LOCATION APALACHEE FLEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Very-fine, smectitic, thermic Fluvaquentic Dystrudepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Apalachee clay, in a pasture. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
A--0 to 18 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) clay; weak medium angular and subangular blocky structure; firm; many fine and few medium roots; common pressure faces on peds; common fine flakes of mica; common medium distinct dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) areas of iron depletions; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (10 to 22 inches thick)
Bw1--18 to 25 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) clay; weak medium angular and subangular blocky structure; firm, slightly sticky; many non-intersecting slickensides having polished and grooved surfaces on ped faces; many fine flakes of mica; few medium distinct yellowish red (5YR 4/6) masses of iron accumulation and common medium distinct gray (5YR 5/1) and dark reddish gray (5YR 4/2) areas of iron depletions; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (6 to 18 inches thick)
Bw2--25 to 60 inches; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) clay; weak medium angular blocky structure; firm, plastic, sticky; common non-intersecting slickensides having polished and grooved surfaces on ped faces; many fine flakes of mica; few medium distinct yellowish red (5YR 4/6) and common fine faint yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) masses of iron accumulation and common medium distinct gray (10YR 5/1) areas of iron depletions; strongly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Jackson County, Florida; approximately 4.0 miles southeast of the town of Sneads and east of Florida Highway 271 adjacent to the Apalachicola River; SW1/4, SW1/4, Sec. 6, T. 3 N., R 6 W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness is more than 60 inches. Reaction is strongly or very strongly acid throughout. Fine flakes of mica range from common to many throughout. Clay content of the 10 to 40 inch control section ranges from 60 percent to about 80 percent. Organic carbon content is more than 0.2 percent at depths of 50 inches or more.
The A or Ap horizon has hue 5YR through 10YR, value of 3 to 5, and chroma of 2 to 4. Where the value is 3.5 or less, thickness is less than 10 inches. Redoximorphic depletions in shades of gray range from few to common. Pressure faces on surfaces of peds range from few to common. Texture is clay loam, silty clay, or clay.
The upper part of the Bw horizon has hue of 5YR through 10YR, value 3 through 5, and chroma 3 or 4. Redoximorphic features in shades of gray, yellow, brown, or red range from few to many. Slickensides on surfaces of peds range from few to many. Texture is clay.
The lower part of the Bw horizon lacks a matrix color and is multicolored in shades of brown, yellow, red, and gray. Redoximorphic features in shades of gray, yellow, brown, or red range from common to many. Slickensides on surfaces of peds range from few to many. Texture is silty clay or clay.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no known series in the same family. Series in closely related families include the Chastain, Chenneby, and Tawcaw series. Chastain soils are on similar positions and have a mixed mineralogy control section. The somewhat poorly drained Chenneby soils are on similar positions but have a fine-silty control section. The somewhat poorly drained Tawcaw soils are on similar positions but have a fine-loamy, kaolinitic control section.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Apalachee soils are on river flood plains in the coastal plain. Slopes range from 0 to 2 percent. They formed in thick clayey alluvial sediments. The climate is humid subtropical. The average annual temperature is about ranges from 66 to 70 degrees F., and the average annual precipitation ranges from 54 to 58 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These include the Bethera, Dothan, Duplin, Eulonia, Faceville, Fuquay, Hornsville, Iuka, and Orangeburg series. Bethera soils are on similar flood plain to higher terrace positions and have more developed subsoils. Dothan, Duplin, Faceville, Fuquay, and Orangeburg soils are on adjacent higher upland positions and have well developed argillic horizons. In addition, the well drained Dothan soils have more than 5 percent plinthite in the subsoil, Duplin soils are moderately well drained, The well drained Faceville and Orangeburg soils have red subsoils, and the well drained Fuquay soils have sandy surface and subsurface horizons 20 to 40 inches thick and more than 5 percent plinthite in the subsoil. The moderately well drained Eulonia and Hornsville soils are on higher adjacent stream terraces. The moderately well drained Iuka soils are on slightly higher flood plain positions near stream channels in the flood plain and have coarse-loamy control sections.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Poorly drained; slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas are in native forest. A few small areas are planted to improved pasture grasses or utilized as native range. Vegetation is predominantly water oak, black oak, pond pine, water tupelo, black tupelo, sweetgum, water hickory, swamp poplar, black willow, American beech, and sweetbay magnolia.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Gulf Coastal Plain of northern Florida and possibly Alabama and Georgia. The series is of small known extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Auburn, Alabama.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Jackson County, Florida; 1977.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features in this pedon:
Ochric epipedon the zone from 0 to 18 inches (A).
Cambic horizon the zone from 18 to 60 inches (Bw1, Bw2).
These soils were formerly included in a miscellaneous land type called Mixed Alluvial land.
A water table is within depths of 20 inches for 3 to 6 months in most years. The soil is flooded for 1 to 3 months in winter and early spring in most years.