Houdek (soil)

Houdek is a type of soil composed of glacial till and decomposed organic matter. It is found only in the U.S. state of South Dakota where it is the state soil. The soil series was established in 1955 in Spink County, South Dakota. It is unique to the United States, but in particular to South Dakota where it is the state soil.

The soil forming factors provide a unique landscape in South Dakota which gives rise to more than 550 different soils. The Houdek soil was designated as the South Dakota State Soil in 1990, by Governor George Mickelson of the State Legislature. The House Bill was signed into law, making the Houdek loam South Dakota’s Official State Soil.

This soil and others in the same location have been mapped on about 600,000 acres. The Professional Soil Scientists Association of SD and the SD Chapter of the Soil and Water Conservation Society worked together to commemorate the importance of soil to South Dakota. It is appropriate that Houdek loam was adopted as the state soil to bring acknowledgement to the important role in has played in South Dakota’s most important industry, agriculture.

Houdek topsoil is composed of weathered glacial till and 2% to 4% organic matter which gives it a deep, dark color. The slopes ranges from 0 to 25 percent depending on location. The subsoil consists of layers of clay and lime accumulations that were carried downward from the surface by water. Below these layers is the parent material called glacial till. The family name is fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Argiustoll.

The Houdek soil series is deep, well drained, loamy soil that represents many soils formed in South Dakota under grass vegetation . The dark color of the surface layer is a result of decomposition of biomass from vegetation and other materials that have been deposited over thousands of years.Prairie conditions form a thick, dark colored, humified surface horizon or layer that is humus rich (1 to 4% organic C). This is a key characteristic that makes these soils fertile.

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