Best Soil for Gardening in Michigan
Michigan has 82 USDA soil survey areas, and they vary considerably in how friendly the ground is for growing things. We ranked every survey area by the percentage of well-drained soil — the single most important soil property for most garden plants.
At the top, St. Joseph County, Michigan has 78% well-drained soils — conditions where most vegetables, herbs, and flowers can thrive with basic soil preparation. At the other end, Bay County, Michigan comes in at 2%, meaning more of the landscape has drainage challenges that may require raised beds, soil amendments, or careful site selection for a productive garden.
Remember that these are area-wide averages. Even in a low-ranking survey area, individual properties can have excellent garden soil. Look up your specific address for exact conditions.
| # | Survey Area | Well-Drained Soils | Dominant Drainage | Dominant Soil Order |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | St. Joseph County, Michigan | 78% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 2 | Cass County, Michigan | 77% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 3 | Isle Royale National Park, Michigan | 72% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 4 | Kalamazoo County, Michigan | 69% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 5 | Livingston County, Michigan | 66% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 6 | Barry County, Michigan | 65% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 7 | Hillsdale County, Michigan | 65% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 8 | Houghton County, Michigan | 64% | Moderately well drained | Spodosols |
| 9 | Keweenaw County Area, Michigan | 64% | Moderately well drained | Spodosols |
| 10 | Calhoun County, Michigan | 64% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 11 | Baraga County, Michigan | 63% | Moderately well drained | Spodosols |
| 12 | Iron County, Michigan | 63% | Moderately well drained | Spodosols |
| 13 | Jackson County, Michigan | 62% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 14 | Ontonagon County, Michigan | 61% | Moderately well drained | Spodosols |
| 15 | Gogebic County, Michigan | 61% | Moderately well drained | Spodosols |
| 16 | Oakland County, Michigan | 60% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 17 | Emmet County, Michigan | 58% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 18 | Ionia County, Michigan | 58% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 19 | Charlevoix County, Michigan | 57% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 20 | Washtenaw County, Michigan | 56% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 21 | Dickinson County, Michigan | 52% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 22 | Marquette County, Michigan | 49% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 23 | Kent County, Michigan | 48% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 24 | Osceola County, Michigan | 47% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 25 | Montcalm County, Michigan | 47% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 26 | Leelanau County, Michigan | 46% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 27 | Lapeer County, Michigan | 46% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 28 | Berrien County, Michigan | 43% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 29 | Eaton County, Michigan | 43% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 30 | Branch County, Michigan | 43% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 31 | Menominee County, Michigan | 42% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 32 | Alcona County, Michigan | 42% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 33 | Van Buren County, Michigan | 39% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 34 | Alger County, Michigan | 38% | Somewhat excessively drained | Spodosols |
| 35 | Ingham County, Michigan | 38% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 36 | Montmorency County, Michigan | 38% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 37 | Mecosta County, Michigan | 36% | Somewhat excessively drained | Alfisols |
| 38 | Ogemaw County, Michigan | 36% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 39 | Otsego County, Michigan | 36% | Somewhat excessively drained | Spodosols |
| 40 | Mason County, Michigan | 36% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 41 | Lake and Wexford Counties, Michigan | 35% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 42 | Clare County, Michigan | 35% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 43 | Alpena County, Michigan | 35% | Moderately well drained | Alfisols |
| 44 | Lenawee County, Michigan | 33% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 45 | Grand Traverse County, Michigan | 33% | Excessively drained | Spodosols |
| 46 | Oceana County, Michigan | 33% | Excessively drained | Alfisols |
| 47 | Isabella County, Michigan | 33% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 48 | Genesee County, Michigan | 31% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 49 | Mackinac County, Michigan | 30% | Very poorly drained | Spodosols |
| 50 | Cheboygan County, Michigan | 30% | Very poorly drained | Spodosols |
| 51 | Benzie and Manistee Counties, Michigan | 30% | Excessively drained | Spodosols |
| 52 | Presque Isle County, Michigan | 29% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 53 | Newaygo County, Michigan | 29% | Excessively drained | Alfisols |
| 54 | Missaukee County, Michigan | 29% | Well drained | Spodosols |
| 55 | Ottawa County, Michigan | 27% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 56 | Clinton County, Michigan | 27% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 57 | Antrim County, Michigan | 26% | Somewhat excessively drained | Spodosols |
| 58 | Tuscola County, Michigan | 25% | Poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 59 | Luce County, Michigan | 25% | Very poorly drained | Spodosols |
| 60 | Shiawassee County, Michigan | 23% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 61 | Schoolcraft County, Michigan | 22% | Very poorly drained | Spodosols |
| 62 | Sanilac County, Michigan | 22% | Poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 63 | Delta County, Michigan | 21% | Very poorly drained | Spodosols |
| 64 | Gladwin County, Michigan | 21% | Somewhat poorly drained | Spodosols |
| 65 | Allegan County, Michigan | 21% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 66 | Muskegon County, Michigan | 20% | Excessively drained | Alfisols |
| 67 | Roscommon County, Michigan | 19% | Somewhat excessively drained | Spodosols |
| 68 | Macomb County, Michigan | 18% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 69 | Iosco County, Michigan | 17% | Excessively drained | Entisols |
| 70 | Chippewa County, Michigan | 17% | Poorly drained | Spodosols |
| 71 | Oscoda County, Michigan | 17% | Excessively drained | Spodosols |
| 72 | Huron County, Michigan | 14% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 73 | Crawford County, Michigan | 14% | Excessively drained | Entisols |
| 74 | Wayne County, Michigan | 12% | Somewhat poorly drained | Entisols |
| 75 | Gratiot County, Michigan | 11% | Poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 76 | Midland County, Michigan | 10% | Poorly drained | Spodosols |
| 77 | Kalkaska County, Michigan | 9% | Somewhat excessively drained | Spodosols |
| 78 | Arenac County, Michigan | 9% | Poorly drained | Spodosols |
| 79 | St. Clair County, Michigan | 6% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 80 | Saginaw County, Michigan | 4% | Poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 81 | Monroe County, Michigan | 3% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 82 | Bay County, Michigan | 2% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |