LOCATION GATCHEL INEstablished Series
The Gatchel series consists of very deep, somewhat excessively drained soils on flood plains. They formed in loamy alluvium containing a high percentage of rock fragments in the lower part. Slopes range from 0 to 2 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 1092 mm (43 inches) and mean annual temperature is about 12 degrees C (54 degrees F).
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic Dystric Fluventic Eutrudepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Gatchel loam on a 1 percent slope in a woodland at an elevation of about 155 meters (510 feet) above MSL. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
A--0 to 10 cm (0 to 4 inches); dark brown (10YR 3/3) loam, brown (10YR 4/3) rubbed and pale brown (10YR 6/3) dry; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common fine and medium roots; moderately acid; clear wavy boundary. (10 to 25 cm or 4 to10 inches thick)
Bw1--10 to 23 cm (4 to 9 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; common fine roots; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary.
Bw2--23 to 36 cm (9 to 14 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) fine sandy loam; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common fine roots; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary.
Bw3--36 to 46 cm (14 to 18 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) fine sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; common fine roots; slightly acid; 2 percent gravel; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bw horizon is 20 to 66 cm or 8 to 26 inches)
2C1--46 to 97 cm (18 to 38 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) extremely channery coarse sandy loam; massive; very friable; 80 percent siltstone and sandstone channers and gravel; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary.
2C2--97 to 152 cm (38 to 60 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) extremely channery sandy loam; massive; very friable; 80 percent siltstone and sandstone channers and gravel; slightly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Perry County, Indiana; 1,320 feet east and 3,168 feet south of the northwest corner of sec. 6, T.4 S., R.1 W. USGS Branchville, In. topographic quadrangle: lat. 38 degrees 11 minutes 53.9 seconds N. and long. 86 degrees 34 minutes 01 second W. UTM Zone 16, 537918 easting, 4227909 northing, NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to very channery or extremely channery sandstone and siltstone alluvial material: 10 to 30 inches
Depth to the base of the cambic horizon: 12 to 30 inches
Rock fragments: dominantly channers and gravel, but include flagstones, and are primarily of sandstone lithology
A horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 3 to 5
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: loam
Reaction: moderately acid to neutral
Rock fragments: 0 to 10 percent
Ap horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 3 or 4
Texture: loam
Reaction: moderately acid to neutral
Rock fragments: 0 to 10 percent
Bw horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 3 or 4
Texture: loam, fine sandy loam or sandy loam
Clay content: 10 to 20 percent
Sand content: 30 to 75 percent
Reaction: moderately acid to neutral
Rock fragments: 0 to 10 percent
2C horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 3 or 4
Texture: very channery or extremely channery loam, fine sandy loam, sandy loam or coarse sandy loam
Clay content: 10 to 20 percent
Sand content: 35 to 78 percent
Reaction: moderately acid to neutral
Rock fragments: 35 to 80 percent
COMPETING SERIES: There are no series in the same taxonomic family. Skidmore is in a closely related family. It typically has a lithic contact above a depth of 203 cm (80 inches), averages more than 15 percent rock fragments in the upper part of the series control section (A and Bw horizons), and is in the semiactive cation-exchange activity class.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Gatchel soils are on narrow flood plains and alluvial fans of drainageways that dissect steep and very steep hills. Slopes range form 0 to 2 percent. They formed in loamy alluvium containing a high percentage of rock fragments in the lower part. The alluvial sediments washed from areas of interbedded sandstone, siltstone and shale. Mean annual temperature ranges from 10 to 14 degrees C (51 to 57 degrees F), and Mean annual precipitation ranges from 1016 to 1194 mm (40 to 47 inches). Frost-free days range from 170 to 200.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: The well drained Haymond, moderately well drained Wilbur and well drained Wirt soils are typically on slightly higher lying flood plains or flood-plain steps and contain less rock fragments. They are also associated with Adyeville, Ebal, Gilpin, Tipsaw, and Wellston soils on hill slopes. The well drained, moderately deep Adyeville, Gilpin and Tipsaw soils are on backslopes. The moderately well drained, deep or very deep Ebal soils are on backslopes. The well drained, deep or very deep Wellston soils are on backslopes.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Somewhat excessively drained. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is high in the solum (14.11 to 42.34 micrometers/s) rapid in the solum and high or very high (42.34 to 141.14 micrometers/s) in the substratum. Permeability is moderately rapid in the solum, and rapid in the substratum. The potential for surface water runoff is very low.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas are used for woodland or wildlife habitat. A few areas are used for growing corn and soybeans, or hay and pasture. Native vegetation is mixed, deciduous hardwood forest.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southern Indiana. The acreage is of small extent in the west part of MLRA 120B. As more soil survey subsets are updated the acreage is expected to increase.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Morgantown, West Virginia
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Perry County, Indiana, 1997. The source of the name is a small town in Perry County.
REMARKS: Diagnostic surface and subsurface horizons recognized in this pedon are:
1) Ochric epipedon- 0 to 10 cm or 0 to 4 inches (A horizon)
2) Cambic horizon- 10 to 46 cm or 4 to 18 inches (Bw1, Bw2, Bw3 horizons).
The Gatchel soil was correlated as Pope soil in the 1969 Perry County, Indiana Soil Survey.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Data on pedon number S90IN-123-001 is at the NSSC, Lincoln, NE.