Ruston -- Louisiana State Soil

Photograph of a closeup of southern pine woodland with typical shrubs and grasses understory.

Photograph of the profile of a typifying pedon of Ruston soil series.

Ruston Soil Profile

Surface layer: dark grayish brown fine sandy loam
Subsurface layer: pale brown fine sandy loam
Subsoil - upper: red clay loam
Subsoil - middle: yellowish red fine sandy loam
Subsoil - lower: red sandy clay loam
 Ruston soils are used mainly for woodland consisting of southern pine and some hardwoods with understories of shrubs or grasses. Some areas of understory vegetation are managed as range, which provides grazing for cattle, and some are managed for wildlife habitat. A small acreage is used for cotton, corn, soybeans, small grain, truck crops, or pasture. A considerable portion of the formerly cultivated acreage has been converted to pasture or southern pine woodland. These soils occur on 733,714 acres in Louisiana.

The Ruston series consists of very deep, well drained, moderately permeable soils that formed in loamy marine or stream deposits. These soils are low in fertility and within the root zone have moderately high levels of exchangeable aluminum that are potentially toxic to some agricultural crops but are ideal for the production of loblolly, slash, and longleaf pine. The soils have slight limitations for woodland use and management.

Small scale map of Louisiana showing distribution of Ruston soil series.
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