LOCATION DANFORTH ME
Established Series
Rev. NRB
03/2018
DANFORTH SERIES
The Danforth series consists of very deep, well drained soils on till plains and ridges. These soils formed in glacial till derived from slate and fine grained metasandstone and lesser amounts of granite, gneiss or schist. Estimated saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high or high in the solum and high or very high in the substratum. Slope ranges from 3 to 45 percent. Mean annual temperature is about 5 degrees C, and mean annual precipitation is about 1175mm.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, isotic, frigid Typic Haplorthods
TYPICAL PEDON: Danforth, channery silt loam, on a 20 percent northeasterly slope in a very stony wooded area. (Colors are for moist soil.)
Oa--0 to 13 cm; dark reddish brown (5YR 2/2) highly decomposed plant material; moderate fine and medium granular structure; very friable; many very fine and fine and common medium and coarse roots; extremely acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 13 cm thick)
E--13 to 23 cm; pinkish gray (7.5YR 7/2) channery silt loam; weak fine granular structure; friable; common very fine and few fine, medium and coarse roots; 25 percent channers and 5 percent flagstones; extremely acid; abrupt broken boundary. (0 to 13 cm thick)
Bs1--23 to 30 cm; dark reddish brown (2.5YR 3/4) channery very fine sandy loam; moderate very fine granular structure; very friable; common very fine and fine and few medium and coarse roots; 20 percent channers and 5 percent flagstones; extremely acid; abrupt broken boundary.
Bs2--30 to 43 cm; yellowish red (5YR 4/6) channery fine sandy loam; moderate fine and medium granular structure; very friable; common very fine and fine and few medium and coarse roots; 20 percent channers and 10 percent flagstones; extremely acid; clear wavy boundary.
Bs3--43 to 56 cm; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very channery sandy loam; weak fine granular structure; very friable; common very fine and few fine and medium roots; 25 percent channers and 20 percent flagstones; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bs horizons is 10 to 50 cm.)
BC--56 to 81 cm; light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) and pale olive (5Y 6/4) very channery fine sandy loam; massive; friable; few very fine roots; 25 percent channers and 10 percent flagstones; strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary. (0 to 30 cm thick)
C--81 to 165 cm; olive (5Y 5/3) and grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) very channery sandy loam; massive; very friable; few very fine roots to about 48 inches; 25 percent channers, 20 percent flagstones and 10 percent stones; strongly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Somerset County, Maine; Spencer Township (T3 R5); 0.4 mile west of Lost Pond and on the south side of a logging road; USGS King and Bartlett Lake topographic quadrangle; lat. 45 degrees 21 minutes 15 seconds N. and long. 70 degrees 18 minutes 00 seconds W., NAD 27.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of the solum ranges from 41 to 89 cm. Depth to bedrock is more than 150 cm. Rock fragment content in individual horizons of the particle-size control section ranges from 15 to 65 percent, but the weighted average is more than 35 percent by volume. In some pedons rock fragments in the C horizon range up to 80 percent. The rock fragment content of the upper 25 cm of the mineral soil ranges from 5 to 55 percent. Stones and boulders cover up to 15 percent of the surface. Reaction ranges from extremely acid to strongly acid in the solum and from very strongly acid to moderately acid in the substratum.
The Oa horizon has hue of 2.5YR to 7.5YR, value of 2 to 3 and chroma of 1 or 2. It has weak or moderate, very fine to medium granular structure or it is massive. Consistence is very friable or friable.
The Ap or A horizon, where present, has hue of 10YR, value of 3 or 4 and chroma of 2 or 3. It is very fine sandy loam, loam, or silt loam in the fine-earth fraction. It has weak or moderate, very fine to medium granular structure. Consistence is very friable or friable.
The E horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 5 to 7 and chroma of 1 or 2. It is very fine sandy loam, loam, or silt loam in the fine-earth fraction. It has weak or moderate very fine or fine granular or thin platy structure. Consistence is very friable or friable.
The Bhs horizon, where present, has hue of 2.5YR to 10YR with a value and chroma of 3 or less. It is silt loam, loam, very fine sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or sandy loam in the fine-earth fraction. It has weak or moderate, very fine or fine, granular or blocky structure. Consistence is very friable or friable.
The Bs horizon has hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, with value of 3 to 5 and chroma of 3 to 8. It is silt loam, loam, very fine sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or sandy loam in the fine-earth fraction. It has weak or moderate, very fine to medium, granular or blocky structure. Consistence is very friable or friable.
The BC horizon, where present, has hue of 2.5Y or 5Y, with value and chroma of 4 to 6. It is fine sandy loam or sandy loam in the fine-earth fraction. It has weak or moderate, very fine to medium granular or blocky structure. Consistence is very friable or friable.
The C horizon has hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 4 or 5 and chroma of 2 to 4. It is fine sandy loam, sandy loam, coarse sandy loam or loamy sand in the fine-earth fraction. It is single grain or massive. Consistence is loose or very friable.
COMPETING SERIES: This is the
Winnecook series. It is moderately deep to bedrock. The
Blandburg,
Larrupin,
Littlejohn and
Pitcher series are closely related series from outside Region R. Blandburg soils have a solum greater than 89 cm thick and formed in material from weathered sandstone. Larrupin and Pitcher soils have a volcanic ash mantle and are less acid. Littlejohn soils are moderately deep to bedrock.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Danforth soils are on till plains, ground moraines, or on the middle to lower slopes of ridges, hills, and mountains. Slope ranges from 3 to 45 percent. The soils formed in supraglacial melt-out till derived from slate, fine-grained metasandstone, and to a lesser extent granite, gneiss, or schist. The climate is humid and cool temperate. The mean annual temperature ranges from 2 to 9 degrees C, and the mean annual precipitation ranges from 790 to 1640 mm. The frost-free season ranges from 80 to 160 days. Elevation ranges from 35 to 735 meters above mean sea level.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Chesuncook,
Daigle,
Elliottsville,
Masardis,
Monarda,
Monson,
Peacham,
Perham,
Shirley(T),
Telos,
Thorndike and
Winnecook soils. Chesuncook, Daigle, Perham, Telos and Monarda soils are on smoother landscapes and they have dense glacial till substratums. Elliottsville and Winnecook soils (both moderately deep to bedrock) and Monson and Thorndike soils (both shallow to bedrock) are in higher positions on the landscape. Masardis soils are somewhat excessively drained and are on adjacent glaciofluvial landforms. Peacham soils are very poorly drained and are in lower depressional positions on the landscape. Shirley soils are moderately well drained and somewhat poorly drained and are in lower positions on the landscape.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Estimated saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high or high in the solum and high or very high in the substratum.
USE AND VEGETATION: Forest. Common tree species include balsam fir, red spruce, paper birch, red maple, eastern white pine, American beech, yellow birch and sugar maple.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Maine (MLRAs 143, 144B, and 146). The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Amherst, Massachusetts.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Piscataquis County, Maine, Southern Part, 1994.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Albic horizon - the zone from 13 to 23 cm (E horizon).
Spodic horizon - the zone from 23 to 43 cm (Bs1 and Bs2 horizons).
ADDITIONAL DATA: Soil interpretation record numbers for the Danforth series are: Danforth, ME0054 and Danforth, stony, ME0055. Characterization data for Danforth and similar soils is available through the National Cooperative Soil Survey Soil Characterization Database: http://ncsslabdatamart.sc.egov.usda.gov/
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.