LOCATION CHANNAHON IL+MI MN OH WI

Established Series
Rev. GOW-JDA-DCH-KDH
05/2011

CHANNAHON SERIES

The Channahon series consists of shallow, well drained soils that formed in loamy material overlying limestone or dolostone bedrock on terraces. Slope ranges from 0 to 25 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 889 mm (35 inches), and mean annual air temperature is about 10 degrees C (50 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Lithic Argiudolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Channahon silt loam on a 2 percent slope in a pastured field at an elevation of 162 meters (530 feet) above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

A1--0 to 13 cm (0 to 5 inches); black (10YR 2/1) silt loam, dark gray (10YR 4/1) dry; weak fine and medium granular structure; friable; common very fine to medium roots; neutral; gradual wavy boundary.

A2--13 to 28 cm (5 to 11 inches); black (10YR 2/1) silt loam, dark gray (10YR 4/1) dry; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common very fine to medium roots; neutral; gradual wavy boundary. [Combined thickness of the A horizon is 10 to 28 cm (4 to 11 inches).]

Bt1--28 to 38 cm (11 to 15 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) silty clay loam; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common very fine and fine roots; many distinct very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) organo-clay films on faces of peds; many distinct very dark gray (10YR 3/1) organic coatings in root channels and pores; neutral; gradual wavy boundary.

Bt2--38 to 46 cm (15 to 18 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) silty clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common very fine to medium roots; many distinct very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) organo-clay films on faces of peds; few prominent very dark gray (10YR 3/1) organic coatings in root channels and pores; 2 percent rock fragments; neutral; clear smooth boundary. [Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 15 to 25 cm (6 to 10 inches).]

2R--46 cm (18 inches); unweathered limestone bedrock; strongly effervescent.

TYPE LOCATION: Grundy County, Illinois; about 6.4 kilometers (4 miles) south and 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) west of Minooka; 158 meters (520 feet) east and 15 meters (50 feet) south of the northwest corner of sec. 35, T.34 N., R. 8 E.; USGS Minooka topographic quadrangle; lat. 41 degrees 23 minutes 20 seconds N. and long. 88 degrees 17 minutes 12 seconds W., NAD 27; UTM Zone 16, 392422 easting and 4582730 northing, NAD 83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to the base of soil development: 25 to 51 cm (10 to 20 inches)
Depth to the limestone or dolostone bedrock: 25 to 51 cm (10 to 20 inches)
Reaction: slightly acid to moderately alkaline
Depth to carbonates: The lower 5 to 10 cm (2 to 4 inches) of the B horizon in some pedons
Rock fragments: 0 to 20 percent

Ap or A horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 2 or 3
Chroma: 1 or 2
Texture: loam or silt loam
Other features: Thickness of horizons having colors with value and chroma of 3 or less are more than 1/3 the thickness of the solum.

Bt horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR
Value: 3 to 5
Chroma: 3 or 4
Texture: loam, silt loam, sandy clay loam, clay loam, or silty clay loam averaging less than 35 percent clay; and from 15 to 50 percent fine or coarser sand.

Some pedons have a BC or C horizon.

COMPETING SERIES: This is the only series in the family. Related series are Dodgeville, Ritchey, and Rockton. Dodgeville and Rockton soils have a lithic contact at depths of 51 to 102 cm (20 to 40 inches). Ritchey soils do not have a mollic epipedon.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Channahon soils are on nearly level to steep level-bedded terraces. Slope gradients are commonly 2 to 6 percent but range from 1 to 25 percent. They formed in medium textured loamy material over limestone or dolostone bedrock. Mean annual air temperature ranges from 7 to 13 degrees C (45 to 55 degrees F), mean annual precipitation ranges from 711 to 1020 mm (28 to 40 inches), frost-free period ranges from 140 to 180 days, and elevation ranges from 156 to 311 meters (512 to 1,020 feet) above sea level.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Joliet, Millsdale, Plattville, Rockton, and Romeo soils. The poorly drained Joliet, Millsdale, and Romeo soils are on lower landform positions. The deep Plattville soils and moderately deep Rockton soils are well drained and are on similar landform positions as the Channahon soils.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained. The potential for surface runoff ranges from low to high. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high or high (4.23 to 14.11 micrometers/s). Permeability is moderate.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used as pasture or for general farming. Native vegetation is prairie grasses.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northeastern Illinois, northern Ohio, southeastern Minnesota, and southeastern Wisconsin. Extent is small in MLRA's 95a, 95B, 99, 104, 105, 108A, 110, and 111B.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana.

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Will County, Illinois, 1951.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: mollic epipedon-the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of about 28 cm (11 inches) (A1 and A2 horizons); argillic horizon- the zone from approximately 28 to 46 cm (11 to 18 inches) (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons); lithic contact at a depth of 46 cm (18 inches).

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.