Best Soil for Gardening in Minnesota
Minnesota has 92 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, Wabasha County, Minnesota has 91% well-drained soils — conditions where most vegetables, herbs, and flowers can thrive with basic soil preparation. At the other end, Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota comes in at 7%, 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 | Wabasha County, Minnesota | 91% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 2 | Fillmore County, Minnesota | 89% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 3 | Winona County, Minnesota | 89% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 4 | Houston County, Minnesota | 88% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 5 | Cook County, Minnesota | 76% | Well drained | Inceptisols |
| 6 | Goodhue County, Minnesota | 76% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 7 | Olmsted County, Minnesota | 74% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 8 | Pipestone County, Minnesota | 72% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 9 | Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota | 70% | Well drained | Histosols |
| 10 | Rock County, Minnesota | 70% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 11 | Lincoln County, Minnesota | 68% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 12 | Dakota County, Minnesota | 63% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 13 | Stevens County, Minnesota | 63% | Moderately well drained | Mollisols |
| 14 | Lake County, Minnesota | 60% | Well drained | Inceptisols |
| 15 | Washington County, Minnesota | 58% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 16 | Wright County, Minnesota | 58% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 17 | Lyon County, Minnesota | 58% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 18 | Otter Tail County, Minnesota | 57% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 19 | Douglas County, Minnesota | 57% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 20 | Scott County, Minnesota | 56% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 21 | Big Stone County, Minnesota | 55% | Moderately well drained | Mollisols |
| 22 | Grant County, Minnesota | 54% | Moderately well drained | Mollisols |
| 23 | Yellow Medicine County, Minnesota | 53% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 24 | Murray County, Minnesota | 53% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 25 | St. Louis County, Minnesota, Crane Lake Part | 53% | Well drained | Inceptisols |
| 26 | Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota | 52% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 27 | Todd County, Minnesota | 51% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 28 | Pope County, Minnesota | 51% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 29 | Clearwater County, Minnesota | 51% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 30 | Hennepin County, Minnesota | 50% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 31 | Rice County, Minnesota | 49% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 32 | Becker County, Minnesota | 49% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 33 | Hubbard County, Minnesota | 48% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 34 | Mahnomen County, Minnesota | 48% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 35 | Chippewa County, Minnesota | 47% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 36 | Stearns County, Minnesota | 45% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 37 | Cass County, Minnesota | 43% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 38 | Swift County, Minnesota | 42% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 39 | St. Louis County, Minnesota, Embarrass Part | 40% | Very poorly drained | Inceptisols |
| 40 | Redwood County, Minnesota | 40% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 41 | St. Louis County, Minnesota, Duluth Part | 39% | Very poorly drained | Inceptisols |
| 42 | Ramsey County, Minnesota | 39% | Well drained | Alfisols |
| 43 | Kandiyohi County, Minnesota | 39% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 44 | Cottonwood County, Minnesota | 38% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 45 | Itasca County, Minnesota | 38% | Very poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 46 | Dodge County, Minnesota | 37% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 47 | Steele County, Minnesota | 36% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 48 | Meeker County, Minnesota | 36% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 49 | Nobles County, Minnesota | 35% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 50 | Carlton County, Minnesota | 35% | Very poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 51 | Le Sueur County, Minnesota | 35% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 52 | Carver County, Minnesota | 34% | Well drained | Mollisols |
| 53 | Pine County, Minnesota | 34% | Very poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 54 | Jackson County, Minnesota | 33% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 55 | Clay County, Minnesota | 33% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 56 | Crow Wing County, Minnesota | 33% | Moderately well drained | Entisols |
| 57 | Chisago County, Minnesota | 32% | Very poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 58 | Kanabec County, Minnesota | 32% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 59 | Freeborn County, Minnesota | 31% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 60 | Wadena County, Minnesota | 31% | Moderately well drained | Entisols |
| 61 | McLeod County, Minnesota | 30% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 62 | Renville County, Minnesota | 29% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 63 | Brown County, Minnesota | 28% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 64 | Waseca County, Minnesota | 28% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 65 | Watonwan County, Minnesota | 28% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 66 | Nicollet County, Minnesota | 27% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 67 | Faribault County, Minnesota | 27% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 68 | Blue Earth County, Minnesota | 26% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 69 | Isanti County, Minnesota | 26% | Very poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 70 | Martin County, Minnesota | 26% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 71 | Morrison County, Minnesota | 25% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 72 | Traverse County, Minnesota | 24% | Somewhat poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 73 | St. Louis County, Minnesota, Virginia Part | 24% | Very poorly drained | Inceptisols |
| 74 | Red Lake County, Minnesota | 23% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 75 | Benton County, Minnesota | 23% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 76 | Pennington County, Minnesota | 23% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 77 | Polk County, Minnesota | 22% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 78 | Beltrami County, Minnesota | 21% | Very poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 79 | St. Louis County, Minnesota, Meadowlands Part | 20% | Very poorly drained | Inceptisols |
| 80 | Aitkin County, Minnesota | 20% | Very poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 81 | Sibley County, Minnesota | 19% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 82 | Mille Lacs County, Minnesota | 19% | Somewhat poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 83 | Norman County, Minnesota | 18% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 84 | Mower County, Minnesota | 17% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 85 | Wilkin County, Minnesota | 17% | Somewhat poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 86 | Roseau County, Minnesota | 14% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 87 | Kittson County, Minnesota | 13% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 88 | Marshall County, Minnesota | 12% | Poorly drained | Mollisols |
| 89 | Sherburne County, Minnesota | 9% | Excessively drained | Mollisols |
| 90 | Koochiching County Area, Minnesota | 8% | Very poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 91 | Anoka County, Minnesota | 8% | Very poorly drained | Alfisols |
| 92 | Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota | 7% | Very poorly drained | Alfisols |