LOCATION HOWELL MD+NJ PA
Established Series
Rev. EDM-JEW-JWG
11/2015
HOWELL SERIES
The Howell series consists of deep, well drained soils formed in fine unconsolidated sediments containing detectable amounts of diatomaceous earth and/or glauconite. They are nearly level to steep soils on uplands in the northern part of the Atlantic Coastal Plain. They typically have a dark yellowish brown fine sandy loam Ap horizon and strong brown and pale olive heavy clay loam and clay B2 horizons over a massive pale olive clay C horizon.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, mixed, semiactive, mesic Typic Hapludults
TYPICAL PEDON: Howell fine sandy loam - cultivated
(Colors are for moist soil.)
Ap--0 to 8 inches, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) fine sandy loam; weak medium granular structure; soft, very friable; many roots; slightly acid (limed); abrupt smooth boundary. (8 to 10 inches thick)
BA--8 to 14 inches, strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) sandy clay loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, sticky, plastic; many roots; sand is dominantly fine or very fine; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (5 to 8 inches thick)
Bt1--14 to 24 inches, strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) heavy clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, sticky, plastic; common roots; thin clay films, mostly in pores; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (10 to 14 inches thick)
Bt2--24 to 37 inches, strong brown (7.5YR 5/8) clay, few distinct mottles of pale olive (5Y 6/3) below 31 inches; strong medium sub- angular blocky structure; hard, firm, sticky, plastic; few roots; thin continuous clay films; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (12 to 18 inches thick)
Bt3--37 to 46 inches, pale olive (5Y 6/3) clay; common prominent mottles of strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) moderate thick platy structure; hard, firm, sticky, plastic; very few roots; discontinuous clay films; extremely acid; diffuse boundary. (5 to 10 inches thick)
C--46 to 60 inches, pale olive (5Y 6/3) clay; common prominent mottles of strong brown (7.5YR 5/6); massive; hard, firm, sticky, plastic; extremely acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Calvert County, Maryland, 200 yards south of Route 4, just south off its intersection with Route 260.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of solum ranges from 40 to 60 inches. Unlimed pedons are very strongly acid or extremely acid throughout.
The A horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 3 to 5, and chroma of 2 to 6; value of 3 is in only the very thin A horizon in undisturbed pedons. The A horizon is fine sandy loam, loam, or silt loam except in severely eroded pedons it is commonly clay loam or sandy clay loam.
The Bt horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR in the upper part and 2.5Y or 5Y in the lower part. It has value of 5 or 6 and chroma of 3 to 8; chroma less than 6 confined is in only the lower part. High chroma mottling is evident in the lower part of the Bt horizon. It is heavy silty clay loam, clay, silty clay or heavy clay loam with less than 40 percent sand.
The C horizon has hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 1 to 4. High chroma mottling may be present. It is clay or silty clay except in some pedons there is a 2C horizon that is sandy clay loam or clay loam and contains up to 40 percent fine smooth pebbles.
COMPETING SERIES: (This section has not been updated) These are the
Agnos,
Boden,
Braddock,
Gassville, Broseclose,
Monmouth,
Muse,
Sequoia,
Trappist, and
Unison series in the same family. All of these series have hue of 10YR or redder throughout the B horizon except for Monmouth soils. Mormouth soils have weighted average of more than 40 percent sand in the B horizon. The
Albertville,
Baxter,
Christian, Culpepper, Durmore,
Elioak,
Enders, Fluibanna,
Hayesville,
Kirvin,
Luverne,
Nason,
Shubuta,
Tatum,
Townley, and
Vance soils are in related families. Albertville, Enders,
Fluvanna, Kirvin, Luverne, Nason, Tatum, Townley and Vance soils have mean annual soil temperature greater than 59 degrees F. Baxter,
Dunmore, and Shubuta soils have sola more than 60 inches in thickness. Christian, Culpepper and Elioak soils have kaolinitic mineralogy. Hayesville soils have oxidic mineralogy.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: (This section has not been updated) These are the competing
Monmouth and the
Christiana,
Keyport,
Marr, and
Westphalia soils. Christiana soils have a solum more than 50 inches thick and a Bt horizon centered on 2.5YR hues. Keyport soils have a gray mottled lower B horizon and are only moderately well drained. Marr and Westphalia soils have less than 35 percent clay in the Bt horizon and a solum less than 40 inches thick. Less common associates are
Collington soils that have less than 35 percent clay in the Bt horizon, the moderately well drained
Adelphia and
Donlonton soils and poorly drained
Colemantown and
Elkton soils.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderately slow or moderate in the C horizon. Available moisture capacity is high.
USE AND VEGETATION: General crops, tobacco and nonfarm uses. Native vegetation is mixed hardwoods and some Virginia pine.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Monmouth County, New Jersey, 1946.
REMARKS:
ADDITIONAL DATA:
TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation
MD0044 HOWELL 0- 40 - - - -
SOI-5 FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind Months Bedrock Hardness
MD0044 NONE 3.0-3.0 APPARENT NOV-MAY 60-60
SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay% -CEC-
MD0044 0- 8 FSL L SIL 0- 0 95-100 9-15 -
MD0044 8-14 SCL 0- 0 95-100 20-35 -
MD0044 14-46 C SICL SIC 0- 0 95-100 35-50 -
MD0044 46-60 C SIC GR-SCL 0- 0 45-100 25-50 -
SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salin Permeab Shnk-Swll
MD0044 0- 8 3.6- 5.0 1.-3. 0- 0 0.2- 2.0 LOW
MD0044 8-14 3.6- 5.0 - 0- 0 0.2- 0.6 MODERATE
MD0044 14-46 3.6- 5.0 - 0- 0 0.2- 0.6 MODERATE
MD0044 46-60 3.6- 5.0 - 0- 0 0.2- 2.0 MODERATE
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.