LOCATION ICARIA NCEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy over sandy or sandy-skeletal, siliceous, semiactive, thermic Typic Umbraquults
TYPICAL PEDON: Icaria fine sandy loam--cultivated. (Colors are for moist soil.)
Ap--0 to 11 inches; black (10YR 2/1) fine sandy loam; weak medium granular structure; friable; few fine medium roots; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (10 to 15 inches thick)
Btg--11 to 25 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) sandy clay loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few common roots; thin faint clay films on faces of peds; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (10 to 25 inches thick)
2Eb--25 to 29 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) loamy sand; weak fine granular; very friable; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 15 inches thick)
2Bhb1--29 to 34 inches; very dark gray (10YR 3/1) sand; massive; about 90 percent of sand grains are coated or bridged with organic matter; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (5 to 15 inches thick)
2Bhb2--34 to 62 inches; dark brown (10YR 3/3) sand; massive; about 80 percent of sand grains are coated and bridged with organic matter; very strongly acid. (5 inches to more than 2 feet thick)
TYPE LOCATION: Chowan County, North Carolina; approximately 0.9 mile northwest of State Road 1002 and State Road 1305, 600 feet north of State Road 1305.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The upper sequum of this soil, which includes the argillic horizon ranges from 20 to 40 inches thick. The lower sequum consists of spodic horizons that commonly extend to depths of more than 60 inches. In some pedons, spodic horizons may be separated by thin albic horizons. Reaction ranges from extremely acid to strongly acid except for surface layers that have been limed.
The A or Ap horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, or is neutral; value of 2 or 3, and chroma of 0 to 2. Texture is fine sandy loam, sandy loam, or loam.
The Eg horizon, where present, has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 1 or 2. Texture is fine sandy loam, sandy loam, or loam.
The Btg horizon has hue of 10YR to 5Y or neutral, value of 4 to 7, and chroma of 0 to 2. High chroma masses of iron accumulation are present in some pedons. Texture is sandy clay loam, loam, or clay loam. In some pedons, there are thin layers of sandy loam, loamy sand, or fine sand.
The 2Eb horizon, where present, has hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 4 to 8, and chroma of 1 to 3. Texture is sand, fine sand, loamy fine sand, or loamy sand.
The 2Bhb horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 2 to 4, and chroma of 1 to 3. Texture is sand, fine sand, or sandy loam.
Some pedons have a 2C horizon with hue of 7.5YR to 2.5Y, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 2 or 3. Texture is sand, fine sand, or sandy loam.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no other recognized series in this family. Soil series in related families include Deloss, Hyde, Leon, Lynn Haven, Murville, Paxville, and Portsmouth series. Deloss, Paxville, and Portsmouth soils lack spodic horizons. Also, Deloss and Portsmouth soils have mixed mineralogy. Hyde soils are fine-silty. Leon, Lynn Haven, and Murville soils do not have an argillic horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Icaria soils are on nearly level flats and in slight depressions on stream terraces and marine terraces of the Coastal Plain. They formed in loamy over sandy marine and fluvial sediments. Near the type location mean annual temperature is about 61 degrees F. and mean annual precipitation is 49 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: In addition to the competing Leon, Lynn Haven, and Murville series are Centenary, Echaw, Tomahawk, and Valhalla series. Centenary and Echaw soils do not have an argillic horizon. Tomahawk soils are somewhat poorly drained and moderately well drained. Valhalla soils are well drained.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Very poorly drained; runoff is very slow; permeability is moderate.
USE AND VEGETATION: Drained and cleared areas are cropped to corn, soybeans, small grain, truck crops, and pasture. Forested areas consist of loblolly pine , red maple, sweetgum, water oak, sweetbay, and red bay. Understory species include southern bayberry, holly, giant cane, and greenbrier.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Coastal Plain of North Carolina and possibly Virginia and South Carolina. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Raleigh, North Carolina
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Chowan County, North Carolina; 1982.
REMARKS: The fine-loamy Bt horizon is more significant to interpretations than the underlying spodic horizons.
Diagnostic horizons and soil properties recognized in this pedon are:
Umbric epipedon - the zone from the surface to a depth of 11 inches (Ap horizon)
Argillic horizon - the zone from 11 to 25 inches (Btg horizon)
Strongly contrasting particle size class - the occurrence of sandy clay loam overlying loamy sand at a depth of 25 inches (boundary between Btg and 2Eb horizons)
Buried spodic horizon - the zone between 29 and 62 inches (2Bhb1 and 2Bhb2 horizons)
MLRA: 153A SIR: NC0148