LOCATION ELLIJAY                 NC

Established Series
Rev. MLS-AG
12/2022

ELLIJAY SERIES

The Ellijay series consists of very deep, well drained, moderately permeable soils on intermountain ridges and side slopes in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. These soils formed mainly in materials weathered from ultra mafic crystalline rocks which contain minerals such as olivine, serpentine, and talc. Near the type location, the mean annual temperature is about 56 degrees F., and the mean annual precipitation is about 55 inches. Slope ranges from 2 to 70 percent.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, ferruginous, mesic Rhodic Kanhapludalfs

TYPICAL PEDON: Ellijay silty clay loam on a 12 percent east facing side slope at an elevation of 2,128 feet -- forested. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

A--0 to 4 inches; dusky red (10R 3/4) silty clay loam, red (10R4/6) dry; moderate fine granular structure; very friable; many fine and coarse roots; 5 percent gravel, cobbles, and stones; strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary. (3 to 8 inches thick)

Bt1--4 to 15 inches; dark red (10R 3/6) clay; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; sticky, slightly plastic; many fine and coarse roots; 5 percent gravel, cobbles, and stones in a line at the base of this horizon; strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary.

Bt2--15 to 34 inches; dark red (10R 3/6) clay; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; sticky, slightly plastic; common fine and coarse roots; 5 percent gravel, cobbles, and stones; moderately acid; gradual wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 15 to 45 inches.)

BC--34 to 52 inches; dark red (2.5YR 3/6) loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; very friable; few fine and medium roots; 5 percent gravel, cobbles, and stones; moderately acid; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 25 inches thick)

C1--52 to 59 inches; mottled yellowish red (5YR 5/6), reddish yellow (7.5YR 6/8), and brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) saprolite that has a clay loam texture; massive; very friable; few fine roots; 5 percent gravel, cobbles, and stones; few black concretions; slightly acid; gradual wavy boundary.

C2--59 to 70 inches; mottled strong brown (7.5YR 5/8), yellowish red (5YR 5/8), and very pale brown (10YR 7/4) saprolite that has a loam texture; massive; very friable; 5 percent gravel, cobbles, and stones; few black concretions; slightly acid.

TYPE LOCATION: Jackson County, North Carolina; 3.5 miles southeast of Sylva on NC 107; 1.9 miles southwest on NC 116; 0.2 mile southeast of Webster on State Road 1346; 50 feet west of road in woods.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness ranges from 30 to 60 inches. Depth to bedrock is greater than 60 inches. Reaction in the A horizon ranges from very strongly acid to medium acid, unless limed. The Bt, BC, and C horizons range from strongly acid to neutral. There is a substantial imbalance between exchangeable calcium and magnesium in the Bt, BC, and C horizons, unless it has been corrected by liming. Content of mica flakes ranges from none to common. Content of rock fragments ranges from 0 to 35 percent in the A horizon and from 0 to 15 percent in the lower horizons. Rock fragments are dominantly gravel, but cobbles and stones are in some pedons.

The A horizon has hue of 10R to 7.5YR, value of 3, and chroma of 2 to 6. It is loam, fine sandy loam, silty clay loam, or clay loam in the fine- earth fraction.

Thin AB or BA horizons, where present, have hue of 10R to 5YR, value of 3, and chroma of 4 or 6. They are silty clay loam or clay loam.

The Bt horizon has hue of 10R or 2.5YR, value of 3, and chroma of 4 or 6. The dry color value is 4. It is typically clay, but may include silty clay loam or clay loam.

The BC or CB horizons, where present, have hue of 10R to 5YR, value of 3 to 6, and chroma of 4 to 8. They are loam, clay loam, or silty clay loam.

The C horizon is multicolored or mottled in shades of red, yellow, or brown, and is saprolite that has textures of loam, clay loam, fine sandy loam, or sandy loam.

COMPETING SERIES: There are no other series in this family or any closely related series.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Ellijay soils are on gently sloping to very steep intermountain ridges and side slopes in the Southern Appalachian Mountains.
Elevation ranges from about 2,000 to 3,500 feet. Slope is commonly between 8 and 30 percent but ranges from 2 to 70 percent. Ellijay soils formed in materials weathered from ultra mafic crystalline rocks that contain minerals such as olivine, serpentine, and talc. In Jackson County, N.C. they have formed in materials weathered from the Webster ring dike. Near the type location, the mean annual temperature is about 56 degrees F., and the mean annual precipitation is about 55 inches.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: There are no other tentative or established series mapped in association with Ellijay soils that are formed from ultra mafic parent material. (See remarks). Soils that formed from materials weathered from felsic or intermediate crystalline rocks are in nearby associated landscapes. These include Braddock, Clifton, Cowee, Drayke, Evard, Fannin, Hayesville, Saunook, and Trimont soils. None of these soils have a low exchangeable calcium to magnesium ratio, and all are Ultisols. Braddock and Drayke soils are on high stream terraces. Clifton, Cowee, Evard, Fannin, Hayesville, and Trimont soils are on mountain ridges and side slopes. Saunook soils are in colluvial positions in coves.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; slow runoff where forest litter has not been disturbed; medium to very rapid runoff where it has been removed. Permeability is moderate.

USE AND VEGETATION: Most of this soil is in forest. Common trees are Virginia pine, pitch pine, white oak, post oak, black oak, and scarlet oak. The understory plants include flowering dogwood, American holly, mountain-laurel, rhododendron, red maple, and greenbrier. In most areas, the native vegetation is suppressed by the low exchangeable calcium to magnesium ratio. A few areas are cleared and are used for pasture, hay, or residential areas.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The Southern Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina, and possibly Georgia, and Virginia. The series is of small extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Morgantown, West Virginia

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Jackson County, North Carolina; 1991. The name is from Ellijay in neighboring Macon County.

REMARKS: The Ellijay series was formerly included with the Braddock, Clifton, Drayke, Rabun, and Hayesville series. However, these soils are Ultisols, and do not form from ultra-mafic rocks. Also, they do not have the characteristic exchangeable calcium-magnesium imbalance of Ellijay soils, and are more productive for crops and trees. Additional series may be proposed as associated soils to Ellijay when more information is collected in these landscapes. National Soil Survey Laboratory data is available for the type location (pedon no. 85P 635). The series include some soils that average more than 40 percent clay in the upper 18 cm of the soil. Such soils classify as Alfisols because the Weatherable mineral content is too high (> 10%) for the Oxisol order.

Horizon, Percent Clay, Meq/100g Calcium, Meq/100g Magnesium, Percent Base Saturation by Sum of Cations
A ; 37 ; 3.1 ; 2.1 ; 25

Bt1; 53 ; 0.2 ; 3.4 ; 23

Bt2; 52 ; tr ; 2.6 ; 21

BC ; 25 ; tr ; 0.6 ; 6

C1 ; 29 ; 0.4 ; 20.6; 70

C2 ; 26 ; 0.4 ; 18.2; 68

Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:

Ochric epipedon - 0 to 4 inches (A horizon)

Kandic horizon - 4 to 34 inches (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons)

Calcium to magnesium imbalance (Bt1, Bt2, BC, C1, and C2 horizons)

MLRA = 130; SIR = NC0239

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.