LOCATION LOCKE MI+WI

Established Series
Rev. WEF
11/2021

LOCKE SERIES

The Locke series consists of very deep, somewhat poorly drained soils formed in sandy loam till on ground moraines. Slope ranges from 0 to 6 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 813 mm (32 inches), and mean annual temperature is about 9.4 degrees C (49 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, semiactive, mesic Aquollic Hapludalfs

TYPICAL PEDON: Locke fine sandy loam, on a south-facing, concave, 2 percent slope in a cultivated field. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

Ap--0 to 23 cm (9 inches); very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) fine sandy loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) dry; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable about 5 percent gravel; slightly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. [16 to 25 cm (6 to 10 inches) thick]

Bt1--23 to 36 cm (9 to 14 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; common faint dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) and very dark brown (10YR 2/2) clay films on faces of peds; many medium distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/6) masses of oxidized iron; many medium faint brown (10YR 5/3) iron depletions; about 6 percent gravel; neutral; clear smooth boundary.

Bt2--36 to 61 cm (14 to 24 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; common faint light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) and dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2), and common distinct gray (10YR 6/1) clay films on faces of peds; few fine faint and distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4 and 4/6) masses of oxidized iron; few fine faint grayish brown (10YR 5/2) iron depletions; about 2 percent gravel; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. [Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 20 to 66 cm (8 to 26 inches).]

Btk--61 to 94 cm (24 to 37 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) loam; weak thick platy structure parting to moderate medium subangular blocky; firm; common faint light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) clay films on faces of peds; common distinct gray (10YR 6/1) lime pendents on rock fragments; many medium faint and distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4 and 4/6) masses of oxidized iron; many medium faint grayish brown (10YR 5/2) iron depletions; about 4 percent gravel; strongly effervescent on ped coats; moderately alkaline; gradual smooth boundary. [0 to 36 cm (14 inches) thick]

C--94 to 152 cm (37 to 60 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) fine sandy loam; massive; friable; common medium distinct gray (10YR 6/1) masses of carbonates; many medium faint light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) masses of oxidized iron; many medium faint light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) iron depletions; about 4 percent gravel; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Hillsdale County, Michigan, about 4 miles west of the village of Reading; 940 feet east and 80 feet north of the southwest corner of sec. 19, T. 7 S., R. 4 W.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Thickness of the solum: 51 to 102 cm (20 to 40 inches)
Rock fragment content: 2 to 15 percent gravel and 0 to 6 percent cobbles throughout
Reaction: strongly acid to neutral in the upper part of the solum and neutral to moderately alkaline in the lower part
Particle-size control section: averages 18 to 25 percent clay and is moderately acid to moderately alkaline

Ap horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 2 or 3
Chroma: 1 or 2
Texture: sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or loam

A horizon, where present:
Thickness: 10 to 15 cm (4 to 6 inches)
Hue: 10YR
Value: 2 or 3
Chroma: 1 or 2
Texture: sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or loam

E horizon, where present:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 5 or 6
Chroma: 3 or 4
Texture: sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or loam

Some pedons have EB horizons.

Bt horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: sandy loam, loam, or sandy clay loam

Btk horizon, where present:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: sandy loam, loam, or sandy clay loam

C horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 5 or 6
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: sandy loam or fine sandy loam, but pockets and lenses of sand or loamy sand are in some pedons

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Macomb series. Macomb soils have more than 20 percent gravel in the lower part of the series control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Locke soils are on ground moraines of Wisconsinan age. Slope gradients are commonly between 0 and 2 percent and range from 0 to 6 percent. They formed in sandy loam till. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 762 to 914 mm (30 to 36 inches). Mean annual temperature ranges from 8.3 to 10.0 degrees C (47 to 50 degrees F).

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Barry, Brady, Dryden, Gilford, Kidder, Lapeer, and Wasepi soils. The well drained Lapeer and Kidder soils, the moderately well drained Dryden, and the poorly drained Barry soils are in the same drainage sequence. Wasepi and Brady soils and the poorly drained or very poorly drained Gilford soils are in nearby narrow drainageways.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Somewhat poorly drained. Depth to the top of a seasonal high water table ranges from 30 to 61 cm (1 to 2 feet) at some time in normal years. Potential for surface runoff is negligible to medium. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high. Permeability is moderate.

USE AND VEGETATION: A large part is cropped to beans, corn, hay, or small grains. A small part is in permanent pasture or woodland. Native vegetation is forest of American basswood, red maple, white ash, northern red oak, and white oak.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRAs 95B, 98, and 111B in southern Michigan and south-central Wisconsin. This series is of moderate extent.

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: AMHERST, MASSACHUSETTS

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Lapeer County, Michigan, 1966.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon (mollic intergrade): from the surface to a depth of 23 cm (9 inches) (Ap horizon).
Argillic horizon: from a depth of 23 to 94 cm (9 to 37 inches) (Bt and Btk horizons).
Aquic conditions: redoximorphic features present in all horizons below the ochric epipedon.

ADDITIONAL DATA: See National Soil Survey Laboratory sample S84MI-059-001 for laboratory data, Lincoln, NE.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.