LOCATION ALTAVISTA NC+AL GA SC VAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, semiactive, thermic Aquic Hapludults
TYPICAL PEDON: Altavista fine sandy loam--cultivated. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 8 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) fine sandy loam; weak medium granular structure; very friable; many fine roots; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 12 inches thick)
E--8 to 12 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) fine sandy loam; weak fine granular structure; very friable; few fine roots; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 12 inches thick)
BE--12 to 15 inches; brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) sandy clay loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; few medium roots; moderately acid; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick)
Bt1--15 to 20 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) clay loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common fine prominent yellowish red (5YR 5/8) masses of iron accumulation; few fine roots; few flakes of mica; common faint clay films on faces of peds; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt2--20 to 35 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) sandy clay loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few fine roots; common medium prominent light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) iron depletions; few flakes of mica; common faint clay films on faces of peds; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 14 to 40 inches.)
BC--35 to 42 inches; brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; many medium prominent light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) iron depletions; few flakes of mica; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary. (0 to 25 inches thick)
C--42 to 60 inches; mottled yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) and gray (10YR 6/1) coarse sandy loam; massive; very friable; many gravel; few flakes of mica; strongly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Wake County, North Carolina; 12 miles south of Raleigh on Old Stage Road, 1.5 miles southwest of Plymouth Church on farm road; near Middle Creek, 200 yards east of farm road.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Solum Thickness: 30 to more than 60 inches
Depth to Bedrock: Greater than 60 inches
Depth to Seasonal High Water Table: 18 to 30 inches, December to April
Soil Reaction: Extremely acid to moderately acid except where the surface has been limed
Gravel Content: 0 to 5 percent in the A and B horizons and 0 to 35 percent in the C horizon
Other Features: Flakes of mica range from none to common in the B and C horizons
A or Ap horizon:
Color--hue of 7.5YR, 10YR, or 2.5Y, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 1 to 4
Texture--loamy sand, loamy fine sand, fine sandy loam, very fine sandy loam, silt loam, sandy loam, or loam
E horizon, (where present):
Color--hue of 10YR to 2.5Y, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 3 to 8
Texture--loamy sand, loamy fine sand, fine sandy loam, very fine sandy loam, silt loam, sandy loam, or loam
The BE horizon (where present):
Color--hue of 7.5YR, 10YR, or 2.5Y, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 3 to 8
Texture--fine sandy loam, sandy loam, loam, or sandy clay loam
Bt horizon:
Color--hue of 7.5YR, 10YR, or 2.5Y, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 3 to 8.
Texture--dominantly loam, clay loam, or sandy clay loam. Subhorizons of the Bt horizon in some pedons are fine sandy loam or sandy loam. Content of silt is less than 30 percent
Redoximorphic features--masses of oxidized iron in shades of brown, yellow, or red and iron depletions in shades of olive or gray (iron depletions occur within the upper 24 inches of the Bt horizon)
Btg horizons (where present):
Color--neutral or hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 1 or 2
Texture--loam, clay loam, or sandy clay loam; subhorizons horizons in some pedons are fine sandy loam or sandy loam; content of silt is less than 30 percent
Redoximorphic features--masses of oxidized iron in shades of brown, yellow, or red and iron depletions in shades of olive or gray (iron depletions occur within the upper 24 inches of the Bt horizon)
BC horizon (where present):
Color--hue of 7.5YR, 10YR, or 2.5Y, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 3 to 8.
Texture--sandy loam, loam, sandy clay loam, fine sandy loam, loamy fine sand, or loamy sand
Redoximorphic features--masses of oxidized iron in shades of brown, yellow, or red and iron depletions in shades of olive or gray
C horizon:
Color--hue of 7.5YR to 2.5Y, value of 4 to 7, and chroma of 3 to 8
Texture--loamy sediment, commonly sandy loam, fine sandy loam, loam, sandy clay loam, or clay loam; some pedons have 2C horizons that are clayey
Redoximorphic features--masses of oxidized iron in shades of brown, yellow, or red and iron depletions in shades of olive or gray
Cg horizon (where present):
Color--neutral or hue of 7.5YR to 2.5Y, value of 4 to 7, and chroma of 1 or 2
Texture--loamy sediment, commonly sandy loam, fine sandy loam, loam, sandy clay loam, or clay loam
Redoximorphic features--masses of oxidized iron in shades of brown, yellow, or red and iron depletions in shades of olive or gray
COMPETING SERIES:
Abell soils--lithologic discontinuity in the Bt horizon; on uplands
Santuc soils--formed in residuum weathered from mixed acid crystalline rocks, and a perched water table; on uplands
Tetotum soils--more than 30 percent silt in the particle-size control section
Winton soils--saturated by lateral water flow and a perched water table; on steeper side slopes ranging from 8 to 65 percent on the Coastal Plain
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Landscape: Southern piedmont and Coastal Plain
Landform: Stream terraces
Elevation: 25 to 750 feet above mean sea level
Parent Material: Loamy fluvial sediments
Mean Annual Air Temperature: 57 to 70 degrees
Mean Annual Precipitation: 37 to 69 inches
Frost Free Period: 185 to 250 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
Augusta soils--somewhat poorly drained (seasonal high water table at 12 to 24 inches)
Chewacla soils--somewhat poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table at 6 to 24 inches); on adjacent floodplains
Congaree soils--well to moderately well drained soils (seasonal high water table at 30 to 48 inches) and lack argillic horizons; on floodplains and at the base of slopes
Molena soils--somewhat excessively drained and sandy throughout; on slightly higher landscapes
Roanoke soils--poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table at 0 to 12 inches) and a clayey subsoil; on flats and in slight depressions
State soils--well drained soils (seasonal high water table at 48 to 72 inches); on slightly higher landscapes
Thomson soils--well drained soils with less clay; on slightly higher landscapes
Wehadkee soils--poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table at 0 to 12 inches); on adjacent floodplains
Wickham soils--well drained soils and a redder subsoil; on slightly higher landscapes
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY:
Agricultural Drainage Class: Moderately well drained
Permeability: Moderate
USE AND VEGETATION:
Major Uses: Mostly cultivated
Dominant Vegetation: Where cultivated--corn, cotton, small grain, soybeans, tobacco, peanuts, and truck crops. Where wooded--loblolly, sweetgum, red maple, yellow-poplar, white oak, southern red oak, water oak, American beech, and hickory. Common understory plants include flowering dogwood, blueberry, sassafras, eastern redbud, eastern redcedar, winged elm, greenbrier, sourwood, southern bayberry (waxmyrtle), inkberry (bitter gallberry), summersweet clethra, honeysuckle, and poison ivy
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Distribution: Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, and Virginia. Altavista soils were correlated in older surveys in Pennsylvania, but those survey areas are outside the MLRA range.
Extent: Large
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Raleigh, North Carolina
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Granville County, North Carolina; 1910.
REMARKS: Altavista soils are restricted to fluvial terraces. The 05/06 revision refined the textures of the C and Cg in the range of characteristics. The 03/06 revision dropped MLRA 153B.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon--the zone from the surface to a depth of 12 inches (the A and E horizons)
Argillic horizon--the zone from a depth of 12 to a depth of 35 inches (the BE, Bt1, and Bt2 horizons)
Aquic subgroup feature--redoximorphic depletions with chroma of 2 or less within the upper 24 inches of the argillic horizon
ADDITIONAL DATA: None
TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation NC0054 ALTAVISTA 0-10 57-70 185-250 37-69 25-750 SOI-5 FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind Months Bedrock NC0054 NONE COMMON 1.5-2.5 APPARENT DEC-APR >60SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay % -CEC- NC0054 0-12 LS LFS 0-0 90-100 5-10 2-5 NC0054 0-12 FSL L SL 0-0 90-100 10-24 3-8 NC0054 0-12 SIL VFSL 0-0 95-100 10-25 3-8 NC0054 12-42 CL SCL L 0-0 95-100 18-35 3-7 NC0054 42-60 VAR - - - -
SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salinity Permeability Shrink-Swell NC0054 0-12 3.5-6.5 0.5-3.0 0-0 6.0-20 LOW NC0054 0-12 3.5-6.5 0.5-3.0 0-0 2.0-6.0 LOW NC0054 0-12 3.5-6.5 0.5-3.0 0-0 2.0-6.0 LOW NC0054 12-42 3.5-6.0 0.0-0.5 0-0 0.6-2.0 LOW NC0054 42-60 - - - -