Note: soil composition organic matter, sand, silt and clay are percentage by dry weight


Pennsylvania Soils and Landforms

This is the companion website for readers of three books on the subject of sustainable landscaping in Pennsylvania. Soil research has led to the ability to define habitat to areas smaller than an acre, using regular street addresses, free to the consumer and identifiable within minutes.

Users will discover a symbol for their "area of interest" (AOI). Listed here are all the codes for the 67 counties and specific and useful explanationa about what they mean (the soil series portion of the website). There is no cost or obligation connected to this data.

The National Resource Conservation Service (formerly the US Soil Service) of the USDA has mapped nearly all of the United States in terms of soil types and, through two free online services, landscapers can easily identify soils within a half acre of any location in Pennsylvania. How to find your soil. All data are organized by counties.

Books discussing how to apply this information, produced by Pennystone, include:

Pennsylvania Naturally, the most comprehensive presentation on the relationship between soil combinations and subsequent habitat and what species of plants will do best; appendixes share detailed information on all the soils and how to grow all the species recognized as native to the commonwealth.

Pennsylvania Native Plants / Perennials: Habitat and Culture is a handy reference to commercially available species, how to grow them, and a quick discussion on sustainable design, applicable statewide.

A Gardener's Guide to Native Plants of Northeastern Pennsylvania was created for those interested in ecosystems of the four northeastern counties: Carnon, Monroe, Pike and Wayne. It reviews more than 50 forest systems and all the species appropriate for the region.