LOCATION SYMERTON IL+IN WIEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Oxyaquic Argiudolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Symerton silt loam - gently sloping in a cultivated field at an elevation of 218 meters (714 feet) above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 25 cm (0 to 10 inches); black (10YR 2/1) silt loam, very dark gray (10YR 3/1) dry; weak very fine granular structure; friable; slightly acid; abrupt smooth boundary.
A--25 to 38 cm (10 to 15 inches); very dark gray (10YR 3/1) silt loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; moderate very fine granular structure; friable; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary. [Combined thickness of the Ap and A horizon is 25 to 51 cm (10 to 20 inches).]
AB--38 to 48 cm (15 to 19 inches); very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) silty clay loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; moderate very fine granular structure; friable; many distinct black (10YR 2/1) organic coatings on faces of peds; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary. [0 to 13 cm (0 to 5 inches) thick]
2Bt1--48 to 64 cm (19 to 25 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) gravelly clay loam; moderate very fine subangular blocky structure; firm; many distinct very dark gray (10YR 3/1) organo-clay films on faces of peds; common fine black (10YR 2/1) very weakly cemented iron-manganese nodules throughout; about 18 percent gravel; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary.
2Bt2--64 to 79 cm (25 to 31 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) gravelly clay loam; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; firm; common distinct very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) organo-clay films on faces of peds; common fine black (10YR 2/1) very weakly cemented iron-manganese nodules throughout; about 18 percent gravel; neutral; clear smooth boundary.
2Bt3--79 to 89 cm (31 to 35 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly loam; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; firm; common distinct brown (10YR 4/3) clay films on faces of peds; common fine black (10YR 2/1) very weakly cemented iron-manganese nodules throughout; few fine prominent yellowish red (5YR 5/8) masses of oxidized iron in the matrix; about 18 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. [Combined thickness of the Bt or 2Bt horizon is 30 to 102 cm (12 to 40 inches).]
3Bt4--89 to 99 cm (35 to 39 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) silt loam; weak medium prismatic structure parting to weak medium subangular blocky; firm; few distinct brown (10YR 4/3) clay films on faces of peds; few fine prominent yellowish red (5YR 5/8) masses of oxidized iron in the matrix; slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. [10 to 30 cm (4 to 12 inches) thick]
3C--99 to 152 cm (39 to 60 inches); light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) and light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) silt loam; massive; firm; few fine prominent yellowish red (5YR 4/6) masses of oxidized iron in the matrix; few fine prominent gray (10YR 5/1) iron depletions in the matrix; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Iroquois County, Illinois; about 4.8 kilometers (3 miles) northwest of Hoopeston; 31 meters (102 feet) north and 550 meters (1,806 feet) west of the southeast corner of sec. 33, T. 24 N., R. 12 W.; USGS Hoopeston topographic quadrangle; lat. 40 degrees 29 minutes 17 seconds N. and long. 87 degrees 42 minutes 58 seconds W., NAD 27; UTM Zone 16, 439310 easting and 4482181 northing, NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to the base of soil development ranges from 76 to 127 cm (30 to 50 inches). The mollic epipedon ranges from 25 to 51 cm (10 to 20 inches) in thickness and includes the upper part of the B horizon in some pedons. Depth to carbonates ranges from 61 to 140 cm (24 to 55 inches). Some pedons do not have carbonates in the lower part of the solum. The particle-size control section averages between 27 and 35 percent clay.
The Ap, A, or AB horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 2 to 4, and chroma of 1 to 4. It is silty clay loam, silt loam, loam, or gravelly loam. Reaction ranges from moderately acid to neutral.
Some pedons have a BA horizon.
The 2Bt horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 3 to 6, and has redoximorphic features in the lower part in some pedons. It is clay loam, silty clay loam, sandy clay loam, loam, or the gravelly analogues of these textures. Rock fragment content ranges from 0 to 20 percent gravel. Reaction ranges from moderately acid to slightly alkaline.
The 3Bt or 3BC horizon has hue of 10YR, 2.5Y, or 5Y, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 3 or 4. It is silty clay loam, silt loam, or clay loam. Clay content ranges from 20 to 35 percent. Reaction ranges from neutral to moderately alkaline.
The 3C horizon has hue of 5Y, 2.5Y, or 10YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 3 or 4. It is silty clay loam or silt loam. Clay content ranges from 20 to 35 percent and average sand content ranges from 5 to 20 percent. Reaction is slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline and is calcareous.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Balmoral, Barce, Mona, and Wagen Prairie series. Balmoral soils do not have carbonates within a depth of 140 cm (55 inches). Barce soils average less than 20 percent clay and more than 20 percent sand in the lower part of the series control section. Mona soils have more than 35 percent clay in the lower part of the series control section. Wagen Prairie soils have a paralithic contact with shale within a depth of 102 cm (40 inches).
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Symerton soils are on nearly level to moderately sloping till plains or glacial lake plains of Wisconsinan Age. They formed in loamy outwash and in the underlying till or lacustrine sediments. They have as much as 61 cm (24 inches) of loess or other silty material on the surface of many pedons. Slope ranges from 0 to 10 percent. Mean annual air temperature ranges from about 8 to 12 degrees C (46 to 54 degrees F), mean annual precipitation ranges from about 740 to 1020 mm (29 to 40 inches), frost-free period ranges from 160 to 180 days, and elevation ranges from 155 to 311 meters (510 to 1020 feet) above sea level.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Andres, Ashkum, Elliott, Lisbon, and Varna soils. The somewhat poorly drained Andres, Elliott, and Lisbon soils are slightly lower on the landscape than Symerton soils. The poorly drained Ashkum soils are on low-lying parts of the landscape and in upland drainageways and contain more clay in the particle-size control section. Varna soils are nearby on similar slopes, but have more clay in the control section.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Moderately well drained. A perched seasonal high water table is at a depth of 61 to 107 cm (2 to 3.5 feet) at some time between February and April in most years. The potential for surface runoff is low or medium. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high or high (4.23 to 14.11 micrometers/s) in the loess and loamy outwash, and moderately high or moderately low (0.42 to 4.23 micrometers per second) in the till or lacustrine sediments. Permeability is moderate in the loess and loamy outwash, and moderately slow or slow in the till or lacustrine sediments.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas of the soil are cultivated. Corn, soybeans, small grain, and forages are the principal crops. Native vegetation is tall prairie grasses.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northeastern Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin. Extent is moderate with about 19,425 hectares (48,000 acres) correlated in MLRAs 95B, 108, and 110.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Will County, Illinois, 1951.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: mollic epipedon - the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of 48 cm (0 to 19 inches) (Ap, A, and AB horizons); argillic horizon - the zone from approximately 48 to 99 cm (19 to 39 inches) (2Bt1, 2Bt2, 2Bt3, and 3Bt4 horizons); udic moisture regime.