Soil Series Atlas

Richfield soil series

Fine, smectitic, mesic Aridic Argiustolls

050100150cm1 ft2 ft3 ft4 ftApTopsoil · plowed0–15 cm · 0–6 inBtSubsoil · clay build-up15–41 cm · 6–16 inBCk1Subsoil grading to parent material · lime(carbonate) build-up41–51 cm · 16–20 inBCk2Subsoil grading to parent material · lime(carbonate) build-up51–76 cm · 20–30 inCParent material76–152 cm · 30–60 in050100150cmApTopsoil · plowed0–15 cm · 0–6 inBtSubsoil · clay build-up15–41 cm · 6–16 inBCk1Subsoil grading toparent material · lime(carbonate) build-up41–51 cm · 16–20 inBCk2Subsoil grading toparent material · lime(carbonate) build-up51–76 cm · 20–30 inCParent material76–152 cm · 30–60 in
Typical pedon, to scale: 152 cm (60 in), 5 horizons.

Mollisols — soils with a thick, dark, organic-rich topsoil

With 2.58 million acres mapped, Richfield is the 22nd-largest of 24,791 U.S. soil series. In Kansas only two series cover more ground. It is the largest of the 25 established series in its family.

Depth
Very deep
Drainage
Well drained
Water movement
Moderately high

Compare with another seriesSimilar series in the finder

Where Richfield is mapped

2,581,668 acres in 40 soil survey areas, from current SSURGO data.

AlabamaArizonaColorado: 313,281 acresFloridaGeorgiaIndianaKansas: 2,162,624 acresMaineMassachusettsMinnesotaNew JerseyNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOklahomaPennsylvaniaSouth Dakota: 57,729 acresTexasWyomingConnecticutMissouriWest VirginiaIllinoisNew MexicoArkansasCaliforniaDelawareDistrict of ColumbiaIowaKentuckyMarylandMichiganMississippiMontana: 20,313 acresNew HampshireNew YorkOhioOregonTennesseeUtahVirginiaWashingtonWisconsinNebraska: 27,721 acresSouth CarolinaIdahoNevadaVermontLouisianaRhode Island

Share of all Richfield acres

  1. Kansas84%
  2. Colorado12%
  3. South Dakota2%
  4. Nebraska1%
  5. Montana0.8%
  • Rank in the state · share of its mapped soil
  • Kansas 3rd of 452 · 4.24%
  • Colorado 28th of 1,609 · 0.64%

In the field

Drainage

Well drained

Drains fastStays wet

Soil depth

Very deep

ShallowDeep

Water movement (Ksat)

Moderately high

SlowFast
Parent material
Loess
Landform
Plateaus/tablelands
Type location
Kansas

How it is classified

  1. OrderMollisols
  2. SuborderUstolls
  3. Great groupArgiustolls
  4. SubgroupAridic Argiustolls
  5. FamilyFine, smectitic, mesic Aridic Argiustollsfine particle-size classsmectitic mineralogy classmesic soil temperature regime

Against other Mollisols

Richfield makes up 0.59% of all mapped Mollisols — the 10th largest of 7,593 series in the order.

Solum thickness (topsoil + subsoil)

76 cm under a median of 104 cm

Depth to the subsoil

15 cm under a median of 25 cm

Its relatives

24 other established series share the family “Fine, smectitic, mesic Aridic Argiustolls”

  1. Richfield2.6 M
  2. Nunn865 k
  3. Weld790 k
  4. Thunderbird688 k
  5. Showlow209 k
  6. Savo135 k
  7. Blackpipe87 k
  8. Nuncho79 k
  9. Emigrant65 k

Close relatives, at one scale

  1. Richfield152 cm · Aridic Argiustolls
  2. Scobey152 cm · Aridic Argiustolls
  3. Keith152 cm · Aridic Argiustolls
  4. Harney152 cm · Typic Argiustolls

Horizon by horizon

HorizonLayerDepthThickness
ApTopsoil: plowed0–15 cm0–6 in15 cm
BtSubsoil: clay build-up15–41 cm6–16 in26 cm
BCk1Subsoil grading to parent material: lime (carbonate) build-up41–51 cm16–20 in10 cm
BCk2Subsoil grading to parent material: lime (carbonate) build-up51–76 cm20–30 in25 cm
CParent material76–152 cm30–60 in76 cm

Sources: USDA–NRCS Official Series Description (revised 2006-01), Soil Classification database and SSURGO. Ranks computed by Soil Series Atlas. Method · Guides