SOIL SURVEY OF BRADFORD COUNTY, FLORIDA. 279 
used to grow corn and truck crops. In extent, at least, this series is 
the most important in Bradford County. 
PORTSMOUTH SAND. 
The Portsmouth sand consists of a dark-gray to black sand, 5 to 
10 inches deep, underlain by a dark-gray to gray sand. Somewhere 
within the 3-foot section a hardpan layer is generally encountered, 
usually between 18 and 24 inches. This stratum averages about 6 
inches in thickness and is dark colored, while the material beneath 
it is stained a dark brown by leachings from above. 
In places the hardpan stratum is not encountered within the 3- 
foot section. Like that occurring in the Portsmouth fine sand and 
the Leon fine sand, the hardpan layer is denser in its upper 3 inches, 
where it has a characteristic dark-brown or black color. Beneath 
this dense portion the sand particles are less closely cemented to¬ 
gether and the material is lighter in color. In places the lower 
subsoil becomes lighter in color with depth, and at 3 feet is light 
gray or faintly brownish gray. 
The lower depth of the 3-foot section is usually saturated, and 
the water table in many cases rises to within 18 inches of the surface. 
The type owes its characteristic dark color to an accumulation of 
organic matter in the soil under imperfect drainage conditions. 
As compared with other members of the series the Portsmouth 
sand has a small area in the county. In the eastern section, near 
the Clay County line, the type occurs on the gentle slope from the 
general level of the flat woods to the higher country occupied by the 
Norfolk sand. Between Brooker and Worthington the soil is found 
typically developed. It has a flat to very gently undulating topog¬ 
raphy, and is classed as a “flatwoods” soil. “Bays” and cypress 
ponds of varying size are commonly encountered within it. The 
native vegetation comprises longleaf pine, slash pine, saw palmetto, 
gallberry, and wire grass. 
Very little of the type is under cultivation. Where well drained, 
good yields of certain truck crops, especially cabbage and onions, 
may be expected. This soil does not warm up in the early spring, 
as do the lighter soils of the Norfolk series, but the larger yields 
compensate for the later maturity of the crops. Of the general farm 
crops, the type is best adapted to corn. The soil, however, is too 
light for general farming. Applications of lime are generally bene¬ 
ficial on all of the Portsmouth soils. 
