Natural Resources Conservation Service

Soils

United States Department of Agriculture

Block diagrams reduce the innumerable details of a crowded landscape to a relatively few simple lines. As such, they are very effective for communicating how and why soils differ from one place to another. Over 3,000 block diagrams are online.

Thumbnail of the Map of the Month for January.

NRCS is Open for Business

Your local NRCS offices will be open during the partial government shutdown. If you have business with NRCS or want to begin working with NRCS, our offices will be open. Click on the image or link above for more information.

Happy Belated World Soil Day!

Thanks to all who have gone on this journey with us into the wonderful world of soil. Our goal was to introduce and explore various aspects of soils and soil science. Hopefully, you will continue learning! Watch the video ...

Soil Colors - A Mosaic of Stories Told in Color

What do you get when you combine 26,000 official soil series descriptions (OSD), a handful of NRCS employees, and an idea? An evolving soil color map of the continental U.S., that’s what! See more ...

Soil colors at varying depths for the United States.

Updated Tools Page

The Tools web page has been re-designed to serve as a one-stop source for new, leading-edge tools and technologies to help farmers, ranchers, and other land users understand, evaluate, and conserve soils. (See the News Release.)