Tifton -- Georgia State Soil

Photograph of area of Tifton soil series. Area is a field with contoured rows of an unidentified crop. Woodland is in the background.

Photograph of a profile of a typifying pedon of Tifton soil series.

Tifton Soil Profile

Surface layer: dark grayish brown loamy sand
Subsoil - upper: strong brown fine sandy loam
Subsoil - middle: yellowish brown sandy clay loam
Subsoil - lower: strong brown sandy clay
There is more than 5 percent plinthite in the subsoil
The Tifton series was one of the first series to be recognized in Georgia. It was established in Grady County, Georgia, in a 1908 soil survey conducted by Hugh Hammond Bennett. Tifton soils occur throughout the Southern Coastal Plain in Georgia. They are the most extensive soils in Georgia. They occur on more than 2 million acres in the State. They have been correlated in more Georgia counties (56) than any other soil.

Tifton soils formed in loamy sediments of marine origin. They are among the most important agricultural soils in the State. About 27 percent of Georgia’s prime farmland is in areas of Tifton soils. Cotton, peanuts, soybeans, and corn are the principal crops grown on these soils.

Small scale map of Georgia showing distribution of Tifton soil series.
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