LOCATION BIRKBECK IL+IN OH
Established Series
Rev. JCD-TEL-RDC
12/2015
BIRKBECK SERIES
The Birkbeck series consist of very deep, moderately well drained, moderately permeable soils formed in loess or other silty material and in the underlying calcareous loamy till on till plains. Slope ranges from 0 to 18 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 914 mm (36 inches), and mean annual air temperature is about 12 degrees C (54 degrees F).
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Oxyaquic Hapludalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Birkbeck silt loam - on a convex slope of 2 percent with a 135 degree (south-east) aspect in a sparsely wooded area at an elevation of about 207 m (680 feet) above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
A--0 to 10 cm (0 to 4 inches); very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) silt loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) dry; weak thin platy structure parting to moderate very fine granular; friable; slightly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. [ 8 to 13 cm (3 to 5 inches) thick]
E--10 to 23 cm (4 to 9 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) silt loam; moderate very thin platy structure; friable; few distinct dark brown (10YR 3/3) organic coatings on faces of peds; few distinct gray (10YR 6/1) (dry) silt coatings on faces of peds; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. [0 to 20 cm (0 to 8 inches) thick]
Bt1--23 to 33 cm (9 to 13 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) silty clay loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure parting to moderate very fine granular; friable; common distinct dark brown (10YR 3/3) organo-clay films on faces of peds; common distinct light gray (10YR 7/1) (dry) silt coatings on faces of peds; few fine prominent irregular black (7.5YR 2.5/1) weakly cemented iron-manganese nodules throughout; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt2--33 to 61 cm (13 to 24 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) silty clay loam; moderate fine and very fine subangular blocky structure; friable; many distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; few fine prominent irregular black (7.5YR 2.5/1) weakly cemented iron-manganese nodules throughout; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt3--61 to 74 cm (24 to 29 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) silty clay loam; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; friable; many distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; common fine prominent irregular black (7.5YR 2.5/1) weakly cemented iron-manganese nodules throughout; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt4--74 to 107 cm (29 to 42 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) silty clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; many distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; few fine distinct light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) iron depletions in the matrix; common fine distinct light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) masses of oxidized iron in the matrix; common medium prominent irregular black (7.5YR 2.5/1) weakly cemented iron-manganese nodules throughout; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary.
Bt5--107 to 137 cm (42 to 54 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) silty clay loam; moderate medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; friable; many distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; few fine distinct light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) iron depletions in the matrix; common fine distinct yellowish brown 2.5Y 6/4) iron-manganese accumulations and few medium distinct strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) masses of oxidized iron in the matrix; common medium prominent irregular black (7.5YR 2.5/1) weakly cemented iron-manganese nodules throughout; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary. [Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 51 to 114 cm (20 to 45 inches).]
2Bt6--137 to 152 cm (54 to 60 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) loam; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; friable; few distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; few distinct very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) organo-clay films in pores; common fine distinct light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) iron depletions in the matrix; common medium distinct light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) iron-manganese accumulations and common fine distinct strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) masses of oxidized iron in the matrix; few fine prominent irregular black (7.5YR 2.5/1) weakly cemented iron-manganese nodules throughout; neutral; gradual smooth boundary. [10 to 51 cm (4 to 20 inches) thick]
2C--152 to 173 cm (60 to 68 inches); light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) loam; massive; firm; few distinct very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) organo-clay films in pores; common fine distinct light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) iron depletions in the matrix; common fine faint light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) and common fine distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) masses of oxidized iron in the matrix; few fine prominent irregular black (7.5YR 2.5/1) weakly cemented iron-manganese nodules throughout; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Macon County, Illinois; about 7 miles northeast of Decatur; 1,600 feet east and 750 feet south of the northwest corner, sec. 25, T. 17 N., R. 3 E.; USGS Argenta, IL topographic quadrangle; latitude 39 degrees 54 minutes 25.2 seconds N., and longitude 88 degrees 48 minutes 59.9 seconds W., UTM Zone 16S 0344718 easting and 4419014 northing; NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Thickness of the loess: 102 to 152 cm (40 to 60 inches)
Depth to base of the argillic horizon: 102 to 178 cm (40 to 70 inches)
Depth to carbonates: 102 to 178 cm (40 to 70 inches)
Particle-size control section: averages between 27 and 35 percent clay and less than 10 percent fine sand or coarser
A horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 2 or 3
Chroma: 1 to 3
Texture: silt loam
Clay content: 14 to 27 percent
Reaction: strongly acid to neutral
Ap horizon (where present):
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 2 or 3
Texture: silt loam, or less commonly silty clay loam in eroded soils
Clay content: 14 to 27 percent ranging up to 30 percent in eroded soils
Reaction: strongly acid to neutral
E horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: silt loam
Clay content: 15 to 27 percent
Reaction: very strongly acid to moderately acid, but ranges to neutral in pedons that have been limed
Bt horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 3 to 6
Redoximorphic features: occur in the middle and lower part of the Bt horizon
Texture: silt loam or silty clay loam
Clay content: 25 to 40 percent
Reaction: very strongly acid to moderately acid, ranging to neutral in some subhorizons in most pedons
2Bt horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR, or 2.5Y
Value: 4 to 6
Chroma: 2 to 8
Redoximorphic features: typically present
Texture: loam, clay loam, silty clay loam, or silt loam
Clay content: 20 to 35 percent
Sand content: 15 to 40 percent
Rock fragment content: up to 15 percent by volume
Reaction: slightly acid or neutral, but ranges from moderately acid to slightly alkaline
Some pedons have a 2BC horizon.
2C horizon:
Hue: 10YR, 2.5Y, or less commonly 7.5YR
Value: 4 to 6
Chroma: 2 to 4
Redoximorphic features: typically present
Texture: loam, clay loam, silty clay loam, or silt loam
Clay content: 17 to 30 percent
Sand content: 15 to 40 percent
Rock fragment content: up to 15 percent by volume
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline and contains carbonates, but in some pedons it is neutral in the upper part.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Baraboo,
Cadiz,
Campton,
Elco,
Eleroy,
Inton,
Iona,
Libre,
Mayville,
Minnith,
Morningsun,
Redbud,
Rocheport,
Rockfield,
Somonauk,
Uniontown,
Winfield, and
Zurich series. Baraboo, Eleroy, and Rocheport soils have a lithic or paralithic contact within a depth of 152 cm (60 inches). Cadiz soils average more than 5 percent rock fragments within a depth of 102 cm (40 inches). Campton soils have horizons with more than 40 percent sand in the lower part of the series control section. Elco, Libre, Mayville, Minnith, Rockfield, and Somonauk soils have horizons with more than 15 percent sand within a depth of 102 cm (40 inches). Inton, Iona, Redbud, Uniontown, and Winfield soils have less than 15 percent sand in the lower part of the series control section. Morningsun soils typically average more than 40 percent sand in the lower part of the series control section. Zurich soils have carbonates within a depth of 102 cm (40 inches).
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Birkbeck soils are on till plains of Wisconsinan Age. Slope gradients commonly are between 1 and 10 percent, but range from 0 to 18 percent. Birkbeck soils formed in 102 to 152 cm (40 to 60 inches) of loess and in the underlying calcareous loamy till. Mean annual air temperature ranges from 8 to 12 degree C (46 to 54 degrees F)., mean annual precipitation ranges from 864 to 1067 mm (34 to 42 inches), frost-free period ranges from 155 to 190 days, and elevation ranges from 170 to 300 m (550 to 980 feet) above mean sea level.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Dodge,
Fayette,
Kendall,
Miami,
Reesville,
Rozetta,
Russell,
Sabina,
St. Charles,
Senachwine,
Sunbury, and
Xenia soils. The well drained Dodge, Russell, and Senachwine soils, and the moderately well drained Miami soils are on similar nearby landscapes that have a thinner mantle of loess. The well drained Fayette and Rozetta soils generally are up slope on summits or nearer the center of interstream divides where the loess is thicker. The somewhat poorly drained Kendall and well drained St. Charles soils commonly are at lower elevations and have the lower part of their sola formed in loamy outwash. The somewhat poorly drained Reesville and Sunbury soils are on similar parts of the landscape nearby. They both have gray colors higher in the sola and, in addition, Sunbury soils have a surface horizon between 18 to 25 cm (7 and 10 inches) in thickness that have moist color value of 3 or less and contain more clay in the control section. The somewhat poorly drained Sabina soils are on more nearly level parts of the landscape nearby and form a drainage sequence with Birkbeck soils. The moderately well drained Xenia soils are on similar parts of the landscape nearby.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Moderately well drained. A perched seasonal high water table is at a depth of 61 to 107 cm (2 to 3.5 feet) at some time between February and April in normal years. The potential for surface runoff is low to medium. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high to high (4.23 to 14.11 micrometers per second) in the solum and moderately high (1.41 to 4.23 micrometers per second) in the underlying material. Permeability is moderate in the solum and moderately slow in the underlying material.
USE AND VEGETATION: Some areas are in woodland, some are in pasture, and some in cropland. Corn, soybeans, small grain, and meadow are the principal crops. Native vegetation is deciduous forest.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Primarily MLRAs 108 and 115 in central and northern Illinois and MLRA 111 in Indiana and southwestern Ohio. The extent is moderate.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: De Witt County, Illinois, 1936.
REMARKS: The SDJR - MLRA 108A - Birkbeck silt loam, 0 to 2 percent slopes; SDJR - MLRA 108A - Birkbeck silt loam, 2 to 5 percent slopes; SDJR - MLRA 108A - Birkbeck silt loam, 2 to 5 percent slopes, eroded; SDJR - MLRA 108A - Birkbeck silt loam, 5 to 10 percent slopes, eroded; and SDJR - MLRA 108A - Birkbeck silt loam, 10 to 18 percent slopes, eroded projects recognized the need for a future project to determine if a densic horizon is present. There is a perched water table at some time during the growing season, and soils in the same drainage sequence (Sabina) have densic horizons identified.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
ochric epipedon - the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of 9 inches (A and E horizons);
argillic horizon - the zone from about 9 to 60 inches (Bt1, Bt2, Bt3, Bt4, Bt5, 2Bt6 horizons);
lithologic discontinuity: at a depth of 137 cm (54 inches) (contact between the Bt5 and 2Bt6 horizons).
ADDITIONAL DATA: NSSL data is available on 4 horizons of the typical pedon (pedon no. S1980IL115035).
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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.