LOCATION CONIC MN+NYEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, isotic, frigid Typic Dystrudepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Conic gravelly sandy loam with an 8 percent southeast-facing slope in the uplands under a mixed deciduous-coniferous forest dominated by aspen, spruce, and fir at an elevation of 1,480 feet. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
0a--0 to 1 inches; black (5YR 2/1) and dark reddish brown (5YR 2/2); highly decomposed plant remains strongly acid. (1/2 to 1 1/4 inches thick)
E--1 to 3 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) gravelly sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; about 30 percent rock fragments; very strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 5 inches thick)
Bw1--3 to 7 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/4) gravelly sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine and medium granular; friable; about 30 percent rock fragments; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bw2--7 to 10 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; about 30 percent rock fragments; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bw3--10 to 16 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) gravelly sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; about 30 percent rock fragments; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of Bw horizons is 6 to 18 inches.)
BC1--16 to 21 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) gravelly sandy loam; weak medium platy structure; firm; slightly brittle, weakly cemented; common fine vesicular pores; about 25 percent rock fragments; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary.
BC2--21 to 27 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly sandy loam; weak medium platy structure; firm; slightly brittle, weakly cemented; about 25 percent rock fragments; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of BC horizons is 3 to 18 inches thick.)
BC3d--27 to 31 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly sandy loam; moderate very coarse and extremely coarse prismatic structure; firm; about 30 percent rock fragments; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 8 inches thick)
2R--31 inches; granite.
TYPE LOCATION: Lake County, Minnesota; about 22 miles northeast of Ely in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area; NE1/4NE1/4NE1/4, sec. 31, R. 8 W., T. 64 N. (Section corners are not marked. Therefore, an accurate distance from a section corner cannot be given.)
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to firm till is 12 to 30 inches. Depth to bedrock is 20 to 40 inches. Content of coarse fragments by volume in the upper friable layer is 5 to 20 percent for gravel and 2 to 20 percent for stones and boulders. Some cobbles are included. Coarse fragments in the firm till ranges from 15 to 35 percent of mostly gravel but includes some cobbles and stones. Fragments primarily are of igneous origin, but some are of metamorphic origin. Textures of the A, E and Bw horizons are loam, silt loam, gravelly fine sandy loam, gravelly sandy loam and gravelly coarse sandy loam. Some pedons have stony modifiers. The solum ranges from extremely acid to medium acid.
The E horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 to 6 and chroma of 1 or 2.
The Bw horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value and chroma of 4 to 6. Some pedons have a thin Bs horizon in the upper part with value and chroma of 3.
The BC horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 2 to 4. It has firm or very firm consistence and weak or moderate platy structure which is a feature of dense till. It is restrictive to root penetration but not as restrictive as the Cd horizon. It is gravelly sandy loam or gravelly fine sandy loam.
The BCd horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 4 to 6. The texture is gravelly sandy loam or gravelly fine sandy loam.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: These soils typically are on bedrock controlled ground moraines with slightly concave slopes, but in some places they are on plane to slightly convex slopes. They are mostly midslopes in concave areas on the ridges. Slope gradients are 2 to 35 percent. They formed in noncalcareous, gravelly sandy loam glacial till of Late Wisconsinan Age. This till is 20 to 40 inches thick and overlies bedrock, primarily granite and gabbro. Mean annual temperature ranges from 35 to 40 degrees F, and mean annual precipitation ranges from 27 to 30 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Eveleth, Insula, Quetico and Newfound soils. Insula and Quetico soils have slightly convex slopes and are less than 20 inches to bedrock. Eveleth and Newfound soils are move that 40 inches deep to bedrock and are typically on footslopes and toeslopes but in some areas are also on midslopes.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained. Surface runoff is medium to very high. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderate in the friable upper layer and slow or very slow in the firm till.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are mostly in mixed deciduous and coniferous forest. Major species are quaking aspen, paper birch, white spruce, balsam fir, and jack, red, and white pines. Major resource uses are related to timber, recreation, water and wildlife habitat.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The Laurentian Shield of northeastern Minnesota and parts of New York. Moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: St. Paul, Minnesota
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Kawishiwi Area, Minnesota, 1972.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and feature recognized in this pedon are: Albic horizon - the zone from the surface to a depth of 2 inches (E horizon); Cambic horizon - the zone from 2 to 26 inches (Bw and BC horizons); low base status above a depth of 30 inches.
Changed the mineralogy of the soil to isotic based on a spatial analysis of isotic mineralogy within Region 10.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Refer to MAES Central File Code No. 904, 905, 912 and 920 for results of some laboratory analysis of representative pedons of this series.