LOCATION CLIFFSIDE NC
Established Series
SCK-RAG-MKC
10/2021
CLIFFSIDE SERIES
MLRA(s): 136
Depth Class: Moderately deep to hard bedrock
Drainage Class (Agricultural): Well drained
Internal Free Water Occurrence: Very deep
Flooding Frequency and Duration: None
Ponding Frequency and Duration: None
Index Surface Runoff: Medium to high
Permeability: Moderate
Shrink-Swell Potential: Low
Landscape: Piedmont uplands
Landform: Hills
Geomorphic Component: Interfluve, side slope, nose slope, head slope
Hillslope Profile Position: Summit, shoulder, backslope
Parent Material: Residuum, affected by soil creep, weathered mainly from mica schist and sillimanite schist
Slope: 8 to 70 percent
Elevation (type location): Unknown
Frost Free Period (type location): 190 days
Mean Annual Air Temperature (type location): 59 degrees F.
Mean Annual Precipitation (type location): 48 inches
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, semiactive, thermic Typic Hapludults
TYPICAL PEDON: Cliffside very cobbly sandy loam--forested. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Oi--0 to 2 inches; slightly decomposed leaves and twigs and live roots.
A--2 to 9 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) very cobbly sandy loam; weak medium granular structure; very friable; common fine and medium roots; 20 percent pebbles and 15 percent cobbles by volume; few fine flakes of mica; strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (4 to 10 inches thick)
AB--9 to 18 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) very gravelly sandy loam; moderate medium granular structure; very friable; common fine roots; 25 percent pebbles and 10 percent cobbles by volume; common fine flakes of mica; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 12 inches thick)
Bt--18 to 32 inches; yellowish red (5YR 4/6) very gravelly sandy clay loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; few fine roots; 40 percent pebbles by volume; common fine flakes of mica; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (12 to 24 inches thick)
R--32 to 36 inches; hard fractured mica schist bedrock.
TYPE LOCATION: Cleveland County, North Carolina; 4.9 miles south of Boiling Springs on N.C. 150; 0.5 mile east on Secondary Road 1200; 0.4 mile north on Secondary Road 1199; 0.8 mile on Secondary Road 1198; 1.0 mile north on Secondary Road 1197; 0.1 mile north on woods road; 240 feet east in woods. USGS Boiling Spring South topographic quadrangle; lat. 35 degrees 11 minutes 34 seconds N. and long. 81 degrees 37 minutes 54 seconds W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of the solum ranges from 20 to 40 inches. The depth to lithic contact with hard bedrock ranges from 20 to 40 inches. Reaction is very strongly or strongly acid throughout the profile, unless the surface has been limed. Flakes of mica range from few to common throughout. Rock fragment content ranges from 15 to 60 percent in the A, AB, and BA horizons and 35 to 60 percent in the Bt and BC horizons. These fragments consist mainly of pebbles and cobbles from mica schist or sillimanite schist. Most areas have stones scattered about on the surface and are mapped as stony phases.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 3 to 6, and chroma of 2 to 6. A horizons with moist value of 3 and dry value of 5 or less, are less than 6 inches thick. Texture is sandy loam or loam in the fine-earth fraction.
The AB or BA horizon, where present, has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 3 to 6. Texture is sandy loam or loam in the fine-earth fraction.
The Bt horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 4 to 8. Texture is sandy clay loam, clay loam, or loam in the fine-earth fraction.
In some pedons, there is a BC horizon with colors similar to that of the Bt horizon. Texture is sandy clay loam, sandy loam, or loam.
In some pedons, there is a Cr horizon of multicolored, weathered mica schist or sillimanite schist. It is partially consolidated and excavation difficulty is high.
The R horizon is hard, fractured bedrock from high-grade metamorphic rock such as mica schist and sillimanite schist. Vertical and horizontal fractures are thinly coated or filled with fine-earth. The R horizon is consolidated and excavation difficulty is very high or extremely high.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Hibriten and
Lockhart series. Hibriten soils have a paralithic contact at 20 to 40 inches and a lithic contact below 40 inches. Lockhart soils have sola 40 to 60 inches thick and are deep to a lithic contact.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Cliffside soils are strongly sloping to very steep and are on narrow ridges and steep side slopes in uplands of the Southern Piedmont. Slopes are commonly 25 to 60 percent, but range from 8 to 70 percent. They formed in residuum weathered from mica schist and sillimanite schist. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 47 to 52 inches and mean annual air temperature ranges from 58 to 61 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: In addition to the competing
Hibriten and
Lockhart series these are the
Bethlehem,
Cecil,
Madison,
Pacolet, and
Rion series. All of these soils are on similar landscapes to the Cliffside series but have a weighted average of less than 35 percent rock fragments by volume in the particle size control section.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; rapid runoff; moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Nearly all of this soil is in mixed hardwood and pine. Common trees are shortleaf pine, Virginia pine, chestnut oak, scarlet oak, and white oak. Only a small percentage is in pasture.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The Southern Piedmont of North Carolina and possibly South Carolina and Virginia. The series is of small extent.
SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Raleigh, North Carolina
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Polk County, North Carolina; 1995. The name is from the town of Cliffside in Cleveland County, North Carolina.
REMARKS: These soils were formerly included in the Hibriten series. However, Hibriten soils have a paralithic contact at depths of 20 to 40 inches. The soil horizon depths were revised on 10/2021 to ensure the description began at the soil surface.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon:
Ochric epipedon--the zone from the surface of the soil to 18 inches (the O, A and AB horizons)
Argillic horizon--the zone from 18 to 32 inches (the Bt horizon)
Lithic contact--the upper boundary of hard mica schist bedrock (the upper boundary of the R horizon)
ADDITIONAL DATA:
TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation
NC0265 CLIFFSIDE 8- 70 58- 61 190-210 47- 52 500-1200
SOI-5 FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind Months Bedrock Hardness
NC0265 NONE 6.0-6.0 - 20-40 HARD
SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay% -CEC-
NC0265 0-18 CBV-SL CBV-L 20- 40 50- 65 7-20 2- 6
NC0265 0-18 GRV-SL GRV-L 0- 20 30- 50 7-20 2- 6
NC0265 0-18 GR-SL GR-L CB-SL 0- 10 60- 75 7-20 2- 6
NC0265 18-32 CBV-SCL GRV-SCL GRV-C 10- 40 40- 55 10-35 2- 8
NC0265 32-36 UWB - - - -
SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salin Permeab Shnk-Swll
NC0265 0-18 4.5- 5.5 .5-2. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW
NC0265 0-18 4.5- 5.5 .5-2. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW
NC0265 0-18 4.5- 5.5 .5-2. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW
NC0265 18-32 4.5- 5.5 0.-.5 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 LOW
NC0265 32-36 - - - 0.00- 0.1
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.