LOCATION KEWEENAW MI+WIEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy, mixed, frigid Alfic Haplorthods
TYPICAL PEDON: Keweenaw loamy sand - on a 5 percent west-facing slope under a hardwood forest. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Oa--0 to 1 inch; black (5YR 2.5/1) well decomposed forest material; extremely acid.
E--1 to 11 inches; reddish gray (5YR 5/2) loamy sand; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; very friable; many very fine to coarse roots; 3 percent gravel; extremely acid; clear irregular boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
Bhs--11 to 17 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) loamy sand; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; 75 percent weakly cemented ortstein; many very fine to coarse roots; 3 percent gravel; extremely acid; gradual irregular boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
Bs1--17 to 27 inches; dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) loamy sand; medium thin platy structure; friable and firm; 35 percent weakly cemented ortstein; ortstein occurs at tongues that extend to a depth of 60 inches; common very fine to medium roots; 8 percent gravel; extremely acid; clear irregular boundary.
Bs2--27 to 39 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/4) loamy sand; weak thin platy structure; very friable; few very fine and fine roots; 2 percent gravel; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of Bs horizons is 4 to 27 inches)
B/E--39 to 61 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) fine sandy loam (Bt); common very fine and fine vesicular pores in peds; occupies about 70 percent of the horizon surrounded by weak brown (7.5YR 5/4) loamy sand (E); weak thin platy structure; friable; 2 percent gravel; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 24 inches thick)
E and Bt--61 to 80 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/3) loamy sand (E) and lamellae of brown( 7.5YR 4/4) fine sandy loam and sandy loam (Bt); single grained; loose; lamellae are 1/8 to 2 inches in thickness with a total accumulation of 8 inches; 2 percent gravel; very strongly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Keweenaw County, Michigan. 1 mile north of Thayer Lake; 2064 feet west and 1484 feet south of the northeast corner of sec. 29, T. 57 N., R. 31 W. Sherman Township. USGS Mohawk, MI topographic quadrangle; lat. 47 degrees 18 minutes 39.27 seconds N. and long. 88 degrees 15 minutes 59.57 seconds W., NAD83
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness ranges from 30 to greater than 80 inches, and depth to the B/E horizon ranges from 14 to 39 inches. Some pedons contain fragments of sandstone in the solum, or contain fragments of crystalline rocks throughout. Cobble content ranges from 0 to 35 percent by volume in the surface layers, and from 0 to 15 percent by volume in the subsoil and substratum. Gravel content ranges from 0 to 25 throughout the soil. Typically stones cover from less than .01 percent of the surface to 0.1 percent of the surface.
Some pedons have an A horizon. The A horizon has hue of 5YR, 7.5YR, or 10YR; value of 2 or 3; and chroma of 1 or 2 or is neutral. It is loamy sand, loamy fine sand, or sandy loam, or gravelly or cobbly analogues of these textures. Reaction ranges from extremely acid to slightly acid.
The E horizon has hue of 5YR, 7.5YR, or 10YR; value of 4 to 6; and chroma of 2 or 3. It is loamy sand, loamy fine sand, or sandy loam, or gravelly or cobbly analogues of these textures. Reaction ranges from extremely acid to slightly acid.
The Bhs horizon has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 3, and chroma of 2 to 4. It is loamy sand, loamy fine sand, or gravelly or cobbly analogues of these textures. Reaction ranges from extremely acid to moderately acid.
The Bs1 horizon has hue of 2.5YR, 5YR, or 7.5YR; value of 3 to 5; and chroma of 3 to 6. It is loamy sand, loamy fine sand, or gravelly or cobbly analogues of these textures. Weakly cemented ortstein is in the Bhs and Bs1 horizons of some pedons. Reaction ranges from extremely acid to moderately acid.
The Bs2 horizon has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 4 to 6. It is sand, loamy sand, loamy fine sand, or gravelly or cobbly analogues of these textures. Reaction ranges from very strongly acid to slightly acid. In some pedons individual subhorizons of the Bhs or Bs horizons may be sandy loam, however, the 10 to 40 inch particle size control section averages to sandy.
The E part of the B/E horizon is in the form of coatings on the faces of peds of Bt part, but in the E and Bt horizon the two kinds of material are in alternate bands. In the E and Bt horizon, the Bt bands range from 1/8 to 2 inches thick and have a cumulative thickness of greater than 6 inches within a depth of 80 inches. Some pedons have E, Bt, or E/B horizons.
The E part of these horizons has hue of 2.5YR, 5YR, or 7.5YR; value of 5 or 6; and chroma of 2 to 6. It is sand, loamy sand, loamy fine sand, or gravelly or cobbly analogues of these textures. The Bt part has hue of 2.5YR, 5YR, or 7.5YR; value of 3 to 5; and chroma of 3 to 6. It is loamy sand, loamy fine sand, fine sandy loam, sandy loam, or gravelly or cobbly analogues of these textures. The clay content of the argillic horizon ranges from 8 to 15 percent. The B/E horizon exhibits some characteristics of a fragipan; it is firm when moist and hard when dry and has some brittleness. Reaction of the E/B, E and Bt, E, Bt, or B/E horizon ranges from very strongly acid to slightly acid.
Some pedons have a C horizon. The C horizon has hue of 2.5YR, 5YR, or 7.5YR; value of 4 to 6; and chroma of 3 to 6. The C horizon ranges from uniform loamy sand to water worked, interbedded sand and loamy sand that contains some bands or pockets of sandy loam. Gravelly or cobbly analogues of these textures are allowed. It ranges from strongly acid to slightly acid.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Leelanau, Mancelona, and Melita and Southwells series. Leelanau and Mancelona soils contain free carbonates within depths of 60 inches and do not have hues of 2.5YR or 5YR in the substratum. Melita soils formed in 40 to 60 inches of sand and contain 18 to 35 percent clay in the argillic horizon. Southwells soils have hues yellower than 7.5YR in the lower part of the series control section.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Keweenaw soils formed in sandy deposits typically on ground moraines and end moraines, but in some places are on drumlins and islands of till surrounded by outwash. Slopes range from 0 to 70 percent. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 26 to 33 inches, and the mean annual temperature from about 41 to 44 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the well drained Steuben and the moderately well drained Munising, and Yalmer soils with fragipans and the somewhat excessively drained Kalkaska soils, which do not have argillic horizons.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Runoff is negligible to high, dependent on slope. Permeability is moderate or moderately rapid.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most of this soil is forested with the primary species being sugar maple, eastern hemlock, northern red oak, paper birch, red maple, quaking aspen, yellow birch, and balsam fir. Cleared areas are used for growing hay, potatoes, and small grains.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Upper Peninsula of Michigan and northern Wisconsin. The series is of large extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: St. Paul, Minnesota.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Alger County, Michigan, 1969.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
albic horizon - 1 to 11 inches (E horizon);
spodic horizon - 11 to 39 inches (Bhs, Bs1, and Bs2 horizons)
argillic horizon - 39 to 61 inches (B/E horizon)
glossic horizon - 39 to 61 inches (B/E horizon).
The moderately well drained phase of this soil is no longer within the series concept.
Series type location moved because the original type location was altered due to building site development.