LOCATION CROWELL MI

Established Series
Rev. EPJ-RWN-TWH
08/2012

CROWELL SERIES

The Crowell series consists of very deep, somewhat excessively drained soils on dunes and old beach ridges. The soils formed in wind-worked sandy lacustrine deposits. Slope ranges from 3 to 40 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 737 mm (29 inches), and mean annual temperature is about 6.7 degrees C (44 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy, mixed, frigid, ortstein Entic Haplorthods

TYPICAL PEDON: Crowell sand, on a west-facing, convex, 10 percent slope in a forested area at an elevation of 195 meters (640 feet) above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted. When described on October 10, 1992 the soil was moist throughout.)

A--0 to 10 cm (4 inches); black (10YR 2/1) sand, gray (10YR 5/1) dry; weak fine granular structure; very friable; many fine and medium roots; extremely acid; abrupt smooth boundary. [0 to 13 cm (5 inches) thick)

E--10 to 20 cm (4 to 8 inches); light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) sand, light gray (10YR 7/2) dry; weak fine granular structure; very friable; many fine and medium roots; extremely acid; clear wavy boundary. [8 to 18 cm (3 to 7 inches) thick]

Bs1--20 to 30 cm (8 to 12 inches); dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) sand; weak fine granular structure; very friable; tongues of albic material extend into this horizon from the E horizon; many fine and medium roots; extremely acid; clear wavy boundary. [10 to 15 cm (4 to 6 inches) thick]

Bs2--30 to 43 cm (12 to 17 inches); brown (7.5YR 4/4) sand; weak fine granular structure; very friable; many fine and medium roots; extremely acid; clear irregular boundary. [0 to 13 cm (5 inches) thick]

Bs3--43 to 56 cm (17 to 22 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) sand; single grain; loose; few fine and medium roots in cracks of ortstein; tongues of strongly cemented dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4), strong brown (7.5YR 4/6), and brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) ortstein 8 to 25 cm (3 to 10 inches) wide extend into the Bs4; ortstein columns 8 to 25 cm (3 to 10 inches) apart and occupy 52 percent of the horizon; strongly acid; clear irregular boundary. [0 to 18 cm (7 inches) thick]

Bs4--56 to 86 cm (22 to 34 inches); strong brown (7.5YR 5/8) sand; single grain; loose; tongues of strongly cemented dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4), strong brown (7.5YR 4/6), and brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) ortstein 8 to 25 cm (3 to 10 inches) wide; ortstein columns are 8 to 25 cm (3 to 10 inches) apart and occupy 76 percent of the horizon; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. [25 to 38 cm (10 to 15 inches) thick]

BC--86 to 132 cm (34 to 52 inches); brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) sand; single grain; loose; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. [0 to 51 cm (20 inches) thick]

C--132 to 203 cm (52 to 80 inches); very pale brown (10YR 7/4) sand; single grain; loose; strongly acid.

TYPE LOCATION: Iosco County, Michigan; 3.5 miles west of Alabaster; 150 feet north and 1,800 feet west of the southeast corner of sec. 18, T. 21 N., R. 7 E., Alabaster Township; USGS National City topographic quadrangle; lat. 44 degrees 12 minutes 24 seconds N. and long. 83 degrees 37 minutes 42 seconds W.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Rock fragment content: 0 to 5 percent throughout
Mean annual soil temperature: 7.2 to 8.3 degrees C (45 to 47 degrees F)

A horizon:
Hue: 10YR or is neutral
Value: 2 to 4
Chroma: 0 or 1
Reaction: extremely acid to moderately acid

E horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 6 or 7, 7 or 8 dry
Chroma: 1 or 2, moist or dry
Reaction: extremely acid to moderately acid

Bs horizon, upper part (spodic horizon):
Hue: 2.5YR to 7.5YR
Value: 3 or 4; hue of 2.5YR has value of 3 only
Chroma: 4 to 6
Content of organic carbon: 0.6 to 2.0 percent
Reaction: extremely acid to moderately acid

Bs horizon, lower part:
Hue: 5YR to 10YR
Value: 3 to 5
Chroma: 4 to 8
Content of ortstein: 50 to 85 percent
Content of organic carbon: 0.2 to 0.6 percent
Reaction: very strongly acid to moderately acid

BC horizon:
Value: 5 or 6
Chroma: 4 to 6
Reaction: very strongly acid to slightly acid

C horizon:
Value: 6 or 7
Chroma: 4 or 5
Reaction: very strongly acid to slightly acid

COMPETING SERIES: There are no other series in the same family.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Crowell soils are on dunes and old beach ridges. Slope ranges from 3 to 40 percent. These soils formed in wind-worked sandy lacustrine deposits. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 711 to 762 mm (28 to 30 inches). Mean annual temperature ranges from 6.1 to 7.2 degrees C (43 to 45 degrees F). Frost-free period is 120 to 130 days. Elevation is 183 to 244 meters (600 to 800 feet) above mean sea level.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Proper, McIvor, Wabun, and Kanotin soils. The moderately well drained Proper soils have redox accumulations and are in a lower landscape positions. The somewhat poorly drained McIvor soils, the poorly drained or very poorly drained Wabun soils, and the very poorly drained Kanotin soils all have clayey lacustrine materials below 102 cm (40 inches) and are on lower landscape positions.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Somewhat excessively drained. Potential for surface runoff is very low to medium. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high or high through the ortstein and high or very high in the remainder of the profile. Permeability is moderate or moderately rapid through the ortstein and rapid in the remainder of the profile.

USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas of this soil are forested. Native vegetation includes red maple, northern red oak, red pine, eastern white pine, low bush blueberry, Canada mayflower, and wintergreen.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRA 94A in the northeastern lower peninsula of Michigan. The series is of small extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: AMHERST, MASSACHUSETTS

SERIES PROPOSED: Iosco County, Michigan, 1995.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric horizon: from the surface to a depth of 20 cm (8 inches) (A and E horizons).
Albic horizon: from a depth of 10 to 20 cm (4 to 8 inches) (E horizon).
Spodic horizon: from a depth of 20 to 43 cm (8 to 17 inches) (Bs1 and Bs2 horizons)
Ortstein feature: cementation in 52 to 76 percent of the Bs3 and Bs4 horizons.

This soil was placed in an ortstein family although the ortstein is not in the spodic horizon. The assumed intent of the ortstein family class is to include Spodosols with greater than 50 percent cemented spodic materials, regardless of where that cemented material occurs in the pedon. The ortstein in this pedon would fit that criteria; it has the color and chemical properties of spodic materials, is cemented, and is more than 50 percent of the Bs3 and Bs4 horizons.

ADDITIONAL DATA: Soil Interpretation Record MI0752.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.