LOCATION ABBAYE             MI+WI
Established Series
GWD-NWS-LMC
09/2004

ABBAYE SERIES


The Abbaye series consists of moderately well drained soils moderately deep to sandstone. They formed in glacial till on ground moraines underlain by sandstone. Permeability is moderate. Slope range from 1 to 70 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 30 inches, and mean annual temperature is about 43 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, active, frigid Alfic Oxyaquic Haplorthods

TYPICAL PEDON: Abbaye sandy loam on a 4 percent slope - forested. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated).

Oi--0 to 2 inches; Slightly decomposed plant material, very strongly acid..

A--2 to 4 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 2/2) sandy loam, gray (5YR 5/1) dry; weak fine granular structure; friable; many roots; about 5 percent gravel; very strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 4 inches thick).

E--4 to 13 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/2) loamy sand; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; many roots; about 5 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear irregular boundary. (4 to 9 inches thick).

Bs1--13 to 18 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) sandy loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few roots; few fragments of strongly cemented orstein; about 5 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear irregular boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick).

Bs2--18 to 25 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) sandy loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few roots; common medium distinct strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) masses of iron accumulation below 20 inches; about 5 percent gravel; moderately acid; clear wavy boundary. (5 to 12 inches thick).

B/E--25 to 32 inches; dark reddish brown (2.5YR 3/4) sandy loam (Bt); occupies about 85 percent of the horizon surrounded by reddish brown (5YR 5/3) loamy sand (E); weak coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; common medium distinct strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) masses of iron accumulation about 5 percent gravel; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (6 to 16 inches thick).

2R--32 inches; hard sandstone bedrock.

TYPE LOCATION: Baraga County, Michigan; about 2 miles west of Keweenaw Bay; 1,200 feet south and 2,550 feet west of the northeast corner of sec. 33, T. 52 N., R. 33 W.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of the solum and depth to sandstone ranges from 20 to 40 inches. The solum ranges from very strongly acid to moderately acid. Sandstone flags and cobble range from 0 to 5 percent and gravel content ranges from 0 to 15 percent throughout the pedon. Some pedons have up to 25 percent gravel in the Bs and B/E horizons.

The A horizon has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 2 or 3, and chroma 1 or 2. Where present, the Ap horizon has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 3 or 4, and chroma of 2 to 4. The E horizon has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 2 or 3. The A, Ap, and E horizons are loamy sand,loamy fine sand, sandy loam or fine sandy loam.

Some pedons have Bhs horizons. They have hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value and chroma of 2 or 3. Textures are sandy loam and fine sandy loam.

The Bs horizon has value of 3 or 4 and chroma of 4 or 6. The B horizons are sandy loam or fine sandy loam or the gravelly analogs of these textures.

The B part of the B/E horizon has hue of 2.5YR or 5YR, value of 3 or 4, chroma of 3 to 6, and is sandy loam or fine sandy loam or the gravelly analogs of these textures. The E part of the B/E horizon has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 2 to 4. It is loamy sand, loamy fine sand, sandy loam or fine sandy loam or the gravelly analogs of these textures. Some pedons have an E/B horizon. The B/E horizon has fragipan- like characteristics in some pedons.

Some pedons have separate Bt horizons with colors and textures similar to the B part of the B/E horizon.

Some pedons have a 2Cr horizon with hue of 2.5YR or 5YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 1 to 6.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Goodwit and Mashek series and the closely related Annalake, Beaverbay, Loggerhead, Newood, Padwood, Sarwet, Shoepac, Spiderlake, Stanberry and Tipler soils.. None of these soils have a lithic contact within 40 inches. In addition all of the closely related soils are dominated by higher activity clay in the particle size control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Abbaye soils are on ground moraines underlain by sandstone at a depth of 20 to 40 inches. Slope gradients are dominantly 1 to 15 percent but range to 70 percent. Abbaye soils formed in loamy glacial till of Wisconsinan age. The sandstone consists of the Jacobsville formation. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 26 to 33 inches, and the mean annual temperature ranges from 40 to 45 degrees F.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the somewhat excessively drained Deerton, the moderately well drained Munising, and the somewhat poorly drained Skanee and Zeba soils. The Deerton and Munising soils occur on similar landscape positions and the Skanee and Zeba soils occur in depressions and drainageways.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well drained. Surface runoff is low to medium, dependent on slope. Permeability is moderate.

USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas are forested with sugar maple, yellow birch, eastern hemlock, and quaking aspen. Cleared areas are in hay, pasture, and small grains

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Western and central part of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and northern Wisconsin. This series is of small extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: St. Paul, Minnesota

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Baraga County, Michigan, 1984.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
ochric epipedon - 0 to 2 inches (A horizon)
albic horizon - 2 to 11 inches (E horizon)
spodic horizon - 11 to 23 inches (Bs1 and Bs2 horizon)
argillic horizon- 23 to 30 inches (B part of B/E horizon)

The well drained phase of this soil is no longer within the concept of the Abbaye series.


National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.