LOCATION COLFAX VA+AL GA NC SCEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, subactive, thermic Aquic Fragiudults
TYPICAL PEDON: Colfax sandy loam-forested (Colors are for moist soil.)
0i--1 inch to 0; pine needles and twigs.
A--0 to 1 inch; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/1) sandy loam; moderate fine granular structure; very friable; many fine and medium roots; 1 percent angular quartz gravel 1/4 to 1 inch in diameter; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick)
E--1 inch to 7 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) sandy loam; moderate fine granular structure; very friable; many fine and medium roots; 1 percent angular quartz gravel 1/4 to 1 inch in diameter; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 14 inches thick)
BE--7 to 10 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) sandy clay loam; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine and medium roots; 3 percent angular quartz gravel 1/4 to 1 inch in diameter; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
Bt--10 to 18 inches; brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) sandy clay loam; common fine and medium distinct pale brown (10YR 6/3) and light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) mottles; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine roots; few faint clay films on faces of peds; few fine flakes of mica; 7 percent angular quartz gravel 1/4 inch to 2 inches in diameter; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (8 to 20 inches thick)
Btx--18 to 25 inches; light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) sandy clay loam; many medium distinct light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) and light gray (10YR 6/1) mottles; moderate very coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate thick platy; firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; brittle and compact in place; common thin clay films on faces of peds; 10 percent angular quartz gravel 1/4 inch to 2 inches in diameter; few fine roots on structure surfaces; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (5 to 36 inches thick)
B't1--25 to 37 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) clay loam; common medium distinct light gray (10YR 7/1) and yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) mottles; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm, sticky and plastic; common fine roots; many medium clay films on faces of peds; 2 percent angular quartz gravel 1/4 inch to 2 inches in diameter; very strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary.
B't2--37 to 43 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) sandy clay loam; many medium distinct light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) and gray (N 6/0 mottles; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many medium clay films on faces of peds; common fine flakes of mica; 4 percent angular quartz gravel 1/4 inch to 2 inches in diameter; very strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary.
C--43 to 67 inches; light brownish gray (2.5YR 6/2), brownish yellow (10YR 6/6), white (10YR 8/2), and gray (10YR 6/1) sandy loam from strongly weathered granite gneiss; massive; friable; few thin clay flows in seams; common flakes of mica; very strongly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Spotsylvania County, Virginia; 4 miles northwest of Spotsylvania, about .75 mile south of Route 613 at the south end of Route 697.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness ranges from 30 to 60 inches or more. Depth to the fragipan is 16 to 36 inches. Depth to hard rock is more than 60 inches. Pedons may contain 0 to 15 percent gravel throughout the solum. Gravel is commonly quartz, granite, granite gneiss, or mica schist. Reaction ranges from extremely acid through strongly acid, unless limed.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR, 5Y, or neutral, value of 4 through 6, and chroma of 0 through 4. In cultivated areas, the Ap horizon has a hue of 10YR through 5Y, value of 4 through 7, and chroma of 1 through 4. A and Ap horizons are sandy loam, fine sandy loam, loam, or silt loam.
E horizons, where present, have hue of 10YR through 5Y, value of 5 through 7, and chroma of 2 through 4. They are sandy loam, fine sandy loam, loam, or silt loam.
BE horizons, where present, have hue of 7.5YR through 2.5Y, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 4 through 8. High chroma mottles are present in some pedons. They are sandy clay loam, clay loam, or loam.
Bt and B't horizons have hue of 7.5YR through 2.5Y, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 4 through 8. They contain mottles with chroma of 2 or less along with mottles of higher chroma. They are sandy clay loam, clay loam or loam.
The Bx or Btx horizon has hue of 7.5YR through 2.5Y, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 4 through 8. They contain mottles with a hue of 7.5YR through 5Y, value of 5 through 8, and chroma of 1 through 8. They are fine sandy loam, sandy loam, sandy clay loam, clay loam, or loam.
The BC horizon, where present, has hue of 7.5YR through 2.5Y, value of 4 through 7, and chroma of 2 through 6. It is fine sandy loam, sandy loam, sandy clay loam, clay loam, or loam.
The C horizon, where present, has hue of 2.5YR through 5Y, value of 2 through 8, and chroma of 1 through 8. It is typically sandy loam or sandy clay loam with a large proportion of highly weathered, soft fragments of rock. The Cr horizon, where present, has hue of 2.5YR through 5Y, value of 2 through 8, and chroma of 1 through 8. It is highly weathered saprolite that crushes to sandy loam or sandy clay loam.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no other established series in this family. Belvoir, Bourne, Buchanan, Calverton, Cookport, Ernest, Glenvilla, Kedron, Raritan, and York series are in closely related families. Bourne and York soils lack mottles with chroma of 2 or less in the upper 10 inches of the argillic horizon. Belvoir, Buchanan, Calverton, Cookport, Ernest, Glenvilla, Kedron, and Raritan have mean annual soil temperatures less than 59 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Colfax soils are on divides at the base of hills and sideslopes of Piedmont uplands. Slopes are slightly convex or concave. Gradients are typically between 0 and 4 percent but the range is from 0 to 15 percent. These soils developed in material weathered from light colored granite or granite gneiss and similar materials. The mean annual precipitation ranges from about 40 to 46 inches and the mean annual temperature ranges from about 59 to 66 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Appling, Cecil, Durham, Vance, and Worsham soils. These soils do not have a fragipan.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat poorly drained; medium to slow runoff; permeability is moderate in the upper part of the solum and slow in the fragipan.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used chiefly for pasture and forest. A small acreage is used for crops. Native vegetation includes maple, oak, hickory, dogwood, sweet gum, yellow poplar, shortleaf, loblolly, and Virginia pine, and an understory of greenbriars, huckleberry, grasses, and reeds.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Piedmont Province of Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Raleigh, North Carolina
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Pittsylvania County, Virginia (SCS Sandy River Project), 1936.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
a. Ochric epipedon - the zone between 0 and 7 inches (the A and E horizons).
b. Argillic horizon - the zones between 10 and 18 inches and 25 and 43 inches (the Bt horizons).
c. Fragipan - the zone between 18 and 25 inches (the Btx horizon).
d. Aquic feature - low chroma mottles in the upper 10 inches of the Bt horizon.
e. Fine-loamy - 18 to 35 percent clay in the textural control section.
TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation VA0069 COLFAX 0- 15 59- 66 160-230 40- 46 150- 400SOI-5 FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind Months Bedrock Hardness VA0069 NONE 0.5-1.5 PERCHED NOV-JUN 60-60
SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay% -CEC- VA0069 0- 7 L SIL 0- 3 90-100 7-25 2- 10 VA0069 0- 7 SL FSL 0- 3 90-100 5-20 2- 10 VA0069 7-18 SCL CL L 0- 3 85-100 20-35 2- 15 VA0069 18-25 SCL CL L 0- 3 85-100 15-35 2- 15 VA0069 25-67 SL SCL 0- 3 90-100 15-30 5- 20
SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salin Permeab Shnk-Swll VA0069 0- 7 3.6- 5.5 1.-3. 0- 0 0.6- 6.0 LOW VA0069 0- 7 3.6- 5.5 1.-3. 0- 0 0.6- 6.0 LOW VA0069 7-18 3.6- 5.5 .5-2. 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 LOW VA0069 18-25 3.6- 5.5 .5-2. 0- 0 0.06- 0.2 LOW VA0069 25-67 3.6- 5.5 .5-2. 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 LOW