HomeSoil seriesBernard
Bernard soil series
Bernard soils cover 352,243 mapped acres, almost all of them in Texas. USDA rates shrink-swell a limit for houses without basements on 43% of that land, and a shallow water table a limit for basements on over 99%.
It is the leading soil series by area in 8 of the counties and cities on this site, including Galveston County, TX.
SSURGO survey versions to August 5, 2026 · series description revised 2015-02
of its land: shrink-swell limits houses without basements
of its land: a shallow water table limits basements
median highest linear extensibility (6% and up is high)
median highest clay content in the top 150 cm
USDA's description
The Bernard series consists of very deep, somewhat poorly drained soils that formed in clayey fluviomarine deposits of the Beaumont Formation. These soils are on flats on flat coastal plains. Slopes range from 0 to 1 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 1143 mm (45 in) and the mean annual air temperature is about 20.6 degrees C (69 degrees F).
Source: USDA NRCS series description (OSD) for Bernard, revised 2015-02. Read it.
Engineering properties
| Mapped area (SSURGO) | 352,243 acres |
| Shrink-swell limits houses without basements | 42.8% |
| Shallow water table limits basements | 99.7% |
| Very limited for septic absorption fields | 79.5% |
| Most common drainage class | Somewhat poorly drained |
| Most common hydrologic soil group | D |
| Taxonomic class | Fine, smectitic, hyperthermic Oxyaquic Vertic Argiudolls |
| Type location | Fort Bend County, Texas |
Where Bernard is mapped
| State | Mapped acres |
|---|---|
| Texas | 352,243 |
Places where Bernard leads
Counties and cities where Bernard covers more mapped land than any other series.
| Place | Share of mapped land |
|---|---|
| Orchard, TX | 56% |
| Hillcrest Village, TX | 54% |
| Deer Park, TX | 47% |
| Danbury, TX | 37% |
| West University Place, TX | 33% |
| Clear Lake Shores, TX | 29% |
| League City, TX | 24% |
| Galveston County, TX | 7% |
Other places where Bernard is a main soil
Counties and cities where Bernard is among the six soil series covering the most mapped land, but not the first. Share of the place's mapped land.
Counties
Texas and Ohio cities
- Brookside Village, TX 42%
- Kendleton, TX 37%
- Angleton, TX 32%
- Stafford, TX 31%
- Manvel, TX 28%
- Pearland, TX 28%
- Alvin, TX 27%
- Rosenberg, TX 24%
- Iowa Colony, TX 22%
- Pleak, TX 21%
- Friendswood, TX 21%
- Bonney, TX 19%
- Arcola, TX 18%
- Pasadena, TX 17%
- Dickinson, TX 17%
- Kemah, TX 16%
- La Porte, TX 16%
- Beasley, TX 15%
- Needville, TX 14%
- Missouri City, TX 12%
- Santa Fe, TX 12%
- West Columbia, TX 12%
- Houston, TX 12%
- Taylor Lake Village, TX 11%
- Richmond, TX 11%
- Liverpool, TX 10%
- East Bernard, TX 10%
- Webster, TX 10%
- Meadows Place, TX 10%
- La Marque, TX 10%
- Clute, TX 10%
- Fairchilds, TX 8%
- Thompsons, TX 8%
- El Campo, TX 8%
- Jacinto City, TX 7%
- Bellaire, TX 6%
- Morgan's Point, TX 6%
- South Frydek, TX 6%
- Hitchcock, TX 6%
- Lake Jackson, TX 5%
- Bailey's Prairie, TX 5%
- Texas City, TX 4%
- South Houston, TX 3%
- Piney Point Village, TX 3%
- Southside Place, TX 2%
- Wallis, TX 2%
Sources
Shares and properties: USDA NRCS SSURGO via Soil Data Access, weighted by each component's share of its map units. Description: the USDA NRCS series description. How we count.