LOCATION ROTAMER WI

Established Series
Rev. HFG-AAC
01/2011

ROTAMER SERIES

The Rotamer series consists of very deep, well drained soils formed in calcareous sandy loam till. These soils are on ground moraines and end moraines. Slope ranges from 2 to 45 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 813 mm (32 inches). Mean annual air temperature is 8.9 degrees C (48 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, active, mesic Typic Argiudolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Rotamer loam - on a 14 percent slope in a cultivated field at an elevation of about 299 meters (980 feet) above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

Ap--0 to 20 cm (0 to 8 inches); very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; friable; contains few worm casts of yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) subsoil material; common fine fibrous roots; many very fine, fine, and medium continuous dendritic pores; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary. [18 to 23 cm (7 to 9 inches) thick]

Bt1--20 to 41 cm (8 to 16 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) and brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay loam; strong medium and fine subangular blocky structure; firm; common fine fibrous roots; common fine and very fine and few medium and coarse, continuous dendritic pores; common faint clay films on faces of peds and in pores; neutral; clear wavy boundary.

Bt2--41 to 48 cm (16 to 19 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) gravelly loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; common very fine, mostly obliquely-oriented, continuous pores; many faint clay films on faces of peds and in pores; about 15 percent light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) partially weathered dolomitic gravel; slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear wavy boundary. [Combined thickness of the Bt horizons ranges from 8 to 31 cm (3 to 12 inches).]

C--48 to 152 cm (19 to 60 inches); light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) gravelly sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; few very fine and fine, mostly obliquely-oriented, continuous pores; about 30 percent fine and medium gravel and about 4 percent cobbles; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Rock County, Wisconsin; about 4 1/2 miles southeast of Milton; 2520 feet north and 600 feet west of the southeast corner of sec. 18, T. 3 N., R. 14 E. USGS Janesville East, Wisconsin topographic quadrangle;lat. 42 degrees 43 minutes 12 seconds N., and long. 88 degrees 52 minutes 41 seconds W., NAD 27.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to the base of the argillic horizon: 31 to 51 cm (12 to 20 inches)
Depth to carbonates: 25 to 51 cm (10 to 20 inches)
Particle-size control section: averages 20 to 30 percent clay
Volume of gravel: 0 to 2 percent in the upper part of the solum, 2 to 10 percent in the lower part of the solum; 5 to 22 percent in the substratum
Volume of cobbles or stones: 0 to 2 percent in solum; 1 to 5 percent in the substratum
Reaction: slightly acid to slightly alkaline in the solum; slightly or moderately alkaline in the substratum
Calcium carbonate equivalent in the substratum: 15 to 40 percent

Ap or A horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 2 or 3
Chroma: 2 or 3
Texture: sandy loam or loam

BA horizon (where present):
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 3 or 4
Chroma: 3 or 4
Texture: sandy loam or loam

Bt horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 3 or 4
Chroma: 3 or 4
Texture: sandy clay loam, clay loam or loam in the upper part and is loam, sandy loam, or the gravelly analogues in the lower part.
Other features:
Many pedons have a thin dark colored layer (Beta B) at the contact between the B and C horizons that results from the accumulation of organic matter contained in the illuviated material.

C horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 5 or 6
Chroma: 3 to 6
Texture: sandy loam or gravelly sandy loam with more than 52 percent sand
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 40 percent

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Hochheim, La Rose, Lickcreek, Linkville, Markesan, Plattville, Wea, and Wyanet series. Hochheim soils have calcium carbonate equivalent ranging from 40 to 60 percent in the C horizon. La Rose soils have 52 percent sand or less in the C horizon. Lickcreek, Linkville, Wea, and Wyanet soils are more than 51 cm (20 inches) deep to the base of the argillic horizon and to carbonates. Markesan soils have a calcium carbonate equivalent of 60 to 90 percent in the C horizon. Plattville soils have a lithic contact at 102 to 152 cm (40 to 60 inches).

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Rotamer soils typically are on ground moraines, but some are on end moraines. Slope ranges from 2 to 45 percent. Rotamer soils formed in calcareous sandy loam till. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 711 to 838 mm (28 to 33 inches). Mean annual air temperature ranges from 7.2 to 9.4 degrees C (45 to 49 degrees F).

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Kidder, Mchenry, and Miami soils, but they do not have mollic epipedons. Kidder soils occupy nearby areas where the thickness of sola over sandy loam glacial till is greater. McHenry soils occupy similar topography, but have higher silt and lower sand content in the upper sola. Miami soils occupy similar topographic positions on contiguous areas where the underlying glacial till is loam, rather than sandy loam.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained. The potential for surface runoff ranges from low to very high. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high to high (4.23 to 14.11 micrometers per second). Permeability is moderate.

USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas are used as cropland. Common crops are corn, small grains, and legumes. Some areas are used for pastureland or woodland. Native vegetation is open stands of mixed hardwoods and prairie grasses.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRA 95B in southeastern Wisconsin. This soil is of moderate extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Rock County, Wisconsin, 1970.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: mollic epipedon - 0 to 20 cm (0 to 8 inches) (Ap); the thickness of the epipedon is more than 1/3 the thickness from the top of the epipedon to the base of the argillic horizon; argillic horizon - 20 to 48 cm (8 to 19 inches) (Bt1, Bt2).

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.