LOCATION GOLDHEAD FLEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, siliceous, active, thermic Arenic Endoaqualfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Goldhead fine sand on a 2 percent north facing slope in a pasture area. (Colors are for moist soil.)
Ap--0 to 6 inches; black (10YR 2/1) fine sand; weak fine granular structure; very friable; many fine and medium roots; strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary. (4 to 9 inches thick)
Eg1--6 to 12 inches; dark gray (10YR 4/1) fine sand; single grained; loose; few fine and medium roots; slightly acid; gradual wavy boundary.
Eg2--12 to 38 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) fine sand; single grained; loose; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Eg horizons is 14 to 32 inches)
Btg1--38 to 45 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) sandy clay loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; many medium prominent strong brown (7.5YR 5/8) soft masses of iron accumulation; neutral; gradual wavy boundary.
Btg2--45 to 51 inches; gray (10YR 6/1) fine sandy loam; weak medium granular structure; very friable; few medium prominent strong brown (7.5YR 5/8) and few fine distinct dark brown (10YR 4/3) soft masses of iron and manganese accumulation; mildly alkaline; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Btg horizons is 12 to 60 inches)
Cg1--51 to 71 inches; gray (10YR 6/1) fine sand; single grained; loose; small pockets of light gray (10YR 7/2) fine sandy loam; mildly alkaline; gradual wavy boundary.
Cg2--71 to 80 inches; gray (10YR 5/1) fine sand; single grained; loose; small pockets of greenish gray (5GY 5/1) fine sandy loam; single grained; loose; mildly alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Clay County, Florida; about 1 mile south of the intersection of State Road 16 and U.S. Highway 17 and 100 feet west of U.S. Highway 17, Land Grant 38 T. 6 S., R. 26 E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The solum thickness ranges from 35 to greater than 60 inches. Soil reaction ranges from very strongly acid to mildly alkaline in the A and E horizons, and very strongly acid to moderately alkaline in the B and C horizons.
The A or Ap horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 2 or 4, and chroma of 1 or 2; or N with value of 2 to 3. Texture is sand or fine sand.
The Eg horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 4 to 8, and chroma of 1 or 2; or hue of 2.5Y, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 2; or N with value of 5 to 7. Few to common redoximorphic concentrations in shades of yellow or brown occur in this horizon in some pedons. Texture is sand or fine sand. Ironstone nodules, quartz gravel or weathered phosphatic limestone fragments ranges from 0 to 5 percent by volume in this horizon.
The Btg horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 4 to 7, and chroma of 1 or 2; hue of 2.5Y, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 2; hue 5Y or 5GY, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 1 or 2, or N with value of 4 to 7. Redoximorphic concentrations in shades or red, yellow, or brown occur in this horizon in most pedons. Texture is loamy sand, fine sandy loam, sandy loam, or sandy clay loam, or their gravelly analogues. Ironstone nodules, quartz gravel, or weathered phosphatic limestone fragments range from 0 to 25 percent by volume in this horizon.
The Cg horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 to 8, and chroma of 1 or 2; hue of 5Y or 5GY, value of 5 to 7 and chroma of 1; or N with value of 4 to 8; with or without redoximorphic concentrations in shades of gray, yellow or brown. Texture is sand, fine sand, loamy sand, or loamy fine sand.
The 2Cg horizon, where present, has hue of 10YR, value of 6 to 8, and chroma of 1 or 2, or hue of 5Y or 5GY, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 1. Texture is sand, fine sand, loamy sand, or loamy fine sand. Shell fragments range up to 20 percent in some pedons.
COMPETING SERIES: Bodiford and Elloree series are in the same family. Elloree soils are on flood plains. Similar series include the Grifton, Meadowbrook, Meggett, Mouzon and Pelham. Meadowbrook soils have a sandy epipedon more than 40 inches thick. Grifton, Meggett and Mouzon soils have epipedons less than 20 inches thick. Pelham soils are Ultisols.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Goldhead soils normally are in nearly level landscapes with slopes of 0 to 2 percent but range up to 5 percent in some areas. They formed in stratified, unconsolidated marine sands and loams. The mean annual temperature is about 69 degrees F., and the mean annual precipitation is about 52 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Meadowbrook, Meggett and Pelham soils and in addition, the Chaires, Leon, Nutall, Sapelo and Worthington soils. Nutall soils do not have an arenic epipedon. Chaires, Leon, and Sapelo soils are Spodosols. Worthington soils are somewhat poorly drained.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Poorly and very poorly drained. Runoff is slow and permeability is rapid in the surface and subsurface horizons and moderate to moderately slow in the subsoil. A water table is within 12 inches of the surface for long periods from late summer to spring. Depressions are covered with water for 6 to 9 months in most years.
USE AND VEGETATION: Mostly used for forest. Forest species are mixed stands of slash, loblolly, and longleaf pine, and blackgum with cypress occurring in the wettest places. The understory consists dominantly of inkberry, waxmyrtle, pineland threeawn, pitcher plants, and bracken fern. Most cleared areas are used for pasture.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Goldhead soils are in north Florida. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Raleigh, North Carolina
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Clay County, Florida, l986
REMARKS: With this update, the classification is changed from great group of Ochraqualfs to Endoaqualfs. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon and arenic properties--The zone from the soil surface to a depth of 38 inches (A, Egl, Eg2 horizons).
Albic horizon--the zone from about 6 to 38 inches (Eg1, Eg2 horizons).
Argillic horizon--The zone from about 38 to 51 inches (Btgl, Btg2 horizons)
TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation
FL0485 GOLDHEAD 0- 5 - - - -
FL0517 GOLDHEAD 0- 2 - - - -
SOI-5 FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind Months Bedrock Hardness FL0485 NONE 0-1.0 APPARENT JUL-MAR 60-60 FL0517 NONE - APPARENT - -SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay% -CEC- FL0485 0- 6 S FS 0- 0 100-100 1- 5 - FL0485 6-38 S FS 0- 0 90-100 1- 5 - FL0485 38-51 SL GR-SL SCL 0- 3 65-100 13-34 - FL0485 51-80 VAR - - - - FL0517 0- 6 S FS 0- 0 100-100 1- 5 - FL0517 6-38 S FS 0- 0 90-100 1- 5 - FL0517 38-51 SL GR-SL SCL 0- 3 65- 98 13-34 - FL0517 51-80 VAR - - - -
SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salin Permeab Shnk-Swll FL0485 0- 6 4.5- 7.8 1.-4. 0- 0 6.0- 20 LOW FL0485 6-38 4.5- 7.8 - 0- 0 6.0- 20 LOW FL0485 38-51 4.5- 8.4 - 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 LOW FL0485 51-80 - - - 2.0-20.0 FL0517 0- 6 4.5- 7.8 2.-4. 0- 0 6.0- 20 LOW FL0517 6-38 4.5- 7.8 - 0- 0 6.0- 20 LOW FL0517 38-51 4.5- 8.4 - 0- 0 0.2- 2.0 LOW FL0517 51-80 - - 0- 0 2.0-20.0