Myakka soil is the official

state soil This is a list of U.S. state soils. A state soil is a soil that has special significance to a particular U.S. state, state. Each state in the United States has selected a state soil, twenty of which have been legislatively established. These offic ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, which has more than of land composed partly or entirely of Myakka soils, out of its total acreage of . Its name derives from a Native American word that means "Big Waters". This soil is primarily located in broad flatwoods in irregularly shaped areas ranging from 5 to 500 acres in size. The organic matter content and fertility of the soil is low.Belz, David J., Lewis J. Carter, David A. Dearstyne, and John D. Overing. Soil Survey of Hendry County, Florida. N.p.: USDA, IFAS, 1990. Print. Most areas where this soil occurs are native range or improved pasture, although some is used for citrus or vegetable farming. Some counties in Florida where this soil occurs are Hendry, Collier, Glades, and Lee.

Soil geography

Myakka soils originate from marine

deposits A deposit account is a bank account maintained by a financial institution in which a customer can deposit and withdraw money. Deposit accounts can be savings accounts, Transaction account#Current accounts, current accounts or any of several othe ...

and are a key component of Floridian

flatwoods Flatwoods, pineywoods, pine savannas and longleaf pine-wiregrass ecosystem are terms that refer to an ecological community in the southeastern coastal plain of North America. Flatwoods are an ecosystem maintained by wildfire or prescribed fire an ...

. They also occur in

tidal Tidal is the adjectival form of tide. Tidal may also refer to: * ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple * Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim * TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music * Tidal (servic ...

areas, depressions, and

barrier islands Barrier islands are coastal landforms and a type of dune system that are exceptionally flat or lumpy areas of sand that form by wave and tidal action parallel to the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of anything from a ...

. Myakka soils' slope ranges from 0 to 8

percent In mathematics, a percentage (from la, per centum, "by a hundred") is a number or ratio expressed as a fraction of 100. It is often denoted using the percent sign, "%", although the abbreviations "pct.", "pct" and sometimes "pc" are also use ...

Soil profile

This soil typically has a very dark gray sand surface layer between 5 and 6 inches thick and a subsurface layer to about 26 inches composed of gray sand.Alva, A. K., and Megh Singh. "Sorption of bromacil, diuron, norflurazon, and simazine at various horizons in two soils." Bulletin of environmental contamination and toxicology 45.3 (1990): 365–374. The subsoil to about 60 inches is sand that is stained with organic matter; black in the upper part and dark brown in the lower part. The substratum to about 80 inches is grayish brown sand. Under natural conditions this soil has a high water table to within 10 inches of the surface for 1 to 5 months and a depth of more than 40 inches during the dry periods. Water rapidly permeates in the surface layer, subsurface layer, and substratum, then moderately in the subsoil. Permeability is rapid in the A horizon, and it is "moderate or moderately rapid" in the Bh horizon.

Productivity

The high water table and sandy texture are severe limitations for urban development and recreational uses.Nachabe, Mahmood, Caroline Masek, and Jayantha Obeysekera. "Observations and modeling of profile soil water storage above a shallow water table." Soil Science Society of America Journal 68.3 (2004): 719–724. Under natural conditions this soil is poorly suited to cultivated crops because of the wetness. If a water control system is utilized, the soil is suited for vegetable crops such as squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, watermelons and other Florida crops. Natural vegetation occurring on the soil is South Florida slash pine, Saw Palmetto, chalky bluestem, creeping bluestem, lopsided Indian grass and pineland threeawn. Potential productivity for pine trees is moderate. South Florida slash pine is recommended as a tree to plant in this soil.

References

{{reflist Geology of Florida Pedology Sand Soil in the United States Symbols of Florida Types of soil

Soil geography

Soil profile

Productivity

See also

References