LOCATION BLOUNT OH+IL IN MI WI

Established Series
Rev. NHM-TJE
11/2021

BLOUNT SERIES

The Blount series consists of very deep, somewhat poorly drained soils that are moderately deep or deep to dense till. Blount soils formed in till and are on wave-worked till plains, till plains, and near-shore zones (relict). Slope ranges from 0 to 6 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 890 mm (35 inches), and mean annual temperature is about 10.6 degrees C (51 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, illitic, mesic Aeric Epiaqualfs

TYPICAL PEDON: Blount silt loam, on a northwest-facing, concave, 1 percent slope in a cultivated field at an elevation of 264 meters (867 feet) above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

Ap--0 to 18 cm (7 inches); dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) silt loam, light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) dry; moderate fine and medium granular structure; friable; common roots; 3 percent gravel; slightly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. [13 to 25 cm (5 to 10 inches) thick]

Btg--18 to 30 cm (7 to 12 inches); grayish brown (10YR 5/2) silty clay; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; common roots; common distinct dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) clay films on surfaces of peds; common distinct light gray (10YR 7/1) (dry) clay depletions on vertical surfaces of peds; many distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) masses of oxidized iron with clear boundaries in the matrix; 3 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary.

Bt--30 to 58 cm (12 to 23 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) clay; weak fine and medium prismatic structure parting to moderate medium subangular blocky; firm; few roots; many distinct grayish brown (10YR 5/2) clay films on faces of peds; many distinct dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) iron depletions with clear boundaries in the matrix; common prominent gray (10YR 5/1) iron depletions with clear boundaries and distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) masses of oxidized iron with diffuse boundaries in the matrix; 4 percent gravel; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary. [Combined thickness of the Btg and/or Bt horizons is 30 to 89 cm (12 to 35 inches).]

BCtg--58 to 76 cm (23 to 30 inches); grayish brown (10YR 5/2) silty clay loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; firm; few faint dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) clay films on vertical surfaces of peds; few distinct light gray (10YR 7/2) calcium carbonate coatings on vertical surfaces of peds; many distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) and common prominent yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) masses of oxidized iron with clear boundaries in the matrix; 8 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear wavy boundary. [0 to 46 cm (18 inches) thick]

CBd--76 to 107 cm (30 to 42 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) clay loam; weak medium platy structure; very firm; common distinct white (10YR 8/1) calcium carbonate coatings on surfaces; common faint grayish brown (10YR 5/2) iron depletions with diffuse boundaries in the matrix; 10 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline; gradual wavy boundary. [0 to 41 cm (16 inches) thick]

Cd1--107 to 137 cm (42 to 54 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) clay loam; massive; very firm; common distinct light gray (10YR 7/1) calcium carbonate coatings on surfaces; few distinct dark gray (10YR 4/1) iron depletions with diffuse boundaries in the matrix; 10 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline; gradual wavy boundary.

Cd2--137 to 200 cm (54 to 79 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) clay loam; massive; very firm; 10 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Mercer County, Ohio; approximately 1.25 miles east of Wabash; in Washington Township; 130 feet west and 1880 feet south of the northeast corner of sec. 3, T. 6 S., R. 1 E.; USGS Erastus topographic quadrangle; lat. 84 degrees 46 minutes 45 seconds N. and long. 40 degrees 33 minutes 35 seconds W., NAD 1927.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to the base of the argillic horizon: 51 to 114 cm (20 to 45 inches)
Depth to carbonates: 48 to 102 cm (19 to 40 inches)
Depth to densic contact: 76 to 152 cm (30 to 60 inches)
Particle-size control section: averages 35 to 45 percent clay
Rock fragments: predominantly igneous, limestone, and dolomite gravel

Ap horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 3 or 4, 6 or more dry
Chroma: 1 to 3
Texture: typically silt loam but is loam in some pedons; some eroded pedons are clay loam or silty clay loam
Rock fragment content: 0 to 5 percent
Reaction: strongly acid to neutral

A horizon, where present:
Thickness: 0 to 13 cm (5 inches)
Hue: 10YR
Value: 2 or 3, 4 or 5 dry
Chroma: 1 or 2
Texture: silt loam

E, BE or EB horizon, where present:
Thickness: 8 to 15 cm (3 to 6 inches)
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 4 or 5 (E horizon); 4 to 6 (BE or EB horizon)
Chroma: 1 to 3 (E horizon); 1 to 4 (EB or BE horizon)
Texture: typically silty clay loam or less commonly silt loam
Rock fragment content: 0 to 10 percent
Reaction: strongly acid to neutral

Bt or Btg horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 4 to 6
Chroma: 1 to 4
Texture: silty clay loam, clay loam, clay, or silty clay
Clay content: 35 to 48 percent in individual subhorizons
Sand content: averages 10 to 25 percent
Rock fragment content: 3 to 10 percent
Reaction: slightly acid to very strongly acid in the upper part and moderately acid to slightly alkaline in the lower part

BCt or BCtg horizon, where present:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 4 to 6
Chroma: 1 to 6
Texture: silty clay loam, clay loam, or silty clay
Rock fragment content: 3 to 14 percent
Reaction: slightly acid to moderately alkaline and contains carbonates in some pedons

Some pedons have secondary carbonates (Bk horizon) as masses or as coatings on the underside of rock fragments in the lower B horizons.

CBd, where present, or Cd horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 4 to 6
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: silty clay loam or clay loam
Clay content: 27 to 40 percent
Rock fragment content: 5 to 14 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 22 to 35 percent in the Cd horizon

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Bennington, Del Rey, Fulton, Kimmell, Mahoning, and Nappanee soils. Bennington and Mahoning soils have less than 22 percent calcium carbonate equivalent in the lower part of the series control section. Del Rey soils do not have a densic contact in the lower part of the series control section. Fulton and Kimmell soils contain less than 5 percent rock fragments in the lower part of the series control section. Nappanee soils average more than 45 percent clay in the particle-size control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Blount soils are on wave-worked till plains, till plains, and near-shore zones (relict) of Wisconsinan age. Slope gradients are commonly 1 to 3 percent but range from 0 to 6 percent. The soils formed in silty clay loam or clay loam till. Some areas have a mantle of loess or other silty material as much as 46 cm (18 inches) thick. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 737 to 1067 mm (29 to 42 inches). Mean annual temperature ranges from 7.2 to 12.8 degrees C (45 to 55 degrees F). Frost-free period is 130 to 182 days. Elevation is 183 to 457 meters (600 to 1500 feet) above mean sea level.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Ashkum, Beecher, Glynwood, Morley, and Pewamo soils. The poorly drained Ashkum and Ziegenfuss soils and the very poorly drained Pewamo soils are in depressions and drainageways. The Beecher soils have a darker colored surface layer and are on similar nearby landforms. The moderately well drained Glynwood and Morley soils are nearby on slightly higher or more sloping parts of the landform.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Somewhat poorly drained. Depth to the top of a perched seasonal high water table ranges from 15 to 61 cm (0.5 to 2.0 feet) in normal years. Potential for surface runoff is low to high. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately low in the solum and low in the dense till. Permeability is slow in the solum and slow or very slow in the dense till.

USE AND VEGETATION: Almost all areas of Blount soils are cultivated. Corn, soybeans, small grain, and meadow are the principal crops. Native vegetation is hardwood forest.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Dominant acreage is in MLRA 111B, with lesser acreages in MLRAs 95B, 97, 98, 99, 108A, and 110. Blount soils are in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin. The series is of large extent.

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: AMHERST, MASSACHUSETTS

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Vermilion County, Illinois, 1931.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon: from the surface to a depth of 18 cm (7 inches) (Ap horizon).
Argillic horizon: from a depth of 18 to 76 cm (7 to 30 inches) (Btg, Bt, and BCtg horizons).
Densic contact: at 76 cm (30 inches) (top of the CBd horizon).
Aquic conditions: redoximorphic features present in horizons between a depth of 18 to 137 cm (7 to 54 inches) (Btg, Bt, BCtg, CBd, Cd1 horizons).

Supporting laboratory data is needed to confirm the presence of densic materials in the CBd and Cd horizons.

09/2014 Revision: expanded MAP to include 890 mm; clay loam texture in Ap horizon typically in eroded pedons; lowered rock fragment range from 15 to 14 percent since gravelly textures are not in series range.

ADDITIONAL DATA: Characterization data is available for the typical pedon, S1972OH107020 (MC-20), from the Kellogg Soil Survey Laboratory (KSSL) Lincoln, Nebraska. Data for other pedons sampled by the Agricultural Experiment Station at Purdue University and at The Ohio State University are also available from KSSL.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.