LOCATION METEA IN+IL MI WI

Established Series
Rev. RAB-GLH-DAG
11/2021

METEA SERIES

The Metea series consists of very deep, well drained soils formed in wind or water laid sandy material and the underlying till on moraines and till plains. Slope ranges from 0 to 25 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 889 mm (35 inches), and mean annual temperature is about 10.0 degrees C (50 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, active, mesic Arenic Hapludalfs

TYPICAL PEDON: Metea loamy fine sand, on a 4 percent slope in a cultivated field at an elevation of 244 meters (800 feet) above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

Ap--0 to 23 cm (9 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) loamy fine sand, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) dry; weak fine granular structure; very friable; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary. [15 to 25 cm (6 to 10 inches) thick]

E--23 to 71 cm (9 to 28 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) fine sand; single grain; loose; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary. [36 to 76 cm (14 to 30 inches) thick]

Bt1--71 to 81 cm (28 to 32 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) sandy loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common brown (10YR 4/3) clay bridging between sand grains; 3 percent gravel; moderately acid; clear wavy boundary. [0 to 25 cm (10 inches) thick]

2Bt2--81 to 112 cm (32 to 44 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common distinct brown (10YR 4/3) clay films on faces of peds; 4 percent gravel; moderately acid; clear wavy boundary. [25 to 76 cm (10 to 30 inches) thick]

2C--112 to 203 cm (44 to 80 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) loam; massive; friable; 4 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Marshall County, Indiana; about 4 miles south and 3 miles west of Plymouth; 700 feet south and 1,600 feet west of the center of sec. 25, T. 33 N., R. 1 E.; USGS Plymouth, IN topographic quadrangle; lat. 41 degrees 16 minutes 45.4 seconds N. and long. 86 degrees 21 minutes 46.3 seconds W., NAD 27; UTM Zone 16, 553357 easting and 4569962 northing, NAD 83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to the base of the argillic horizon: 102 to 152 cm (40 to 60 inches)
Thickness of the sandy material: 51 to 102 cm (20 to 40 inches)

Ap or A horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 3 to 5, more than 5.5 dry
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: loamy sand, loamy fine sand, sand, or fine sand
Reaction: moderately acid to neutral

E horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 4 to 6
Chroma: 3 to 6
Texture: loamy sand, loamy fine sand, sand, or fine sand
Reaction: strongly acid to slightly acid

Bt horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 to 6
Chroma: 4 to 6
Texture: sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or sandy clay loam
Clay content: 12 to 22 percent
Rock fragment content: 0 to 5 percent gravel
Reaction: moderately acid or slightly acid

2Bt horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 3 to 8
Texture: clay loam or loam
Clay content: 24 to 35 percent
Silt content: less than 60 percent
Rock fragment content: 1 to 10 percent gravel
Reaction: moderately acid or slightly acid, but ranges to neutral in the lower part when there is more than one subhorizon

2C horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 5 or 6
Chroma: 3 to 8
Clay content: 15 to 24 percent
Texture: loam or fine sandy loam
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Delton, Okee, Ormas, and Prissel series. Delton soils average more than 35 percent clay in the lower part of the argillic horizon. Okee soils contain less than 24 percent clay in the lower part of the argillic horizon. Ormas soils contain more than 10 percent gravel in the lower part of the argillic horizon and are underlain by gravelly or very gravelly sand. Prissel soils have a sandy mantle that is thicker than 102 cm (40 inches).

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Metea soils are on moraines and till plains. Slope ranges from 0 to 25 percent. Metea soils formed in 51 to 102 cm (20 to 40 inches) of wind or water laid sandy material and the underlying loamy till. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 762 to 1067 mm (30 to 42 inches). Mean annual temperature ranges from 8.9 to 11.7 degrees C (48 to 53 degrees F). Frost-free period is 150 to 180 days. Elevation is 183 to 466 meters (600 to 1,530 feet) above mean sea level.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Aubbeenaubbee, Barry, Brookston, Chelsea, Crosier, Markton, Moon, Miami, Owosso, Plainfield, Rensselaer, Riddles, Selfridge, Spinks, and Wawasee soils. The somewhat poorly drained Aubbeenaubbee, Crosier, Markton, and Selfridge soils are on footslopes of glaciated uplands. The poorly drained Barry and Brookston soils and the poorly drained or very poorly drained Rensselaer soils are in depressions of glaciated uplands. The excessively drained Chelsea and Plainfield soils, and the well drained Spinks soils are on summits and backslopes of glaciated uplands and are sandier in the lower part of the series control section. The moderately well drained Moon soils are on backslopes and have redoximorphic features within 102 cm (40 inches) of the surface. The moderately well drained Miami soils, and the well drained Owosso, Riddles, and Wawasee soils are on summits and backslopes of glaciated uplands.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained. Potential for surface runoff is negligible to very high, depending on the slope and depth to till. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is high or very high in the upper sandy material and moderately high in the underlying loamy till. Permeability is rapid in the upper sandy material and moderate or moderately slow in the underlying loamy till.

USE AND VEGETATION: Soils are cropped to corn and soybeans. Small grain and hay are also grown. Many small areas are used for pasture or woodland. Native vegetation is deciduous forest.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRAs 95B, 97 98, 99, 108A, 110, 111B, and 111C in northern Indiana, southern Wisconsin, northern Illinois, and southern Michigan. The series is of large extent.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Fulton County, Indiana, 1941.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon: from the surface to a depth of 71 cm (28 inches) (Ap, E).
Argillic horizon: from a depth of 71 to 112 cm (28 to 44 inches) (Bt1, 2Bt2).
Arenic subgroup: from the surface to a depth of 71 cm (28 inches) (Ap, E).

NASIS Data Mapunit ID 155031 represents Metea in complex with Moon on 1 to 5 percent slopes.
NASIS Data Mapunit ID 401581 represents Metea in complex with Riddles on 1 to 5 percent slopes.
NASIS Data Mapunit ID 125312 represents Metea in complex with Riddles on 5 to 10 percent slopes, eroded.
NASIS Data Mapunit ID 125313 represents Metea in complex with Riddles on 10 to 18 percent slopes, eroded.

ADDITIONAL DATA: Transect data (T99IN-099-001) for the typical pedon is on file in MLRA project office, Plymouth, Indiana. Transect shows 90 percent Metea soils and 10 percent Ormas soils.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.