Soil Series Atlas

Tifton soil series

Fine-loamy, kaolinitic, thermic Plinthic Kandiudults

050100150200cm1 ft2 ft3 ft4 ft5 ft6 ftApcTopsoil · concretions, plowed0–28 cm · 0–11 inBtc1Subsoil · clay build-up, concretions28–56 cm · 11–22 inBtc2Subsoil · clay build-up, concretions56–102 cm · 22–40 inBtv1Subsoil · clay build-up, plinthite102–127 cm · 40–50 inBtv2Subsoil · clay build-up, plinthite127–152 cm · 50–60 inBCtSubsoil grading to parent material · claybuild-up152–165 cm · 60–65 inCParent material165–203 cm · 65–80 in050100150200cmApcTopsoil · concretions,plowed0–28 cm · 0–11 inBtc1Subsoil · claybuild-up, concretions28–56 cm · 11–22 inBtc2Subsoil · claybuild-up, concretions56–102 cm · 22–40 inBtv1Subsoil · claybuild-up, plinthite102–127 cm · 40–50 inBtv2Subsoil · claybuild-up, plinthite127–152 cm · 50–60 inBCtSubsoil grading toparent material · claybuild-up152–165 cm · 60–65 inCParent material165–203 cm · 65–80 in
Typical pedon, to scale: 203 cm (80 in), 7 horizons.

Ultisols — strongly weathered, leached soils with a clay-enriched subsoil

Tifton is mapped on 1.84 million acres in 3 states, 48th nationally by area. In Georgia only one series covers more ground. Besides it, only Orangeburg and Troup belong to the great group Kandiudults in this atlas. 97% of its acres lie in Georgia. It is the state soil of Georgia.

Depth
Very deep
Drainage
Well drained
Water movement
Moderately high

Compare with another seriesSimilar series in the finder

Where Tifton is mapped

1,844,296 acres in 48 soil survey areas, from current SSURGO data.

Alabama: 35,578 acresArizonaColoradoFlorida: 26,232 acresGeorgia: 1,782,486 acresIndianaKansasMaineMassachusettsMinnesotaNew JerseyNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOklahomaPennsylvaniaSouth DakotaTexasWyomingConnecticutMissouriWest VirginiaIllinoisNew MexicoArkansasCaliforniaDelawareDistrict of ColumbiaIowaKentuckyMarylandMichiganMississippiMontanaNew HampshireNew YorkOhioOregonTennesseeUtahVirginiaWashingtonWisconsinNebraskaSouth CarolinaIdahoNevadaVermontLouisianaRhode Island

Share of all Tifton acres

  1. Georgia97%
  2. Alabama2%
  3. Florida1%
  • Rank in the state · share of its mapped soil
  • Georgia 2nd of 327 · 5.38%

In the field

Drainage

Well drained

Drains fastStays wet

Soil depth

Very deep

ShallowDeep

Water movement (Ksat)

Moderately high

SlowFast
Parent material
Marine/coastal plain sediments
Landform
Ridges/interfluves, hills
Type location
Georgia

How it is classified

  1. OrderUltisols
  2. SuborderUdults
  3. Great groupKandiudults
  4. SubgroupPlinthic Kandiudults
  5. FamilyFine-loamy, kaolinitic, thermic Plinthic Kandiudultsfine-loamy particle-size classkaolinitic mineralogy classthermic soil temperature regime

Against other Ultisols

Tifton makes up 0.98% of all mapped Ultisols — the 14th largest of 1,278 series in the order.

Solum thickness (topsoil + subsoil)

165 cm over a median of 142 cm

Depth to the subsoil

28 cm over a median of 23 cm

Depth described

203 cm over a median of 178 cm

Its relatives

1 other established series share the family “Fine-loamy, kaolinitic, thermic Plinthic Kandiudults”

  1. Tifton1.8 M
  2. Dothan1.8 M

Close relatives, at one scale

  1. Tifton203 cm · Plinthic Kandiudults
  2. Troup203 cm · Grossarenic Kandiudults
  3. Orangeburg183 cm · Typic Kandiudults

Horizon by horizon

HorizonLayerDepthThickness
ApcTopsoil: concretions, plowed0–28 cm0–11 in28 cm
Btc1Subsoil: clay build-up, concretions28–56 cm11–22 in28 cm
Btc2Subsoil: clay build-up, concretions56–102 cm22–40 in46 cm
Btv1Subsoil: clay build-up, plinthite102–127 cm40–50 in25 cm
Btv2Subsoil: clay build-up, plinthite127–152 cm50–60 in25 cm
BCtSubsoil grading to parent material: clay build-up152–165 cm60–65 in13 cm
CParent material165–203 cm65–80 in38 cm

Sources: USDA–NRCS Official Series Description (revised 2026-01), Soil Classification database and SSURGO. Ranks computed by Soil Series Atlas. Method · Guides