HomeSoil seriesEctor
Ector soil series
Ector soils cover 4,021,290 mapped acres, mostly in Texas and New Mexico. USDA rates shrink-swell a limit for houses without basements on 0% of that land, and a shallow water table a limit for basements on 0%.
It is the leading soil series by area in 9 of the counties and cities on this site, including Terrell County, TX; Sterling County, TX; Irion County, TX.
SSURGO survey versions to August 5, 2026 · series description revised 2016-01
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 Ector series consists of very shallow to shallow, well drained soils that are moderately permeable above a moderately slowly permeable limestone bedrock. They formed in calcareous loamy residuum derived from limestone. These gently sloping to very steep soils occur on ridges on dissected plateaus. Slope ranges from 1 to 60 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 381 mm (15 in), and mean annual air temperature is about 18 degrees C (64 degrees F).
Source: USDA NRCS series description (OSD) for Ector, revised 2016-01. Read it.
Engineering properties
| Mapped area (SSURGO) | 4,021,290 acres |
| Shrink-swell limits houses without basements | 0.0% |
| Shallow water table limits basements | 0.0% |
| Very limited for septic absorption fields | 98.6% |
| Most common drainage class | Well drained |
| Most common hydrologic soil group | D |
| Taxonomic class | Loamy-skeletal, carbonatic, thermic Lithic Calciustolls |
| Type location | Terrell County, Texas |
Where Ector is mapped
| State | Mapped acres |
|---|---|
| Texas | 3,086,398 |
| New Mexico | 934,891 |
Places where Ector leads
Counties and cities where Ector covers more mapped land than any other series.
| Place | Share of mapped land |
|---|---|
| Forsan, TX | 78% |
| Mertzon, TX | 45% |
| Terrell County, TX | 41% |
| Sterling County, TX | 31% |
| Irion County, TX | 31% |
| Crockett County, TX | 27% |
| Val Verde County, TX | 26% |
| Pecos County, TX | 18% |
| Chaves County, NM | 10% |
Other places where Ector is a main soil
Counties and cities where Ector is among the six soil series covering the most mapped land, but not the first. Share of the place's mapped land.
Counties
- Eddy County, NM 14%
- Kinney County, TX 10%
- Reagan County, TX 9%
- Tom Green County, TX 9%
- Uvalde County, TX 8%
- Glasscock County, TX 8%
- Edwards County, TX 7%
- Howard County, TX 6%
- Sutton County, TX 5%
- Lincoln County, NM 3%
Texas and Ohio cities
- Big Spring, TX 10%
- Iraan, TX 6%
- Sonora, 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.