HomeSoil seriesHidalgo
Hidalgo soil series
Hidalgo soils cover 248,357 mapped acres, almost all of them in Texas. 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 17 of the counties and cities on this site, including Hidalgo County, TX.
SSURGO survey versions to August 5, 2026 · series description revised 2018-02
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 Hidalgo series consists of deep, well drained, moderately permeable soils that formed in calcareous loamy sediments. These soils are on nearly level to gently sloping uplands. Slopes range from 0 to about 5 percent.
Source: USDA NRCS series description (OSD) for Hidalgo, revised 2018-02. Read it.
Engineering properties
| Mapped area (SSURGO) | 248,357 acres |
| Shrink-swell limits houses without basements | 0.0% |
| Shallow water table limits basements | 0.0% |
| Very limited for septic absorption fields | 0.0% |
| Most common drainage class | Well drained |
| Most common hydrologic soil group | B |
| Taxonomic class | Fine-loamy, mixed, active, hyperthermic Typic Calciustolls |
| Type location | Hidalgo County, Texas |
Where Hidalgo is mapped
| State | Mapped acres |
|---|---|
| Texas | 248,357 |
Places where Hidalgo leads
Counties and cities where Hidalgo covers more mapped land than any other series.
| Place | Share of mapped land |
|---|---|
| Alamo, TX | 69% |
| Edinburg, TX | 63% |
| Palmview, TX | 62% |
| Weslaco, TX | 53% |
| Elsa, TX | 51% |
| Donna, TX | 50% |
| Edcouch, TX | 50% |
| Alton, TX | 48% |
| San Juan, TX | 48% |
| La Feria, TX | 48% |
| Palmhurst, TX | 45% |
| La Villa, TX | 43% |
| McAllen, TX | 43% |
| Mission, TX | 41% |
| Mercedes, TX | 32% |
| Pharr, TX | 30% |
| Hidalgo County, TX | 19% |
Other places where Hidalgo is a main soil
Counties and cities where Hidalgo 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
- Santa Rosa, TX 23%
- Primera, TX 19%
- Raymondville, TX 16%
- Combes, TX 16%
- Palm Valley, TX 14%
- Penitas, TX 9%
- Harlingen, TX 9%
- Rio Hondo, TX 8%
- San Perlita, TX 2%
- Agua Dulce, TX under 1%
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.