LOCATION LAWRENCE           KY+IN OK PA TN WV
Established Series
Rev. JCJ
08/2002

LAWRENCE SERIES


The Lawrence series consists of very deep, somewhat poorly drained soils with a fragipan in the subsoil. The soils formed in a silty mantle of loess or alluvium, colluvium, and the underlying residuum of limestone on nearly level stream terraces, alluvial fans, and on nearly level concave uplands. Slopes commonly range from 0 to 3 percent, but can extend up to 6 percent.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, semiactive, mesic Aquic Fragiudalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Lawrence silt loam--cultivated. (Colors are for moist soil.)

Ap--0 to 10 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) silt loam; moderate fine and medium granular structure; very friable; common fine roots; common very fine pores; strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (6 to 12 inches thick)

Bt1--10 to 19 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) silty clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few fine roots; common fine prominent light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) clay films on ped faces; common medium distinct light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) iron depletions on faces of peds; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.

Bt2--19 to 25 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) silty clay loam; moderate medium prismatic structure parting to moderate medium subangular blocky; friable; few fine roots; common fine prominent light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) clay films on faces of peds; few fine distinct light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) silt coatings on prism faces; many medium distinct light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) iron depletions on faces of peds; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (thickness of the Bt horizon is from 7 to 25 inches)

Btx1--25 to 36 inches; 50 percent yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) and 50 percent light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) silty clay loam; weak very coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate medium angular and subangular blocky; very firm; few very fine roots between prisms; common medium prominent light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) clay films on prism faces an in vertical seams; few fine distinct light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) clay depletions as silt coatings on prism faces and in vertical seams; few fine black (10YR 2/1) iron and manganese concretions; brittle in more than 60 percent of the mass; very strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary.

Btx2--36 to 50 inches; 50 percent strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) and 50 percent light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) silty clay loam; weak very coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate medium angular blocky; very firm; common medium prominent light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) clay films on prism faces; a few sand grains and few fine distinct light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) clay depetions as silt coating on prism faces and in vertical seams;; few fine black (10YR 2/1) manganese concretions; brittle in more than 60 percent of the mass; very strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary. (thickness of the Btx horizon is from 10 to 54 inches)

B't3--50 to 62 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/4) silty clay loam; moderate medium angular blocky structure; firm; common fine prominent gray (10YR 6/1) clay films on the faces of peds; few fine black (10YR 2/1) manganese concretions; common fine prominent light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) iron depeletions on faces of peds; very strongly acid. (0 to 30 inches thick)

2C--62 to 75 inches; 34 percent light brownish gray (10YR 6/2), 33 percent strong brown (7.5YR 5/8), and 33 percent brown (7.5YR 4/4) silty clay; massive; firm; few fine black (10YR 2/1) manganese concretions; strongly acid.

TYPE LOCATION: Carroll County, Kentucky; 2 miles southeast of Carrollton, 100 feet north of Kentucky Highway 389 at a point 1 1/4 miles east of Kentucky Highway 55. USGS Quad: (unknown); latitude: (unknown); longitude: (unknown)

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to bedrock ranges from 60 to more than 200 inches. Depth to the fragipan ranges from 18 to 32 inches. Reaction ranges from very stongly acid to slightly acid, except in the BC and 2C horizon it can range to neutral. Rock fragments range from 0 to 10 percent throughout.

The Ap horizon has hue of 2.5Y or 10YR, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 2 to 4.
Texture is silt loam.

The BA, BE, or E horizons, where present, have hue of 2.5Y or 10YR, value of 5 to 7, and hue of 4 or less. Texture is silt loam or silty clay loam.

The Bt horizons have hue of 7.5YR to 2.5Y, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 3 to 6. Redoximorphic features in shades of gray and brown range from few to many. Texture is silt loam or silty clay loam.

The Btx horizon has hue of 5Y to 7.5YR, value 4 to 6, and chroma of 1 to 8; or it is neutral and has value 5 to 7. The horizon has few to many redoximophic features in shades of gray and brown. Texture is silt loam or silty clay loam

The B't or BC horizons have hue of 5Y to 5YR, value 4 to 6, and chroma of 1 to 8 or is neutral and has value 5 to 7. Texture ranges from silt loam, silty clay loam, or clay.

The 2C horizon of some pedons is residuum from limestone, or are stratified layers of sand, silt, or clay below a depth of 4O inches.

COMPETING SERIES: There are no other series in this family. Series in closely related families are Chalfont, Gudgel, Penlaw, and Robbs series. Chalfont and Gudgel soils soils formed in a loess mantle and residuum of sandstone and shale. Penlaw soils are neutral to moderately acid throughout. Robbs soils have formed in 4 feet or more of loess, otherwise they are very close competitors.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Nearly level stream terraces, alluvial fans, and nearly level concave uplands. The soils formed in mixed alluvium or colluvium derived from soils formed in residuum from limestone, shales, siltstone, and sandstone. Near the type location, the average annual temperature is 55.4 degrees F., and the average annual precipitation is 43.02 inches.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Elk, Otwood, and Robertsville soils on stream terraces, the Huntington, Newark, and Nolin soils on floodplains and Lowell, Hagerstown, Baxter, Eden, Nicholson, and Crider soils. Elk and Crider soils lack fragipans and are well drained. Otwood and Nicholson soils lack gray mottles in the upper 10 inches of the argillic horizon. Robertsville soils are poorly drained. Huntington, Newark, and Nolin soils lack argillic horizons and a fragipan. Lowell, Hagerstown, Baxter, and Eden soils have argillic horizons with more than 35 percent clay, and lack fragipans.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat poorly drained. Runoff is low or very low. Permeability is moderate above the fragipan and slow or very slow in the fragipan.

USE AND VEGETATION: The majority is in crops, principally corn, soybeans, hay, or pasture. Native forest is water tolerant species such as bottomland oaks, gum, elm, birch, willow, maple, and sycamore as the dominant species.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. The series is of moderate extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Morgantown, West Virginia

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Lawrence County, Indiana, 1922.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons recognized in this pedon are:

Ochric epipedon: 0 to 10 inches (Ap)
Argillic horizon: 10 to 50 inches (Bt1, Bt2, Btx1, Btx2, B't3)
Fragipan: 25 to 50 inches (Btx1, Btx2)


National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.