LOCATION GARA IA+MOEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Mollic Hapludalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Gara loam, on a convex slope of 15 percent, in a deciduous forest. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
A--0 to 18 centimeters; very dark gray (10YR 3/1) loam, gray (10YR 5/1) dry; weak very fine granular structure; friable; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary.
E--18 to 30 centimeters; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) and very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) loam, light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) dry; weak fine subangular blocky structure parting to weak medium platy; friable; few very dark gray (10YR 3/1) worm casts; about 2 percent rock fragments (2 to 75 millimeters in diameter); moderately acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt1--30 to 43 centimeters; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) loam; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; friable; few very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) worm casts; common brown (10YR 4/3) clay films on faces of peds; few distinct grayish brown (10YR 5/2), dry silt and very fine sand coats on faces of peds; about 3 percent rock fragments; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt2--43 to 61 centimeters; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; common distinct brown (10YR 4/3) clay films on faces of peds; few fine dark concretions; about 3 percent rock fragments; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary.
Bt3--61 to 84 centimeters; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) clay loam; weak medium prismatic structure parting to weak and moderate medium subangular blocky; firm; common distinct brown (10YR 4/3) clay films on faces of peds; few fine black (10YR 2/1) concretions; few fine distinct grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) redoximorphic depletions; about 3 percent rock fragments; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary.
Bt4--84 to 114 centimeters; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) clay loam; weak medium prismatic structure parting to weak medium and coarse subangular and angular blocky; firm; few dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) clay films on vertical faces of peds and along surfaces of pores; few fine distinct grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) redoximorphic depletions; about 3 percent rock fragments; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary.
BC--114 to 144 centimeters; yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) and grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) clay loam; extremely coarse prismatic structure dissected by few oblique fractures; firm; about 3 percent rock fragments; neutral.
C--144 to 200 centimeters; yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) and grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) clay loam; massive; firm; few fine carbonate concretions; about 3 percent rock fragments; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Major Land Resource Area (MLRA) 109-Iowa and Missouri Heavy Till Plain, Wayne County, Iowa subset; about 2 miles east of Lineville; located about 900 feet east and 1,600 feet south of the northwest corner of section 23, T. 67 N., R. 23 W.; USGS Cleopatra topographic quadrangle; lat. 40 degrees 35 minutes 24 seconds N. and long. 93 degrees 28 minutes 38 seconds W., NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to carbonates--76 to 178 centimeters
Clay content of the particle-size control section (weighted average)--30 to 35 percent
Sand content of the particle-size control section (weighted average)--25 to 45 percent
A or Ap horizon:
Hue--10YR
Value--3
Chroma--1 to 3
Texture--loam, silt loam, or clay loam
Clay content--12 to 35 percent
Sand content--20 to 50 percent
Rock fragment content--1 to 10 percent
Reaction--pH 4.5 to 7.3
Thickness--13 to 25 centimeters
Special features--when mixed to a depth of 18 centimeters, matrix value is 3 or less, moist, 5 or less, dry
E (when present) or BE horizon (when present):
Hue--10YR
Value--3 to 5
Chroma--2 to 4
Texture--loam, silt loam, or clay loam
Clay content--18 to 35 percent
Sand content--20 to 50 percent
Rock fragment content--1 to 10 percent
Reaction--pH 4.5 to 7.3
Thickness--0 to 20 centimeters
Bt horizon:
Hue--7.5YR or 10YR
Value--4 or 5
Chroma--3 to 6
Texture--loam or clay loam
Clay content--30 to 35 percent
Sand content--20 to 45 percent
Rock fragment content--1 to 10 percent
Reaction--pH 4.5 to 7.3
Thickness--40 to 150 centimeters
Some pedons have subhorizons that have a clay content of up to 38 percent
Btk horizon (when present):
Hue--10YR
Value--4 or 5
Chroma--3 to 6
Texture--clay loam
Clay content--30 to 35 percent
Sand content--20 to 45 percent
Rock fragment content--1 to 10 percent
Reaction--pH 7.4 to 8.4
Thickness--0 to 50 centimeters
BC or C horizon (when present):
Hue--10YR or 2.5Y
Value--4 or 5
Chroma--2 to 6
Texture--clay loam or loam
Clay content--24 to 35 percent
Sand content--20 to 45 percent
Rock fragment content--1 to 10 percent
Reaction--pH 4.5 to 8.4
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Angus,
Argyle,
Bassett,
Blooming,
Caleb,
Cortland,
Koronis,
Lester,
Newcomer,
Orwood,
Racine,
Sebbo,
Taopi,
Waucoma, and
Winneshiek series.
Angus--have a clay content that averages 22 to 30 percent in the particle-size control section
Argyle--have matrix hues of 5YR or redder in the lower half of the series control section
Bassett--have a clay content that averages 20 to 28 percent in the particle-size control section
Blooming--have a clay content that averages 24 to 30 percent in the particle-size control section
Caleb--have a clay content that ranges from 5 to 30 percent, have a sand content of more than 40 percent in the lower third of the series control section and do not have carbonates in the series control section
Cortland--do not have carbonates in the series control section
Koronis--have carbonates within a depth of 91 centimeters and have a clay content that averages 18 to 24 percent and a sand content that averages 45 to 65 percent in the particle-size control section
Lester--have carbonates within a depth of 137 centimeters
Newcomer--have a paralithic contact with sandstone within a depth of 100 centimeters
Orwood--do not have rock fragments in the series control section
Racine--do not have rock fragments in the upper third of the series control section
Sebbo--have a clay content that averages 18 to 25 percent in the particle-size control section
Taopi--have carbonates within a depth of 100 centimeters and have soft limestone or siltstone rock fragment content of 10 to 40 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Waucoma--have a lithic contact with limestone within a depth of 150 centimeters
Winneshiek--have a lithic contact with limestone within a depth of 100 centimeters
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material--till
Landform--interfluves, side slopes, and nose slopes on dissected uplands
Slope--5 to 40 percent
Elevation--130 to 475 meters above sea level
Mean annual air temperature--8 to 14 degrees C
Mean annual precipitation--660 to 1,170 millimeters
Frost-free period--155 to 225 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Armstrong,
Ladoga,
Lindley, and
Olmitz soils.
Armstrong--are at higher landscape positions on side slopes and nose slopes, have a clay content of 35 to 60 percent in the particle-size control section and have a frequently saturated zone within a depth of 0.3 meter during the wettest periods of years when precipitation is within one standard deviation of 30 year mean of annual precipitation
Ladoga--are at higher landscape positions on side slopes and nose slopes, have a clay content that averages 35 to 40 percent in the particle-size control section and have a frequently saturated zone within a depth of 1.2 meters during the wettest periods of years when precipitation is within one standard deviation of 30 year mean of annual precipitation
Lindley--are on landscape positions similar to those of the Gara soils and have dark-colored surface layers that are 2 to 10 centimeters thick
Olmitz--are at lower landscape positions on base slopes and have mollic epipedons 60 to 150 centimeters thick
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class--well drained-a frequently saturated zone does not occur within a depth of 1.8 meters during the wettest periods of years when precipitation is within one standard deviation of 30 year mean of annual precipitation
Saturated hydraulic conductivity--1.0 to 10.0 micrometers per second
USE AND VEGETATION:
More gently sloping areas are cultivated. The principal crops are corn, soybeans, oats, and grass-legume hay. More steeply sloping areas are pastured. The native vegetation is mixed deciduous trees (oak and hickory) and big bluestem, little bluestem, switchgrass, and other grasses of the tall grass prairie.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Physiographic Division--Interior Plains
Physiographic Province--Central Lowland
Physiographic sections--Dissected till plains and Till plains
MLRAs--Iowa and Missouri Deep Loess Hills (107B),
Illinois and Iowa Deep Loess and Drift, West-Central Part (108C),
Illinois and Iowa Deep Loess and Drift, Western Part (108D),
Iowa and Missouri Heavy Till Plain (109),
Central Clay Pan Areas (113), and
Central Mississippi Valley Wooded Slopes, Northern Part (115C)
LRR M; southern Iowa and northern Missouri
Extent--large
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana; MLRA SSO 10-7 (Gallatin, Missouri).
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Daviess County, Missouri, 1952
REMARKS:
Particle-size control section--the zone from a depth of 30 to a depth of 80 centimeters (Bt1, Bt2, and Bt3 horizons);
series control section--the zone from the surface to a depth of 150 centimeters (A, E, Bt1, Bt2, Bt3, Bt4, and BC horizons).
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon include:
ochric epipedon--the zone from the surface to a depth of 30 centimeters (A and E horizons);
albic horizon--the zone from a depth of 18 to 30 centimeters (E horizon);
argillic horizon--the zone from a depth of 30 to 114 centimeters (Bt1, Bt2, Bt3, and Bt4 horizons);
udic moisture regime.
The till is Kansan or Nebraskan age.
The matrix colors and the redoximorphic features described in this profile are not believed to be indicative of present day wetness. These colors were not used to determine the classification of this soil. This situation needs additional study.
Cation-exchange activity class is inferred from lab data from similar soils in the surrounding area.
Taxonomy version--Keys to Soil Taxonomy, tenth edition, 2006.