What is Ulysses soil and is it still mapped in Oklahoma?

Reviewed by Preston, Oklahoma foundation repair consultant · Updated 2026-10-14

In short: Ulysses is a deep, well-drained silty soil formed in loess (wind-blown silt) on the High Plains tablelands. Its official description says Oklahoma was removed from the series' mapped extent in 2016, so it is now mapped mainly in Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming and South Dakota. It is included here because Panhandle homeowners may see the name in older reports, and because it shows how loess soils on the High Plains are described.

Is Ulysses soil mapped in Oklahoma?

Every named U.S. soil has an Official Series Description (OSD) maintained by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). The Ulysses OSD's revision history records that Oklahoma was removed from the extent because the major Ulysses components had been removed from the state, in an April 2016 change ¹. The series now covers western Kansas, western Nebraska, southeastern Wyoming, southwestern South Dakota and eastern Colorado, and it is of large extent ¹.

For a lot in the Panhandle (High Plains), the soil series currently mapped is shown in Web Soil Survey, NRCS's free online soil map ². Other Panhandle soil pages on this site include Richfield and Dalhart.

What are its key properties?

"Torriorthentic" is the subgroup in the name; the OSD notes it replaced the earlier Aridic Haplustolls classification in 2016 ¹. The "Bk" horizon is a subsoil layer with accumulated lime (calcium carbonate) ¹. Most rain falls in intense convective thunderstorms from late spring through early autumn, and winter precipitation is mostly snow ¹.

Ulysses forms on plains, rises and hillslopes on tablelands in the Central High Tableland (MLRA 72) ¹. That setting is tied to the Ogallala Formation and loess cap of the High Plains.

What do loess soils like Ulysses mean for foundations?

Shrink-swell

NRCS rates shrink-swell by linear extensibility: under 3 percent is low and 3 to 6 percent moderate, with damage to buildings possible above 3 percent ³. Ulysses is a silty soil with 19 to 34 percent clay in its control section, a silty rather than clayey texture ¹. For any Panhandle lot, the map unit's rated value in Web Soil Survey is the number that applies ².

Dry climate and sudden wetting

With about 19 inches of rain a year and most of it in summer storms ¹, most wetting of these soils comes in short, heavy summer storms. Wind-deposited silts are routinely screened for collapse when wetted; see collapsible and loess soils and hydrocollapse.

Water management

The ASCE homeowner guide stresses even soil moisture around a foundation, at least 3 inches of fall over the first 5 feet, downspouts discharging at least 3 feet out and sprinkler heads at least 5 feet from the foundation ⁴. Leaking water or sewer lines create localized wet spots that can cause localized movement ⁴. Related topics include erosion and washout voids and fill consolidation settlement.

Related

• Richfield soil
• Dalhart soil
• Panhandle (High Plains) region
• Soil testing and lab values
• Soil Series Index