LOCATION CROMWELL MN+WIEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy, isotic, frigid Typic Dystrudepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Cromwell sandy loam with a plane slope of less than 1 percent on an outwash plain with local relief of 2 to 3 feet in a deciduous forest of quaking aspen and paper birch. (Colors are for moist conditions.)
A--0 to 2 inches; black (10YR 2/1) sandy loam, dark gray (10YR 4/1) dry; moderate very fine and fine granular structure; very friable; many medium roots; about 1 percent unstained sand grains; about 1 percent fine gravel; moderately acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 4 inches thick)
E--2 to 3 inches; reddish gray (5YR 5/2) sandy loam; weak very fine and fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; many medium roots; horizon is discontinuous occupying about 15 percent of the pedon; about 1 percent fine gravel; strongly acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 3 inches thick)
Bw1--3 to 8 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/4) sandy loam; moderate very fine and fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; many fine and medium roots; about 1 percent fine gravel; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary.
Bw2--8 to 15 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/4) sandy loam; weak medium and coarse subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine subangular blocky; very friable; common fine roots; about 1 percent fine gravel; very strongly acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of Bw horizons is 4 to 22 inches.)
2Bw3--15 to 22 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) coarse sand; single grain; loose; few fine roots; most sand grains are stained; about 10 percent gravel; strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary.
2Bw4--22 to 31 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) sand; single grain; loose; about one half breaks into weakly coherent masses; few fine roots; very thin stains on about one half of sand grains; a few thin wavy bands of dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4); strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of 2Bw horizons is 0 to 30 inches.)
2BC--31 to 40 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) coarse sand; single grain; loose; few very fine roots; about 10 percent thin lenses of very coarse sand with some very fine gravel, very thin stains on about one half of sand grains; strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 12 inches thick)
2C1--40 to 48 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/3) coarse sand; single grain; loose; few very fine roots; about 10 percent gravel; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary.
2C2--48 to 69 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/3) sand; few coarse faint dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) masses of iron accumulation; single grain; loose; very few roots; about 2 percent gravel; moderately acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Carlton County, Minnesota; about 9 miles southeast of Cromwell; 600 feet south and 100 feet east of center, sec. 24, T. 48 N., R. 19 W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The thickness of the coarse-loamy upper sediment and the depth to loamy sand or coarser ranges from 10 to 24 inches. Rock fragments, which is of mixed lithology, but mostly of igneous origin, ranges from 0 to 15 percent in the loamy sediment, and 0 to 35 percent in the sandy substratum. The gravel is less than 1 cm in diameter. The particle-size control section averages loamy sand or coarser textures. The upper sediment contains more than 50 percent fine and coarser sands. Reaction in the solum ranges from very strongly acid to slightly acid with the more acid conditions occurring only in the upper part of the solum.
Some pedons have a 0 horizon as much as 2 inches thick. It is a mat of slightly to highly decomposed forest litter.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 2 to 4, and chroma of 1 or 2. Texture is sandy loam or fine sandy loam.
The E horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 1 or 2. Texture is sandy loam or fine sandy loam.
The Bw horizons and 2Bw horizons have hue of 5YR to 10YR, with value of 3 to 6, and chroma of 3 to 6. The Bw horizon is sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or coarse sandy loam. In some pedons, the lower 2 inches or less have some clay bridges between sand grains and/or thin patchy clay films on faces of peds, (Bt horizons). However, clay bridges or films are discontinuous within the limits of a pedon. The 2Bw horizon has texture of sand, coarse sand, loamy sand, or loamy coarse sand, or their gravelly analogues.
The 2C horizon has hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 3 or 4. Redoximorphic features are below a depth of 40 inches in some pedons. It is sand, coarse sand, or their gravelly analogues. Thin layers of fine sand are in some pedons. Reaction ranges from strongly acid to neutral.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no other series in this family.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: Formed in a 10 to 24 inch thick loamy mantle over noncalcareous, sandy outwash.
Landform: Outwash plains and moraines.
Slope: 0 to 40 percent.
Elevation: 670 to 1600 feet.
Mean annual air temperature: 36 to 45 degrees F.
Mean annual precipitation: 25 to 33 inches.
Frost-free period: 88 to 142 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: The main ones are the somewhat excessively drained Cloquet and Omega soils. The Cloquet soils have more silt and less sand in the B horizons. The Omega soils have less silt and more sand in the solum.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat excessively drained. Runoff is slow to medium. Permeability is moderate or moderately rapid in the upper part and rapid in the lower part.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most of this soil has forest vegetation. A few areas are cropped to small grain and hay or are used for pastureland. Native vegetation was mixed deciduous-coniferous forest. Common trees are paper birch, quaking aspen, red pine, northern red oak, and bigtooth aspen.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin. LRR K and MLRA 90. Moderately extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: St. Paul, Minnesota
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Carlton County, Minnesota, 1973.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle-size control section: 10 to 40 inches.
Ochric epipedon: 0 to 3 inches (A, E).
Albic horizon: 2 to 3 inches (E).
Cambic horizon: 3 to 15 inches (Bw1, Bw2).
ADDITIONAL DATA: Refer to S68 Minn-9-7 for results of some laboratory analyses of the typical pedon and to MAES Central File Code No. 605 and 723 for results of some analyses of two additional pedons of this series.