LOCATION BUCHANAN PA+MD NY VA WV

Established Series
SF/Rev. CRS, JRT, JB
08/2021

BUCHANAN SERIES

Soils of the Buchanan series are very deep, somewhat poorly and moderately well drained, and slowly permeable. They formed in colluvium derived from acid sandstone, quartzite, siltstone, and shale and occur on mountain footslopes, side slopes and in valleys. Slope ranges from 0 to 45 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 105 cm (42 inches), and mean annual air temperature is about 12 degrees C (53 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, semiactive, mesic Aquic Fragiudults

TYPICAL PEDON: Buchanan gravelly loam - woodland. (Colors are for moist soil.)

Oi--0 to 3 cm (0 to 1 inch); slightly decomposed oak, maple and huckleberry leaf litter.

Oe--3 to 5 cm (1 to 2 inches); fibrous organic mat held together by roots and mycelia, abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 3 inches thick)

A--5 to 10 cm (2 to 4 inches); dark gray (10YR 4/1) gravelly loam; weak fine granular structure; very friable; 15 percent gravel; extremely acid; clear smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)

E--10 to 20 cm (4 to 8 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly loam; weak fine granular structure; friable; 15 percent gravel; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 7 inches thick)

BE--20 to 43 cm (8 to 17 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; 20 percent gravel; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 30 cm (0 to 12 inches thick))

Bt1--43 to 58 cm (17 to 23 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) gravelly loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few faint clay films on faces of peds; 20 percent gravel; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary.

Bt2--58 to 74 cm (23 to 29 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) gravelly loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm, slightly sticky, plastic; common distinct clay films on faces of peds and in pores; 20 percent gravel; very strongly acid; few coarse distinct yellowish red (5YR 5/6) masses of iron accumulation in ped interiors and grayish brown (10YR 5/2) iron depletions in ped interiors; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of Bt horizons - 20 to 52 cm (8 to 21 inches)) thick)

Btx1--74 to 86 cm (29 to 34 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly loam; moderate very coarse prismatic structure parting to weak thick platy and weak medium subangular blocky; firm, brittle, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few faint clay films on faces of secondary peds; 25 percent gravel; strongly acid; common coarse distinct yellowish red (5YR 5/6) masses of iron accumulation and gray (10YR 6/1) iron depletions in ped interiors and on ped faces; clear wavy boundary.

Btx2--86 to 124 cm (34 to 49 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) gravelly loam; weak very coarse prismatic structure parting to weak thick platy and weak coarse blocky; firm, brittle, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few faint clay films on faces of secondary peds; common dark coatings; 30 percent rock fragments of sandstone gravel; strongly acid; common coarse distinct gray 10YR 6/1) iron depletions in ped interiors and on ped faces and yellowish red (5YR 5/6) masses of iron accumulation in ped interiors; gradual wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of Btx horizons 33 to 125 cm (13 to 50 inches thick))

C--124 to 17 cm (49 to 67 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) very gravelly loam; very weak coarse blocky structure; firm, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; 40 percent rock fragments; few coarse distinct yellowish red (5YR 5/6) masses of iron accumulation; strongly acid.

TYPE LOCATION: Centre County, Pennsylvania; Haines Township, 1/4 mile south of Woodward. USGS Woodward topographic quadrangle; Latitude 40 degrees, 53 minutes, 43 seconds, N and Longitude 77 degrees, 06 minutes, 36 seconds W.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness ranges from 100 to 200 cm (40 to up to 80 inches). Depth to bedrock ranges from 1.5 to 6 meters (5 to 20 feet) or more. Depth to the fragipan ranges from 50 to 91 cm (20 to 36 inches). Rock fragments of both subrounded and flat subangular, hard sandstone and shale, channers, gravels, cobbles and stones, range from 0 to 40 percent in individual horizons above the fragipan and from 5 to 60 percent in the fragipan and C horizon. Typically, rock fragments make up 10 to 15 percent of the soil by volume with higher amounts in the surface. The soil contains both high and low chroma redox concentrations and depletions above the top of the fragipan and within the upper 10 inches of the argillic horizon. The soil ranges from extremely acid through strongly acid throughout where unlimed. Illite, kaolinite, and vermiculite are the most common clay minerals.

The A horizon has hues of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 3 to 6 and chroma of 1 to 4. Fine earth texture is fine sandy loam, sandy loam, silt loam, or loam.

An E horizon is present in some pedons with has hue of 10YR or 7.5 value of 4 to 6 and chroma of 2 to 4. Texture of fine sandy loam, sandy loam, silt loam or loam.

A BE horizon is present in some pedons with hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 5 or 6 and chroma of 4 to 6. Textures of silt loam or loam.

The Bt horizon has hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 4 to 6 and chroma of 3 to 6. It has low chroma redoximorphic features in the lower part. Texture is silt loam, loam, clay loam, or sandy clay loam in the fine earth. It has 18 to 30 percent clay and more than 20 percent sand and few to many clay films.

The Btx horizon has hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 4 to 6 and chroma of 3 to 6 with few to many redox concentrations and depletions. Texture is silt loam, loam, clay loam or sandy clay loam in the fine earth fraction. It has weak or moderate prismatic structure parting to platy or blocky structure and is firm or very firm and brittle.

The C horizon has hue of 2.5Y to 5YR, value of 4 to 6 and chroma of 1 to 6. Fine earth texture is sandy loam, silt loam, loam, clay loam, or sandy clay loam.

COMPETING SERIES: Buchanan is currently the only series in this family.

The Belvoir, Calverton, and Kedron series are in a related family. The CEC is not yet assigned and therefore they may be competitors. Belvoir soils have pebbles of quartz and granodiorite. Calverton soils have less than 20 percent sand in the textural control section. Kedron soils have 5YR or redder hue in the argillic horizon.

Other series in related families are the Califon, Comly, Laidig, Landisburg and Watson soils. None of these soils have redox depletions of 2 or lower chroma in the upper 10 inches of the argillic horizon.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Buchanan soils are on nearly level to very steep terraces and concave portions of mountain footslopes often extending well into the valleys along drainage ways. Slopes range from 0 to 45 percent. The Buchanan soils formed in colluvium derived from acid sandstone, quartzite, metarhyolite, siltstone and shale. Mean annual temperature ranges from 8 to 15 degrees C (47 to 59 degrees F); mean annual precipitation ranges from 97 to 117 cm (38 to 46 inches); and the growing season ranges from 140 to 170 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Andover, Dekalb, Murrill and the competing Laidig soils. The Andover soils have dominant gray colors immediately below the A or Ap horizon. The Dekalb and Murrill soils are well drained and the Dekalb soils have bedrock within 100 cm (40 inches) and contain more than 35 percent rock fragments.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well to somewhat poorly drained. Runoff is medium to high. Permeability is moderate above the fragipan and slow in the fragipan.

USE AND VEGETATION: Woodland is the major use. Some areas are cleared and used for pasture, small grain, and row crops. Wooded areas are mixed hardwoods of oak, maple and ash.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Pennsylvania, New York, Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland. The series is of large extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Morgantown, West Virginia

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Franklin County, Pennsylvania, 1932.

REMARKS: 1. The Buchanan series given here includes the concept of the inactive Drifton series.

Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
a. Ochric epipedon - the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of 17 inches (Oi, Oe, A, E, and BE horizons).
b. Argillic horizon - the zone from 43 to 124 cm (17 to 49 inches) (Bt1, Bt2, Btx1, Btx2 horizons).
c. Fragipan - the zone from 74 to 124 cm (29 to 49 inches) (Btx1, Btx2 horizons).

8/2021 revisions: added fine sandy loam to the E horizon.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.