LOCATION ARMENIA SC+NCEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic, thermic Typic Argiaquolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Armenia loam on a 0.5 percent slope, in a pasture on a narrow flood plain. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap1--0 to 2 inches; dark brown (10YR 3/3) loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure parting to moderate medium granular; friable; many fine and medium roots; many fine pores; few black concretions; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary. (2 to 11 inches thick)
Ap2--2 to 7 inches; dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) dry; few fine faint dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/6) mottles; weak medium subangular blocky structure parting to moderate medium granular; friable; common fine and medium roots; many fine pores; few black concretions; neutral; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 5 inches thick)
BA1--7 to 16 inches; very dark gray (10YR 3/1) sandy clay loam, dark gray (10YR 4/1) dry; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine roots; common fine and few medium pores; few fine and medium black concretions; neutral; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 14 inches thick)
BA2--16 to 20 inches; very dark grayish brown (2.5Y 3/2) sandy loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) dry; few fine distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) mottles; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; sticky, plastic; common distinct clay films in pores; few fine roots; common very fine pores; few fine and medium black concretions; neutral; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 8 inches thick)
Btg--20 to 29 inches; very dark gray (N 3/0) clay, gray (10YR 5/1) dry; common fine distinct olive brown (2.5Y 4/4) mottles; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; sticky, very plastic; common distinct clay films in pores; few fine roots; few fine pores; few fine and medium black concretions; few fine pebbles of feldspar; mildly alkaline; gradual wavy boundary. (8 to 41 inches thick)
Btgc--29 to 48 inches; dark gray (N 4/0) clay loam; few fine faint olive brown (2.5Y 4/4) mottles; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; sticky, very plastic; common faint clay films in pores; few fine roots; few very fine and fine pores; common fine and medium black concretions; few fine pebbles of feldspar; mildly alkaline; gradual wavy boundary. (0 to 19 inches thick)
BC--48 to 67 inches; mottled gray (5Y 5/1), light olive brown (2.5Y 5/6), light gray (10YR 7/2), and strong brown (7.5YR 5/8) sandy clay loam; massive; sticky, plastic; pockets of clay and coarse sandy clay loam; common faint clay films in some pores; few very fine pores; common fine and medium black concretions; few fine pebbles of quartz and feldspar; neutral; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 20 inches thick)
C--67 to 80 inches; mottled gray (5Y 5/1), strong brown (7.5YR 5/8); light gray (10YR 7/2), and reddish brown (5YR 4/3) sandy clay loam; massive; friable; common fine pebbles of feldspar; few fine and medium pebbles of quartz; slightly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Chester County, South Carolina; 8.2 miles northeast of Chester on State Highway 191; 1,050 feet west of junction of State Highway 191 and 323; 100 feet north of Highway 191; 25 feet east of drainageway.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness is 30 to more than 60 inches. Depth to bedrock is more than 5 feet. Content of dark concretions range from few to common. Content of pebbles range from 0 to 6 percent by volume. The A horizon is moderately acid to neutral and the B and C horizons are slightly acid to mildly alkaline.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 2 or 3, and chroma of 1 to 3. Some pedons have recent deposition with a value of 4. It is loam, sandy loam, silt loam, or clay loam.
The Btg horizon has hue of 10YR to 5Y or it is neutral, value of 3 to 6, and chroma of 2 or less. The Btg horizon commonly is mottled in shades of brown, yellow or olive. It is clay, sandy clay, clay loam, or silty clay.
The Btgc horizon, where present, has hue of 10YR to 5Y or it is neutral, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 2 or less. It commonly is mottled in shades of brown, yellow or olive. It is clay, sandy clay, clay loam, or silty clay.
The BC horizon, where present, is commonly mottled in hue of 7.5YR to 5Y or it is neutral, value of 3 to 8, and chroma of 1 to 8. Some pedons have a BCg horizon that has matrix color with chroma of 2 or less and mottles in shades of yellow, olive, and black. The BC horizon is sandy clay loam or clay loam.
The C or Cg horizon is mottled in hue of 7.5YR to 5Y or it is neutral, value of 3 to 8, and chroma of 1 to 8, or it has matrix chroma of 2 or less and mottles in shades of yellow, olive, brown and black. It is sandy loam, loam, clay loam, or sandy clay loam.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no other known series in this family. Elbert, Iredell, and Orange soils are similar series in related families. All of the soils in related families have an ochric epipedon. In addition, Elbert soils are mesic, Iredell soils do not have low chroma mottles in the upper part of the Bt horizon, and Orange soils have yellowish brown or strong brown Bt horizons with low chroma mottles in the upper 10 inches.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Armenia soils are on small to medium flood plains or upland flats and depressions of the Piedmont Plateau. The soils formed in material mostly weathered from dark colored basic rocks. This soil commonly is overlain by a thin, 10- to 20-inch, layer of loamy alluvium. Near the type location, the average annual precipitation is about 46 inches, the mean annual temperature is about 61 degrees F, and the freeze-free season is about 202 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the similar Iredell and Orange series and the Chewacla, Cecil, Enon, Mecklenburg, Wehadkee, Wilkes, and Winnsboro series. Chewacla and Wehadkee soils have less than 35 percent clay. Cecil soils have kaolinitic mineralogy. Enon, Mecklenburg, and Winnsboro soils are well drained and have mixed mineralogy. Wilkes soils are well drained and have a paralithic contact within 20 inches of the surface.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Poorly drained. Runoff is slow. Permeability is slow.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas are in pasture or woodland, chiefly water tolerant hardwoods and scattered pines. Some areas are in corn, cotton, or soybeans.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The Piedmont area of South Carolina and North Carolina, and possibly Alabama, Georgia, and Virginia. The series is of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Raleigh, North Carolina
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Chester County, South Carolina; 1977.
REMARKS: This soil was previously correlated as Iredell Variant in Abbeville County and as Elbert in York County. Elbert soils are now mesic. The content of clay of the Armenia series typically increases by more than 20 percent (absolute) within 3 inches which is within the definition of Abruptic Argiaquolls but lacks the drying of the subsoil characteristics.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - the zone from 0 to 29 inches (Ap1, Ap2, BA1, BA2, and Btg horizons)
Argillic horizon - the zone from 20 to 48 inches (Btg and Btgc horizons)
MLRA = 136
SIR = SC0087
TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation SC0087 ARMENIA 0- 2 60- 63 195-230 43- 48 400-1000SOI-5 FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind Months Bedrock Hardness SC0087 RARE COMMON 0.5-1.5 APPARENT DEC-APR 60-60
SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay% -CEC- SC0087 0- 7 L SIL 0- 1 90-100 10-27 9- 15 SC0087 0- 7 SL 0- 1 80- 90 15-20 8- 14 SC0087 0- 7 CL 0- 1 90-100 27-35 8- 16 SC0087 7-20 SL SCL CL 0- 1 85-100 15-40 10- 25 SC0087 20-48 C SIC CL 0- 1 95-100 35-60 20- 30 SC0087 48-80 SL SCL CL 0- 5 75-100 15-30 10- 25
SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salin Permeab Shnk-Swll SC0087 0- 7 5.6- 7.3 1.-4. 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 LOW SC0087 0- 7 5.6- 7.3 1.-4. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW SC0087 0- 7 5.6- 7.3 1.-4. 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 MODERATE SC0087 7-20 6.1- 7.8 .5-2. 0- 0 0.06- 0.6 MODERATE SC0087 20-48 6.1- 7.8 0.-1. 0- 0 0.06- 0.2 HIGH SC0087 48-80 6.1- 7.8 0.-1. 0- 0 0.2- 0.6 LOW