LOCATION MAZASKA MNEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic, mesic Vertic Argiaquolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Mazaska silty clay loam on a plane level slope on a moraine at an elevation of 1,075 feet in a cultivated field. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 9 inches; black (10YR 2/1) silty clay loam dark gray (10YR 4/1) dry; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; slightly acid; abrupt smooth boundary.
A--9 to 15 inches; black (10YR 2/1) clay loam, dark gray (10YR 4/1) and gray (10YR 5/1) dry; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few faint grayish coatings of silt on faces of peds; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the A horizons is 10 to 20 inches.)
Btg1--15 to 22 inches; olive gray (5Y 5/2) clay loam; common fine prominent brown (7.5YR 4/4) Fe concentrations; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; firm; few distinct very dark grayish brown (2.5Y 3/2) clay films on faces of peds; about 3 percent gravel, mostly shale; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Btg2--22 to 34 inches; olive gray (5Y 5/2) clay; common fine prominent brown (7.5YR 4/4) Fe concentrations; moderate fine and medium prismatic structure parting to moderate fine and medium angular blocky; firm; common distinct very dark gray (5Y 3/1) and faint dark gray (5Y 4/1) clay films on faces of peds; about 8 percent gravel, mostly shale; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Btg3--34 to 42 inches; olive gray (5Y 5/2) clay; common fine prominent light olive brown (2.5Y 5/6) Fe concentrations; moderate fine and medium prismatic structure parting to moderate fine and medium angular blocky; firm; common faint olive gray (5Y 4/2) and dark olive gray (5Y 3/2) clay films on faces of peds and in old root channels; about 3 percent gravel, mostly shale; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Btg horizons is 18 to 45 inches.)
Bkg--42 to 80 inches; olive gray (5Y 5/2) clay loam; many medium prominent light olive brown (2.5Y 5/6) Fe concentrations; weak coarse prismatic structure; friable; few dark colored concretions; few lime pebbles; about 5 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Rice County, Minnesota; 1280 feet east and 960 feet south of the northwest corner of sec. 12, T. 111 N., R. 22 W.; USGS Lonsdale quadrangle; lat. 44 degrees 26 minutes 32 seconds N. and long. 93 degrees 25 minutes 10 seconds W., NAD27
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to free carbonates is 30 to 60 inches. Gravel of mixed lithology and dominated by shale typically comprise 2 to 8 percent of the volume of the profile. Some pedons lack gravel in the upper sediments. Shale is the major component of the sand fraction and makes up 2 to 8 percent of the rock fragments. The thickness of the mollic epipedon ranges from 10 to 22 inches.
The Ap or A horizon has hue of 10YR, 2.5Y, or is neutral, value of 2 or 3, and chroma of 0 or 1. It is clay loam or silty clay loam. Some pedons have a thin E horizon. Where present, it has hue of 10YR, value of 3 to 5, and chroma of 1. It is loam, silt loam, clay loam, or silty clay loam. The A and E horizons range from moderately acid to neutral.
The Btg horizon has hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 1 or 2. Distinct or prominent Fe concentrations are in some to all subhorizons of the B horizon. It is typically clay loam, silty clay loam, or clay, but ranges to loam in the lower part. The upper 20 inches of the argillic horizon typically averages between 38 and 45 percent clay with an extreme range of 35 to 50 percent and from 15 to 35 percent fine sand and coarser. Reaction in the upper part of the B horizon ranges from slightly acid to very strongly acid, and from strongly acid to neutral in the lower part. Some pedons have a thin BC horizon.
The Bkg horizon has hue of 2.5Y or 5Y, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 2 to 4. It is loam, clay loam, or silty clay loam. Reaction is slightly alkaline.
A C horizon is present in some pedons.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Chancellor, Clarinda, Coatsburg, Crossplain, Edinburg, Haig, Minnetonka, Sacville(T), Sampsel, Terrabella, Virden, and the Worthing series. The Clarinda, Coatsburg and Terrabella soils lack free carbonates in the series control section. Chancellor soils have a mollic epipedon more than 24 inches thick. Crossplain soils have a mean annual soil temperature less than 54 degrees F. Edinburg, Haig, Minnetonka, Virden and Worthing soils do not have rock fragments in the particle size control section. Sampsel soils have soft shale bedrock at depths of 40 to 80 inches.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Mazaska soils are on plane to slightly concave slopes on broad level ridge tops in rolling moraine areas, or on lower lying areas on moraines. Slope gradients range from 0 to 2 percent. They formed in clayey glacial till or flow till containing appreciable amounts of shale that mantles loam or clay loam till at 3 to 10 feet or more. These sediments are Late Wisconsinan in age. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 26 to 32 inches. Mean annual air temperature ranges from 45 to 52 degrees F. Frost-free days range from 145 to 170. Elevation above sea level ranges from 700 to 1600 feet.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Erin, Kilkenny, Lerdal, and Shields soils. These soils formed in materials that are somewhat similar to those of the Mazaska soils. The moderately well drained Kilkenny and Erin soils are on undulating to rolling slopes. The somewhat poorly drained Lerdal, and somewhat poorly drained Shields soils are on nearly level but more elevated positions.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Poorly drained. Surface runoff is negligible. Permeability is slow. The perched seasonal high water table is at 0 to 1 foot during November to June in most years.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas are used as cropland. Corn and soybeans are the commonly grown crops. Native vegetation is northern hardwoods, largely basswood, maple, and elm, with an understory of grasses and sedges.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: South-central Minnesota. Inextensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: St. Paul, Minnesota
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Rice County, Minnesota, 1970.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon include: mollic epipedon-from the soil surface to a depth of 15 inches (Ap,A horizons); argillic horizon-the zone from 15 to 42 inches (Btg1, Btg2, Btg3).
ADDITIONAL DATA: Refer to MAES Central File Code numbers 1063 for results of some laboratory analysis of the typifying pedon.