LOCATION ASSATEAGUE VA

Established Series
Rev. CDP-DWS-WJE
10/2021

ASSATEAGUE SERIES

Soils of the Assateague series are very deep and excessively drained. They formed in sandy sediments. They are on dunes. Permeability is very rapid. Slopes range from 0 to 50 percent. Mean annual precipitation is 42 inches, and mean annual air temperature is 57 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Mixed, thermic Typic Udipsamments

TYPICAL PEDON: Assateague fine sand - forested on 25 percent convex slope. (Colors are for moist soil.)

Oi--0 to 1 inches; undecomposed and partially decomposed pine needles, hardwood leaves, and twigs.

A--1 to 3 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) fine sand; single grain; loose; few fine roots; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick)

C1--3 to 41 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) fine sand; single grain; loose; few fine roots; moderately acid; gradual diffuse boundary.

C2--41 to 86 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) fine sand; single grain; loose; moderately acid.

TYPE LOCATION: Accomack County, Virginia; approximately 1.5 miles south southeast of the junction of Highways VA-2102 and VA-2113 and 1.7 miles north northwest of Tom's Cove Visitors' Center on Assateague Island.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of the sandy A and C horizons is greater than 80 inches. Reaction ranges from extremely acid through mildly alkaline. Shell fragments are usually absent, but content ranges to 15 percent. Silt plus clay in the control section is less than 5 percent.

The O horizon, where present, is neutral or has hue of 7.5YR through 5Y, value of 2 or 3, and chroma of 0 through 3.

The A horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 through 7, and chroma of 1 or 2. It is coarse sand, sand, or fine sand.

The C horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 6 through 8, and chroma of 2 through 8. Low chroma mottles are the result of uncoated sand grains and not due to wetness. It is coarse sand, sand, or fine sand.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Buncombe, Crevasse, Malden, Tarboro, and Wando series. Buncombe soils have few to many flakes of mica. Crevasse soils have a seasonal water table less than 6 feet. Malden soils have colors redder than 10YR. Tarboro and Wando soils have more than 5 percent silt plus clay in the control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Assateague soils are on undulating to steep dunes associated with beaches and salt marshes. Slopes range from 0 to 50 percent. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 25 to 60 inches and mean annual air temperature ranges from 57 to 65 degrees F.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Bojac, Carteret, Chincoteague, Fisherman, Magotha, and Molena soils. Bojac and Molena soils have argillic horizons. Carteret, Chincoteague, Fisherman, and Magotha soils are wetter and occupy lower landscape positions.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Excessively drained; slow runoff; very rapid permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: Assateague soils are used for wildlife habitat and recreation. The natural plant community consists of wax myrtle or southern bayberry, loblolly pine, American holly, black cherry, beachgrass and sea rocket.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Virginia, and possibly North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. This series is of moderate extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Raleigh, North Carolina

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Northampton County, Virginia, 1985. The name is from a barrier island.

REMARKS: In the past, Assateague soils have been included in the Fripp and Newhan soils and in the miscellaneous land class Dune land. The absence of subsurface pedogenic horizons, mixed mineralogy, and flooding by storm tides are the main diagnostic features of these soils. The soil horizon depths were revised on 10/2021 to ensure the description began at the soil surface.

ADDITIONAL DATA: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University soil survey lab data shows less than 5 percent silt plus clay and less than 95 percent quartz and other heavy minerals for the typical pedon and 5 other profiles.

TABULAR SERIES DATA:


SOI-5  Soil Name   Slope  Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip  Elevation
VA0222 ASSATEAGUE  0- 50   57- 65  200-240  25- 60     1-  50 

SOI-5  FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind   Months  Bedrock Hardness
VA0222 NONE   RARE   6.0-6.0              -     60-60        

SOI-5  Depth  Texture                3-Inch  No-10  Clay%   -CEC-
VA0222  0- 3  COS S FS                0-  0  75-100  0-10    -   
VA0222  3-86  COS S FS                0-  0  75-100  0- 5    -   

SOI-5  Depth    -pH-     O.M.  Salin  Permeab   Shnk-Swll
VA0222  0- 3  4.5- 7.3  0.-.5  0- 0    20-  20  LOW      
VA0222  3-86  5.6- 7.8  0.-.5  0- 0    20-  20  LOW

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.