LOCATION FINCHFORD IA+MN WIEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy, mixed, mesic Entic Hapludolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Finchford loamy sand, on a 2 percent slope, in a cultivated field. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 20 centimeters; very dark brown (10YR 2/2) loamy sand, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; weak fine granular structure parting to single grain; very friable; common very fine and fine roots; about 4 percent fine gravel; neutral; clear smooth boundary.
A1--20 to 46 centimeters; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) loamy sand, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; weak fine subangular blocky structure parting to single grain; very friable; common very fine roots; about 8 percent fine gravel; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary.
A2--46 to 76 centimeters; dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) sand, brown (7.5YR 5/2) dry; single grain; loose; about 12 percent fine gravel; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the A horizon is 25 to 85 centimeters.)
C1--76 to 140 centimeters; brown (7.5YR 4/4) gravelly coarse sand; single grain; loose; about 20 percent fine gravel; moderately acid; gradual smooth boundary.
C2--140 to 178 centimeters; pale brown (10YR 6/3) coarse sand; single grain; loose; about 10 percent fine gravel; moderately acid; gradual smooth boundary.
C3--178 to 200 centimeters; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly coarse sand; single grain; loose; about 16 percent fine gravel, moderately acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Major Land Resource Area (MLRA) 104-Eastern Iowa and Minnesota Till Prairies, Black Hawk County, Iowa subset; about 2 miles north of La Porte City; located about 1,700 feet south and 1,450 feet west of the northeast corner of section 13, T. 87 N., R. 12 W.; USGS LaPorte City NE topographic quadrangle; lat. 42 degrees 21 minutes 3.4 seconds N. and long. 92 degrees 11 minutes 10.9 seconds W., NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mollic epipedon thickness--25 to 49 centimeters
Depth to carbonates--greater than 200 centimeters
Clay content in the particle-size control section (weighted average)--0 to 17 percent
Sand content in the particle-size control section (weighted average)--30 to 60 percent medium sand and 20 to 35 percent coarse and very coarse sand
Rock fragment content--3 to 35 percent gravel and 0 to 5 percent cobbles
Ap, A, and AB (if present) horizon:
Hue--7.5YR or 10YR
Value--2 or 3
Chroma--1 or 2
Texture--loamy sand, sand, or sandy loam
Clay content--0 to 20 percent
Sand content--55 to 100 percent
Reaction--strongly acid to neutral
Bw horizon (if present):
Hue--7.5YR or 10YR
Value--3 to 5
Chroma--2 to 4
Texture--coarse sand, loamy coarse sand, loamy sand, sand, or the gravelly analogs of these textures
Clay content--0 to 15 percent
Sand content--70 to 100 percent
Reaction--strongly acid to slightly acid
C horizon:
Hue--7.5YR or 10YR
Value--3 to 6
Chroma--3 to 6
Texture--coarse sand, sand, or the gravelly analogs of these textures
Clay content--0 to 10 percent
Sand content--85 to 100 percent
Reaction--strongly acid to slightly acid
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Bellechester,
Fruitfield,
Hawick,
Hononegah,
Komro,
Lasa,
Sparta,
Trempe, and
Zumbro series.
Bellechester--have carbonates within a depth of 100 centimeters
Fruitfield--have a sand content of more than 35 percent coarse sand and very coarse sand in the series control section
Hawick--have carbonates within a depth of 75 centimeters
Hononegah--have carbonates within a depth of 100 centimeters
Komro--have redoximorphic features and have a frequently saturated zone within a depth of 1.8 meters during the wettest periods of years when precipitation is within one standard deviation of the 30 year mean of annual precipitation
Lasa--have a sand content of less than 5 percent medium and coarse sand in the series control section
Sparta--have a sand content of less than 20 percent coarse and very coarse sand in the series control section
Trempe--have matrix hues redder than 7.5YR in the series control section
Zumbro--have carbonates within a depth of 150 centimeters
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material--coarse textured alluvium or glacial outwash
Landform--treads and risers on stream terraces in river valleys and valley trains on uplands
Slopes--0 to 14 percent
Elevation--130 to 400 meters above sea level
Mean annual air temperature--6 to 13 degrees C
Mean annual precipitation--735 to 1,015 millimeters
Frost-free period--145 to 215 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Flagler,
Saude,
Sparta, and
Waukee soils.
Flagler--are on landscape positions similar to those of the Finchford soils and have a mollic epipedon 40 to 60 centimeters thick and have a cambic horizon
Saude--are on landscape positions similar to those of the Finchford soils and have a cambic horizon with a clay content of 12 to 18 percent
Sparta--are on landscape positions similar to those of the Finchford soils and have a sand content that averages 5 to 20 percent coarse and very coarse sand in the particle-size control section
Waukee--are on landscape positions similar to those of the Finchford soils and have a clay content that averages 18 to 25 percent in the upper half of the particle-size control section
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class--excessively drained--a frequently saturated zone does not occur within a depth of 1.8 meters during the wettest periods of years when precipitation is within one standard deviation of the 30 year mean of annual precipitation
Saturated hydraulic conductivity--100 to 705 micrometers per second
USE AND VEGETATION:
Most areas are pastured. Corn and soybeans are grown occasionally, but yields generally are low. In some areas, irrigated corn, soybeans, and specialty crops are grown. The native vegetation is big bluestem, indiangrass, switchgrass, and other grasses of the tall grass prairie.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Physiographic Division--Interior Plains
Physiographic Province--Central Lowland
Physiographic sections--Dissected till plains, Wisconsin driftless section, and Till plains
MLRAs--Eastern Iowa and Minnesota Till Prairies (104), Northern Mississippi Valley Loess Hills (105), Illinois and Iowa Deep Loess and Drift (108), and Central Mississippi Valley Wooded Slopes (115)
LRR M; Iowa, northern Illinois, southeastern Minnesota, and Wisconsin
Extent--moderate
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Black Hawk County, Iowa, 1974.
REMARKS:
Particle-size control section--the zone from 25 to 100 centimeters (A1, A2 and C1 horizons);
series control section--the zone from the surface to a depth of 150 centimeters.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon include:
mollic epipedon--zone from the surface to a depth of 46 centimeters (Ap and A1 horizons);
udic moisture regime.
Taxonomic Version--Keys to Soil Taxonomy, tenth edition, 2006.