Soil Composition of Cameron County's Resacas

The information found in this section was obtained from Soil Survey of Cameron County Texas: United States Department of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service - In Cooperation with Texas Agricultural Experiment Station. May 1997. The fieldwork for this soil survey was completed in 1963-1969; statements in this publication refer to conditions in the county in 1970. The maps included here are referred to as general soil associations. A soil association is a landscape that has a distinctive proportional pattern of soils; it normally consists of one or more major soils; such maps are useful in managing a watershed, or in planning community developments.

Resaca de los Fresnos 's soils are classified as NEARLY LEVEL TO GENTLY SLOPING, MODERATELY PERMEABLE TO SLOWLY PERMEABLE, LOAMY AND CLAYEY SOILS OF FLOOD PLAINS AND LOW TERRACES. This group of soils accounts for 23% of the county; soils along the Rio Grande flood plain; and most of the area is used for crop irrigation.

The soil association if Laredo-Olmito Association - nearly level to gently sloping, well-drained and moderately well-drained silty clay loams and silty clays - This association is irregularly shaped and follows generally the pattern of the old resacas (dry river channels) on a low terrace of the Rio Grande River. Laredo soils occupy the higher, well-drained areas next to the resacas. Olmito soils occupy the level or slightly concave areas away from but parallel to the resacas.. This association makes up 19% of the county. 65% is Laredo soils, while 20% is Olmito soils; minor soils account for 15% of the soil.

Laredo soils have a surface layer of dark grayish-brown, calcareous silty clay loam about 8 inches thick. The next layer goes down about 41 inches and is silt loam. Its color is dark grayish-brown in the upper part and light brownish gray in the lower part. The underlying material is stratified silt loam and silty clay loam. These soils are well-drained and moderately permeable.

Olmito soils have a surface layer of dark-gray. calcareous silty clay about 16 inches thick. The next layer goes down to a depth of 34 inches, is silty clay that is grayish brown in the upper part and dark brown in the lower part. The underlying material is molted silty clay. These soils are moderately well drained and slowly permeable.

These soils in the Laredo-Olmito association are used for irrigating crops; Laredo soils are suited to citrus trees in the Rio Grande Valley.

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