LOCATION HONONEGAH IL+IN

Established Series
Rev. SEZ-DRG-JWS
01/2011

HONONEGAH SERIES

The Hononegah series consists of very deep, excessively drained soils formed in sandy alluvial or eolian material underlain within 51 to 102 cm (20 to 40 inches) by water-sorted sand and gravel. These soils are on stream terraces and outwash plains. Slope ranges from 0 to 25 percent. Mean annual temperature is about 9.4 degrees C (49 degrees F), and mean annual precipitation is about 864 mm (34 inches).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy, mixed, mesic Entic Hapludolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Hononegah loamy coarse sand - on a southeast-facing slope of less than 1 percent in a cultivated field at an elevation of 237 meters (777 feet) above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

Ap--0 to 20 cm (0 to 8 inches); very dark brown (10YR 2/2) loamy coarse sand; weak fine subangular blocky structure parting to moderate medium granular; very friable; many fine roots; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary.

A--20 to 38 cm (8 to 15 inches); very dark brown (10YR 2/2) loamy coarse sand; moderate medium subangular and angular blocky structure; very friable; common fine roots; few medium distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) masses of oxidized iron throughout; neutral; clear smooth boundary. [0 to 25 cm (0 to 10 inches) thick]

AB--38 to 48 cm (15 to 19 inches); dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) loamy coarse sand; weak medium and fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; few fine roots; neutral; clear smooth boundary. [Combined thickness of the A horizon is 25 to 61 cm (10 to 24 inches).]

Bw--48 to 61 cm (19 to 24 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) loamy coarse sand; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; few fine roots; common fine gravel; neutral; clear smooth boundary. [5 to 41 cm (2 to 16 inches) thick]

2BC--61 to 79 cm (24 to 31 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) very gravelly loamy coarse sand; single grain; loose; few fine roots; neutral; clear smooth boundary. [0 to 53 cm (0 to 21 inches) thick]

2C--79 to 152 cm (31 to 60 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very gravelly loamy coarse sand; single grain; loose; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Winnebago County, Illinois; 1.25 miles (2 kilometers) northwest of Rockton; 170 feet (52 meters) north and 2,060 feet (628 meters) east of the center of sec. 11, T. 46 N., R. 1 E.; USGS South Beloit topographic quadrangle; lat. 42 degrees 28 minutes 40 seconds N. and long. 89 degrees 4 minutes 54 seconds W., NAD 27; UTM Zone 16, 328890 easting and 4704931 northing, NAD 83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Thickness of the mollic epipedon: 25 to 61 cm (10 to 24 inches)
Thickness of the solum: typically 76 to 102 cm (30 to 40 inches)
Depth to sand and gravel: commonly about 61 cm (24 inches), but they range from 51 to 102 cm (20 to 40 inches).
Depth to carbonates: typically 76 to 102 cm (30 to 40 inches), but ranges from 51 to 127 cm (20 to 50 inches).
Particle-size control section averages loamy sand or sand but some subhorizons are sandy loam or loam.
Pebbles may be in any horizon throughout the sola but are more common in the lower part. Some subhorizons contain more than 35 percent by volume of rock fragments.

Ap or A horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR
Value: 2 or 3
Chroma: 1 to 3
Texture: loamy coarse sand, loamy sand or sandy loam
Reaction: moderately acid to slightly alkaline

Bw horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR
Value: 3 or 4
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: commonly coarse sand or loamy coarse sand but individual horizons include loam, sandy loam, sand, and loamy sand, and the gravelly analogues of these textures.
Sand size: dominantly medium sand or coarser
Average content of clay: 15 percent
Reaction: moderately acid to slightly alkaline

Some pedons have a 2BC horizon that is gravelly or very gravelly coarse loamy sand.

2C horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 4 to 6
Chroma: 2 to 6
Texture; commonly loose sand and gravel
Reaction: commonly strongly effervescent and moderately alkaline, but in some pedons it is neutral or slightly alkaline.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Bellechester, Finchford, Fruitfield, Hawick, Komro, Lasa, Sparta, Trempe, and Zumbro series. Bellechester soils have a paralithic contact with sandstone bedrock at depths ranging from 102 to 178 cm (40 to 70 inches) and commonly contain rock fragments of sandstone or limestone within the solum. Finchford, Fruitfield, Sparta, and Trempe soils are more acid in the lower sola and lack effervescence in the C horizon. In addition, Sparta soils contain less gravel throughout and have in the control section, 20 percent or less of coarse or very coarse sand, and 30 percent or more of fine sand or finer, and Trempe soils have redder hue in the upper part of the C horizon.. Hawick soils have thinner sola. Komro soils have redox features within the series control section. Lasa soils have less than 5 percent of medium sand and coarser particles and are deeper to carbonates. Zumbro soils have mollic epipedons greater than 61 cm (24 inches) thick, have dominant sand size of medium or fine throughout, and have less than 20 percent gravel in the solum and C horizon.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Hononegah soils are on stream terraces and adjacent escarpments, outwash plains, terraces, beach ridges on old glacial lake plains, and on valley trains. The soils formed in sandy alluvial or eolian material underlain within 51 to 102 cm (20 to 40 inches) by water-sorted sand and gravel. Slope gradients commonly are 0 to 3 percent but range from 0 to 25 percent. Mean annual temperature ranges from 8.3 to 11.1 degrees C (47 to 52 degrees F), and mean annual precipitation ranges from 762 to 914 mm (30 to 36 inches).

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Flagler, Volinia, Warsaw, and Wea soils. All of these soils are on nearby landscapes and contain less sand in the solum. In addition Volinia, Warsaw, and Wea soils are finer textured in the upper part of the solum and have argillic horizons. Wea soils also have thicker sola.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Excessively drained. The potential for surface runoff is negligible to medium. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is very high (greater than 141.11 micrometers/s). Permeability is very rapid.

USE AND VEGETATION: A large part is in meadow, hay, and small grain. Some corn and soybeans are grown but yields are generally low. Native vegetation is mixed prairie grasses that were tolerant to droughty conditions.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Illinois and Indiana. This soil is of moderate extent in MLRAs 95B, 105, 108B, 110, 111C, and 111D, and is mainly on the Rock River terrace in Winnebago County, Illinois.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana.

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Winnebago and Boone Counties, Illinois, 1976.

REMARKS: These soils are borderline between sandy and sandy-skeletal. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: mollic epipedon - the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of 0 to 48 cm (19 inches) (Ap, A and AB horizons).

ADDITIONAL DATA: Mechanical analysis data are on file with the author for three pedons including the typical pedon.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.