Gumbo (soil)

Missouri gumbo soil with soybean seedlings

Northern Missouri "no-till" soybean crop in gumbo soil

Gumbo soil is a mixture which often has some small amounts of sand and/or organic material, but is typically defined by the overwhelming presence of very fine particles of clay.

Although gumbo soils are exceptional at water retention, they can be difficult to farm, as precipitation will turn gumbo into a unique muddy mess that is challenging to work using large commercial farming equipment. Avoiding tillage of this type of soil through no-till farming appears strongly correlated with higher yields, as compared to more traditional tilling practices.