standard spill given to everyone about soil]


Pm if you need some help, this what I do for a living.

[Edited on October 4, 2007 at 9:16 PM. Reason : I majored in dirt ]

10/4/2007 9:14:55 PM

call your county extension office.

tell them what kind of info you need help with and they should be able to transfer you to an agent who can help you

you can look up info for your local extension office at http://www.ces.ncsu.edu

10/5/2007 12:17:43 PM

^^that's absolutely the best advice I've seen in some time.

I wish every potential landowner did this. Usually, we see folks do this after the fact, after they've bought land to either a) develop or b)use for their own homesite...and then find that they are pretty much screwed when their plans go down the drain.

My father is a licensed soil scientist in both NC and VA, and I have worked for him for at least 7 years doing soils mapping and assisting in subdivision planning. You really do need to get a professional opinion if you're in the market to buy land for one or more homesites.

We cover Wake, Johnston, Granville, Franklin, Wilson, Vance, Warren, Nash, Chatham, Wayne, Harnett, Durham, and Person Counties. I'm sure I've left a county or so out, but those are the ones that I've worked in.

10/5/2007 12:29:36 PM