Search by Project Information
The standard form for project information is alphanumeric or by choice list.

Laboratory Project Name
You do not need to select all boxes to use this method to search the database.

• Project type: Select project type from the choice list (Standard, Characterization, Reference, Investigation, or Other).
• Fiscal year: Select the date of the project from the choice list. Our fiscal year begins October 1 (e.g., November, 1969, and March, 1970, are both in FY–1970.).
• Country: Select the country of the project from the choice list.
• State: Select the political subdivision of the project from the choice list.
• Project Seq #: Enter the three-digit project sequence number (for example, 078).

Submitted Name
Enter the project name as of the time of sampling. If you do not know the complete project name, you can enter a partial name. For example, if you enter “Iowa Savanna,” then “Iowa Savanna Soil Quality Study” would result in a positive match. The data manager displays all projects that have your entry as part of the project name. Refine project selection as required.

Soil Survey Regional Office
Select an SSR office from the choice list.

Submission Date
First and last dates define a range between which the project was submitted to the lab (and entered the laboratory database). The date is entered from choice lists that specify month, day, and year. Example: Sep/01/2001.

Database Source
Select from a choice list of soil data providers who shared laboratory information for the database.

Additional information regarding the advanced search option is available in the user manual.

For assistance from the Soils Hotline, call (402) 437‑5378 or (402) 437‑5379 or email usdafpacbc@servicenowservices.com.

Search by Site Information

In addition to entering an exact user site ID, six methods are available to select information using site-input choice lists.

Selection by Latitude and Longitude

Use the choice lists to select latitude using degrees, minutes, and seconds measured north or south of the equator and longitude measured east or west of the prime meridian. Maximum latitude is 90 degrees north or south, and maximum longitude is 180 degrees east or west.

Or use the text boxes to enter latitude and longitude in decimal degrees. Latitudes in the northern hemisphere are positive numbers while those in the southern hemisphere are negative numbers. Acceptable latitudes are between -90.0 and 90.0. Longitudes to the east of the prime meridian are positive numbers while those in the west are negative numbers. Acceptable longitudes are between -180.0 and 180.0.

The latitude and longitudes for the sites where soil samples were taken are stored in the database in decimal degrees. So, it may be difficult to find sites by a specific latitude and longitude. Therefore, it is encouraged to use the range drop-down list or range text boxes to provide a virtual window to locate sites.

Selection by Political Subdivision

We recommend this method. Selecting a site by country, state, and county is one of the best ways to search the database. Most of the data in the database is indexed by political subdivision and can be accessed by this method.

Selection by Soil Survey Area

Use the choice list to select a soil survey area to search. This field is populated to aid in data management while sampling a project. Soil survey areas may overlap. They may have similar or identical names. Not all pedons are identified by soil survey area. If your soil survey area is not listed, try a different method for searching the data.

Selection by Major Land Resources Area (MLRA)

Use the choice list to select an MLRA. Additional information regarding MLRAs is available from the 2006 MLRA Geographic Database.

Selection by National Park System Land

Use the choice list to select an area in the National Park system. If the name of a specific National Park does not display, no data are available for that Park.

Selection by National Forest System Land

Use the choice list to select an area in the National Forest system. If the name of a specific National Forest does not display, no data are available for that Forest.

The advanced search entry choices are accumulative. All selections entered on this page are processed as one search. The "Clear All Search Criteria" button, which is located at the top of the page, clears all choices. Make your selections carefully. Poor selections may return no results or excessive results. If you have difficulty, we suggest you search by country, state, and county. This method offers an array of data from the selected area of interest.

For assistance from the Soils Hotline, call (402) 437‑5378 or (402) 437‑5379 or email usdafpacbc@servicenowservices.com.

Search by Pedon Information

Lab Pedon Number
Click here for information about searching by lab pedon number.

User Pedon ID
Click here for information about searching by user pedon ID.

Observation Date
First and last dates define a range between which the soil pedons were sampled. The date is entered from choice lists that specify month, day, and year. Example: Aug/17/2001. The observation date is unavailable or incomplete for some pedons. A search by observation date will not return a positive match for such pedons.

Soil Series
Click here for information about searching by name of soil series.

Classification Date
First and last dates define a range between which the soil pedons were classified. The dates are entered from choice lists that specify month, day, and year. Example: Feb/02/1998. The classification date is not always available or complete.

Benchmark Soils Only
Selecting "Yes" in the search form filters the search to include only benchmark soils. Additional information regarding benchmark soils is available in the National Soil Survey Handbook.

The advanced search entry choices are accumulative. All selections entered on this page are processed as one search. The "Clear All Search Criteria" button, which is located at the top of the page, clears all choices. Make your selections carefully. Poor selections may return no results or excessive results. If you have difficulty, we suggest you search by country, state, and county. This method offers an array of data from the selected area of interest.

For assistance from the Soils Hotline, call (402) 437‑5378 or (402) 437‑5379 or email usdafpacbc@servicenowservices.com.

Query by Lab Pedon Number

Lab pedon numbers are created by and for the laboratory. The standard form for a lab pedon number from the Kellogg Soil Survey Lab is: nnLxxxx

where:

nn = Two digit number for the year the pedon was sampled. (Examples: 78, 92, 04, 40),

L = Letter (N, P, C, or A),

• N—Current NSSC laboratory pedon,
• P—Old NSSC laboratory pedon (1978 through 2000),
• C—Old Riverside laboratory pedon (1967 through 1977),
• A—Old Beltsville, Mandan, and Lincoln laboratories and other Soil Survey Investigations Report data (1930 through 1966), and

xxxx = Four digit number assigned by laboratory on receipt of sample. (Reset each fiscal year.)

Example lab pedon numbers: 40A0030, 78P0032, 67C0030, 03N0040.

When entering a query, the asterisk (*) character can be used as a wildcard to replace any number. For example, 78P002* or **P0030. Please be careful if using the asterisk character. An overly broad query can request the complete database.

If you do not know the exact lab pedon number, we suggest you query by country, state, and county. This method provides an array of data from the area of interest. The advanced query method is also available, but it requires more knowledge to use. If you want to use the advanced query method, we suggest you review the user manual.

For assistance from the Soils Hotline, call (402) 437‑5378 or (402) 437‑5379 or email usdafpacbc@servicenowservices.com.

Query by User Pedon ID

Although many variations exist, the standard form of the user pedon ID is: LnnSS-fff-####

where:

L = Project Type Identification Character (S, C, R, I, or O),

• S—Standard,
• C—Characterization,
• R—Reference,
• I—Investigation,
• O—Other,

nn = Two (or four) digit number for the year the pedon was sampled,

SS = Two letters indicating Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) identifier for state or country,

fff = Three digit FIPS code for county (these codes can be viewed using the site area option), and

#### = Alphanumeric text field for assigned county pedon identification.

For additional information regarding the user pedon ID, see the “Field Book for Describing and Sampling Soils, Version 3.0.”

User pedon ID examples: S04NE-153-00109, 78MN113022, Anderson Site10, CA041191-S2, Barton Flats (BF) Pit 1, and 87CA019041G. This field may take many variations, and a query will work only if an exact (including spaces and dashes) user pedon ID is entered.

Note that confusion between pedon ID and site ID is common. Both are displayed on the characterization data sheet. Also, remember that you can only enter one user pedon ID per query.

When entering a query, the asterisk (*) character can be used as a wildcard to replace any character or group of characters. For example, *NE* or *NE*109. Please be careful if using the asterisk character. An overly broad query can request the complete database.

If you do not know the exact user pedon ID, we suggest you query by country, state, and county. This method provides an array of data from the area of interest. The advanced query method is also available, but it requires more knowledge to use. If you want to use the advanced query method, we suggest you review the user manual.

For assistance from the Soils Hotline, call (402) 437‑5378 or (402) 437‑5379 or email usdafpacbc@servicenowservices.com.

Query by Soil Series

The standard form for soil series is: LLLLLLLLLL

where:

L = Alphanumeric character (A-Z and 0-9). The maximum number of characters is limited by the entry space available (around 60).

Soil series examples: Holdrege, Miami, and Summit.

The query results can be restricted by selecting a classification type (correlated, sampled as, SSL) from the choice box on the left. Note: Only one series name can be entered per query. When entering a query, the asterisk (*) character can be used as a wildcard to replace any letter or group of letters. For example, Holdr* and *rege. The percent character (%) can be used as a wildcard to replace any single letter. For example, Holdr%ge, M%%mi, and Summ%t. Please be careful if using the wildcard characters, especially the asterisk. An overly broad query can request the complete database.

If you are not successful finding the data you want when searching by series, we suggest you query by country, state, and county. This method provides an array of data from the area of interest. The advanced query method is also available, but it requires more knowledge to use. If you want to use the advanced query method, we suggest you review the user manual.

For assistance from the Soils Hotline, call (402) 437‑5378 or (402) 437‑5379 or email usdafpacbc@servicenowservices.com.

Search by Taxonomic Classification Information

Selecting taxonomic criteria from the choice lists filters your search to include only those pedons that meet the specified criteria. Not all taxonomic criteria are populated for all pedons.

Additional information regarding taxonomic classification of soils is available in Soil Taxonomy, A Basic System of Soil Classification for Making and Interpreting Soil Surveys and Keys to Soil Taxonomy.

The advanced search entry choices are accumulative. All selections entered on this page are processed as one search. The "Clear All Search Criteria" button, which is located at the top of the page, clears all choices. Make your selections carefully. Poor selections may return no results or excessive results. If you have difficulty, we suggest you search by country, state, and county. This method offers an array of data from the selected area of interest.

For assistance from the Soils Hotline, call (402) 437‑5378 or (402) 437‑5379 or email usdafpacbc@servicenowservices.com.