LOCATION ATKINSON IA+IL MN
Established Series
Rev. RID-LDC-JRH
11/2018
ATKINSON SERIES
The Atkinson series consists of deep or very deep, well drained soils formed in 100 to 150 centimeters of loamy sediments with or without a thin paleosol over limestone bedrock. These soils are on ridges of narrow interfluves, crests and side slopes on uplands, high structural benches, and strath terraces. Slope ranges from 0 to 14 percent. Mean annual air temperature is about 9 degrees C. Mean annual precipitation is about 735 millimeters.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Argiudolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Atkinson loam, on a southwest-facing, convex 3 percent slope, in a cultivated field. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 18 centimeters; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; weak and moderate fine granular structure; friable; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary.
A--18 to 33 centimeters; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; weak and moderate fine granular structure; friable; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary. [Combined thickness of the A horizon is 25 to 50 centimeters.]
BA--33 to 48 centimeters; dark brown (10YR 3/3) loam, brown (10YR 4/3) dry; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; friable; many fine and medium pores; few very dark brown (10YR 2/2) coats on faces of peds; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary. [0 to 15 centimeters thick]
Bt1--48 to 61 centimeters; brown (10YR 4/3) loam; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common fine pores; common distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) clay films on faces of peds and on surfaces along pores; stone line with a few cobbles up to 15 centimeters in diameter; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary.
Bt2--61 to 89 centimeters; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; common fine pores; many distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds and on surfaces along pores; about 5 percent pebbles; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt3--89 to 114 centimeters; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) and yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; many fine pores; many distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds and on surfaces along pores; about 5 percent pebbles; moderately acid; abrupt wavy boundary. [Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 45 to 125 centimeters.]
2Bt4--114 to 127 centimeters; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) clay; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; very firm; moderately acid; abrupt wavy boundary. [0 to 25 centimeters thick]
3R--127 centimeters; hard, fractured limestone bedrock.
TYPE LOCATION: Major Land Resource Area (MLRA) 104-Eastern Iowa and Minnesota Till Prairies, Winneshiek County, Iowa subset; about 7 miles west of Fort Atkinson; located about 465 feet east and 45 feet south of the northwest corner of section 18, T. 96 N., R. 10 W.; USGS Protivin SW topographic quadrangle; lat. 43.140861 degrees and long. -92.079500 degrees, WGS84.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to bedrock--100 to 150 centimeters
Clay content in the particle-size control section (weighted average)--24 to 35 percent
Sand content in the particle-size control section (weighted average)--25 to 55 percent
Ap or A horizon:
Hue--10YR
Value--2 or 3
Chroma--1 to 3
Texture-loam, silt loam, or fine sandy loam
Clay content--15 to 27 percent
Sand content--15 to 60 percent
Rock fragment content--0 to 5 percent, mixed lithology
Reaction--moderately acid to neutral, (5.6 to 7.3)
BA horizon:
Hue--10YR
Value--3 or 4
Chroma--2 or 3
Texture-loam, silt loam or fine sandy loam
Clay content--15 to 27 percent
Sand content--20 to 60 percent
Rock fragment content--0 to 8 percent, mixed lithology
Reaction--moderately acid to neutral, (5.6 to 7.3)
Bt horizon:
Hue--10YR or 7.5YR
Value--4 or 5
Chroma--3 to 6
Texture--loam, clay loam, or sandy clay loam
Clay content--18 to 35 percent
Sand content--20 to 60 percent
Rock fragment content--0 to 10 percent, mixed lithology
Reaction--moderately acid or slightly acid, (5.6 to 6.5)
Some pedons, on strath terraces, have textures of sandy loam in the lower part of the Bt horizon
2Bt horizon (when present):
Hue--7.5YR, 5YR or 10YR
Value--4 to 6
Chroma--3 to 8
Texture-clay, silty clay, clay loam, or silty clay loam
Clay content--30 to 75 percent
Sand content--15 to 35 percent
Rock fragment content--0 to 10 percent, mixed lithology
Reaction--moderately acid to neutral, (5.6 to 7.3)
Many pedons have a stone line in or above the 2Bt horizon.
Some pedons have layers 0.3 to 1.5 meters thick above the hard, level-bedded, limestone bedrock, which may not be root restrictive. These layers are channery, very channery, and extremely channery analogs of silty clay to sandy loam with rock fragment content of 3 to 35 percent channers and 0 to 15 percent flagstones.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Burchard,
Cokato,
Cresco,
Cresent,
Durand,
Friesland,
Griswold,
Hitt,
Jasper,
Joslin,
Keosauqua,
Kishwaukee,
Marbletown,
Moingona,
Morrill,
Nuxmaruhanixete,
Parmod,
Penfield,
Reedslake,
Ringwood,
Rockton,
Schoolcraft,
Shelby,
Sibleyville,
Velma, and
Winnebago series.
Burchard--have carbonates within a depth of 75 centimeters, have a clay content of 25 to 35 percent and a sand content of 30 to 45 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Cokato--have carbonates within a depth of 122 centimeters, have a clay content of 18 to 27 percent and a sand content of 35 to 45 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Cresco--have carbonates within a depth of 178 centimeters and have a clay content of 28 to 35 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Cresent--have a clay content of 2 to 10 percent and a sand content of 70 to 95 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Durand--have matrix hues of 5YR or 7.5YR in the middle third of the series control section and have less than 27 percent clay and more than 40 percent sand in the lower third of the series control section
Friesland--have less than 27 percent clay, less than 40 percent sand, and do not have rock fragments in the lower third of the series control section
Griswold--have carbonates within a depth of 102 centimeters, a rock fragment content of 10 to 35 percent, and calcium carbonate equivalent ranging from 10 to 40 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Hitt--have limestone bedrock within a depth of 150 centimeters and have matrix hues of 2.5YR, 5YR, or 7.5YR in the middle third of the series control section
Jasper--have a clay content of 5 to 20 percent, an average sand content of 45 to 70 percent, and less than 10 percent gravel in the lower third of the series control section
Joslin--have a matrix hue of 2.5YR and a clay content averaging between 35 and 50 percent in the middle third of the series control section
Keosauqua--have a clay content of 2 to 10 percent, a sand content of 80 to 90 percent, and a rock fragment content of 1 to 10 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Kishwaukee--have a clay content of 18 to 30 percent and a rock fragment content of 15 to 35 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Marbletown--have a paralithic contact in sandstone or shale within a depth of 150 centimeters
Moingona--have carbonates within a depth of 150 centimeters and have a clay content of 15 to 30 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Morrill--have matrix hues of 5YR or 7.5YR in the middle third of the series control section and have a clay content of 5 to 30 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Nuxmaruhanixete--have a clay content of 2 to 5 percent and a rock fragment content of 15 to 60 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Parmod--have carbonates within a depth of 100 centimeters, have calcium carbonate equivalent range of 15 to 40 percent and a rock fragment content of 3 to 15 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Penfield--have a clay content of 12 to 32 percent, a sand content of 45 to 65 percent and a rock fragment content of less than 15 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Reedslake--have a zone in the lower third of the series control section that is saturated for at least 30 consecutive days during April to July in normal years
Ringwood--have less than 20 percent clay and a rock fragment content of 10 and 40 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Rockton--have a mollic epipedon 25 to 46 centimeters thick and have limestone bedrock within a depth of 100 centimeters
Schoolcraft--have more than 80 percent sand and a rock fragment content of 0 to 25 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Shelby--have carbonates within a depth of 75 centimeters and have a clay content of 25 to 36 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Sibleyville--have sandstone or sandy and silty shale within a depth of 100 centimeters
Velma--have a reaction range of very strongly acid or strongly acid in the middle part of the series control section and have a clay content of 25 to 35 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Winnebago--have matrix hue of 5YR or 7.5YR in the middle part of the series control section and have less than 20 percent clay in the lower third of the series control section
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material--100 to 150 centimeters of loamy sediments with or without a thin paleosol over limestone bedrock
Landform--ridges of narrow interfluves, crests and side slopes on uplands, high structural benches, and strath terraces
Slope--0 to 14 percent
Elevation--160 to 400 meters above sea level
Mean annual air temperature--6 to 12 degrees C
Mean annual precipitation--580 to 1040 millimeters
Frost-free period--155 to 210 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Emeline,
Ostrander,
Rockton and
Winneshiek soils.
Emeline--are at higher landscape positions on the upper part of side slopes and have limestone bedrock within a depth of 25 centimeters
Ostrander--are at higher landscape positions on interfluves, do not have silty clay or clay argillic horizons, and do not have a limestone bedrock contact in the series control section
Rockton--are at lower landscape positions on side slopes, have a mollic epipedon 25 to 46 centimeters thick and have limestone bedrock within a depth of 100 centimeters
Winneshiek--are at lower landscape positions on side slopes and have an ochric epipedon 15 to 38 centimeters thick
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class--well drained--a frequently saturated zone does not occur within a depth of 1.8 meters during the wettest periods of normal years
Saturated hydraulic conductivity--1.00 to 10.00 micrometers per second in the glacial drift, 0.01 to 1.00 micrometers per second in the paleosol and 0.01 to 10.00 micrometers per second in the limestone bedrock depending on the amount of weathered rock
Surface runoff potential--low to high
USE AND VEGETATION:
The more gently sloping areas are cultivated. The principal crops are corn, soybeans, small grains, and legume hay. The more steeply sloping areas are in permanent pasture or legume hay. The native vegetation is big bluestem, little bluestem, switchgrass, and other grasses of the tall grass prairie.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Physiographic Division--Interior Plains
Physiographic Province--Central Lowland
Physiographic sections--Dissected till plains, Wisconsin driftless section, Till plains
MLRAs--Eastern Iowa and Minnesota Till Prairies (104) and Northern Mississippi Valley Loess Hills (105), and Illinois and Iowa Deep Loess and Drift, East-Central Part (108B)
LRR M; northeast Iowa, northwest Illinois and southeast Minnesota
Extent--moderate
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Bremer County, Iowa, 1965
REMARKS:
Particle-size control section--the zone from a depth of 48 to 98 centimeters (Bt1, Bt2, and Bt3 horizons);
series control section--the zone from the surface to a depth of 127 centimeters (Ap, A, BA, Bt1, Bt2, Bt3, and 2Bt4 horizons).
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon include:
mollic epipedon--the zone from the surface to a depth of 48 centimeters (Ap, A, and BA horizons);
argillic horizon--the zone from a depth of 48 to 127 centimeters (Bt1, Bt2, Bt3, and 2Bt4 horizons);
lithic contact--the contact with limestone bedrock at 127 centimeters;
udic moisture regime.
The upper 0.3 to 1.5 meters of limestone may be significantly fractured and may not be a root restrictive layer. Fractures may be filled with loamy material.
Cation-exchange activity class is inferred from lab data from similar soils in the surrounding area.
Taxonomy version--Keys to Soil Taxonomy, twelfth edition, 2014.
Refer to DMUid 432,815 in NASIS for soil property data. NASIS Pedon ID - 2000IA191007
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.