The soils of Rice County's supported a rich variety of vegetation at the time of European settlement.  Early settlers quickly discovered the agricultural potential of these soils and cleared the natural vegetation to make room for fields, pastures, and homesteads.  Rice County soils, which provided for the settlers' livelihood, resulted from a long history of natural process.

Soils form from natural processes acting upon materials deposited or accumulated by geologic events.  Soil characteristics are determined by the interrelation of the following 5 factors:
1.Composition of the parent material
2.Climate under which the soil has existed and/or accumulated
3.Animal and plant life on and in the soil
4.The lay of the land
5.The amount of time natural forces have acted up on the soil material (USDA 1975)

Rice County is covered by mostly by glacial drift from the Des Moines Lobe of the Wisconsin Glaciation.  Most of this drift is 14,000 years or younger, except for the soils on the easter edge of the lobe's advance, or the eastern part of the county.  The soil in this area is between 20,000 and 30,000 years old and is a result of Illinoian and pre-Illinoian ice sheets . Rice County's drift is composed of mostly glacial till mixed with remnants of older glacial deposits and bedrock (USDA 2000).

According to the Rice County Soil Survey of 2000, Rice County consists of 10 general types of soil, each determined by a combination of soil, drainage, and relief characteristics.  The polygons color coded below represent  major soil types found in Rice County. These polygons are named based on the major type of soil present, but may also include some minor soils and miscellaneous areas.

1.  Lester-Hamel-LeSueur association:  These types of morainic soils compose 26% of the county and can be found mostly to the west of the Cannon River.  Lester-Hamel-LeSueur soils are a morainic landform this mostly loam and clay loam.

2.  Kilkenny-Derrynan-Lerdal association: Covering 20% of the county, these types of soils can be found in the Northwestern part of the county.  Kilkenny-Derrynan-Lerdal soils are morainic in origin and mostly clay loamy in texture.

3.  Racine-Littleton-Lindstrom association: These types of soils cover only 5% of the county, mostly in the northeastern region.  Racien-Littleton-Lindstrom soils are morainic and have a  silt loamy texture.

4.  Clarion-Nicollett-Webster association: This association of soil comprises 4% of Rice County and has loamy and clay loamy texture.  Morainic in origin, this soil can be found in the southwestern portion of the county.

5.  Moland-Merton-Maxcreek association: These soils are morainic in origin and make up 8% of the county's soil.  Moland-Merton-Maxcreek soils are located mostly in the east central portion of the county and have silt loamy and silt clay loamy textures.

6.  Hayden-LeSueur-Dundas association:  8% of Rice County is covered by this morainic soil with a loamy and silt loamy texture.  Hayden-LeSueur-Dundas soils are found in close proximity to Moland-Merton-Maxcreek soils in the central region of the county.

7.  Hayden-Hamel association:  Hayden-Hamel soils are morainic and located in the central region of Rice County. These soils cover 8% of the county and have a loamy texture.

8.  Racine-Kenyon-Nerwoods association: These morainic soils cover 8% of Rice County and have a loamy and silt loamy texture. They can be found in the central part of the county.

9.  Kenyon-Klinger-Maxfield association: This association of soils is located on the the eastern portion of Rice County.  Kenyon-Kilger-Maxfield soils cover 4% of the county and have a silt and clay silt loam texture.

10.  Estherville-Colo-Wakegan association: Found along the rivers in the central portion of the county as well as in the northeastern corner, this association of soil has sandy and silty loam textures.  Estherville-Colo-Wakegan soils compose 9% of Rice County's suface.
(USDA 2000)

Rice County soils had and continue to have great agricultural potential. The crop yield of the land varies by soil type and crop species across the county. See the Land Capability Table to better understand the agricultural potential of the Rice County Soils listed above.

From presettlement vegetation data, we know that Rice County consisted of prairie, forest, and prairie-forest border areas.   After the retreat of the ice, mollisols and alfisols began to form under the growing prairie and forestland respectively.  Mollisols are dark and form from nutrient rich parent material; Alfisols are mineral soils with clay and nutrient-rich subsoil. These soils form a continuum across the area, constituting prairie, prairie-woodland, and woodland soils (Grimm 1984).  Soil types under the Big Woods Area of Rice County include Lester-Hamel-LeSueur associations and Kilkenny-Derrynan-Lerdal associations.  With good land management, 1 acre of this land has the potential to yield 104-158 bushels corn, 62-92 bushels of oats, 35.8-54 bushels of soy beans, and 4.1 to 6.2 tons of hay (USDA 2000).  Wheatland Township is located on Big Woods soils and from the 19th Century Census Records, we know that the farmers in this township in 1880 averaged only 25-63 bushels of corn per acre and 25-75 bushels of oats per acre.  This is much lower than the potential for corn and only slightly lower than the potential for oats.  These differences are probably due to cruder farming methods used by the settlers. From 1860 to 1880 Wheatland Township showed a variety in crops as farmers were experimenting with the soil.  Crops such as wheat, oats, and indian corn yields increased while buckwheat, irish potatoes and tobacco became less common to grow in the later years of the nineteenth century (US Census 1880).

Richland Township is located strictly on tallgrass prairie soils, or mollisols, and has mostly Moland-Merton-Maxcreek association and Racine-Kenyon-Nerwoods association soil types.  With proper land management, one could expect 1 acre of this area to produce 122-182.5 bushels of corn, 78-109.5 bushels of oats, 45-63 bushels of soy beans, and between 4.6 and 6.4 tons of hay (USDA 2000].  Richland township crop yields also did not meet the expectations of the soil.  Early Richland farmers obtained only 30-80 bushels of corn per acre and only 25-50 bushels of oats per acre. These differences are mostly due to cruder farming methods.  Oats and wheat were the two crops that showed the greatest increase for this township from 1860 to 1880 (US Census 1880).

Prairie-forest border areas, such as that found in Bridgewater Township, contain a mixture of mollisols and alfisols.  This region contains the 6 remaining soil types:  Racine-Littleton-Lindstrom association, Clarion-Nicollett-Webster association, Hayden-LeSueur-Dundas association, Hayden-Hamel association, Kenyon-Klinger-Maxfield association, Estherville-Colo-Wakegan association.  Crops yields vary greatly in the border area depending on drainage. With proper land management, one might expect 1 acre of border land to produce 81.5-182.5 bushels of corn, 57-109.5 bushels of oats, 29-63 bushels of soy beans, and 3.4-6.2 tons of hay (USDA 2002).  Bridgewater farmers in the 1880's harvested 25-63 bushels of corn per acre and 35-70 bushels of oats per acre. Early yeilds were probably due to cruder farming methods. Wheat, indian corn and orchard products showed the greatest increase for this township over the late 1800's (US Census 1880).

Erosion and soil wetness are the main factors affecting the fertility of Rice County soils.  Erosion by water, in combination with excessive tillage and failure to rotate crops, greatly affected on early farming in the county. Erosion during the time of agricultural development in Rice County also lead to the sedimentation of many of the county's streams and lakes (USDA 2000).  Failure to properly manage soils used for agriculture can greatly reduce yields and destroy soils and the surrounding environment.