LOCATION NESBITT TNEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, siliceous, semiactive, thermic Fragiaquic Paleudalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Nesbitt silt loam - in a cultivated area of 4 percent slope. (Colors are for moist soil).
Ap--0 to 8 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) silt loam; weak medium granular structure; friable; common fine roots; few fine black (5YR 2.5/1) and brown (7.5YR 4/3) manganese and iron concretions; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (5 to 9 inches thick)
Bt1--8 to 14 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) silty clay loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common fine roots; few faint reddish brown (5YR 4/3) clay films on faces of peds; few fine black (5YR 2.5/1) concretions; strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary.
Bt2--14 to 25 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) silty clay loam; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common fine roots; few faint reddish brown (5YR 4/3) clay films on faces of peds; few fine black (5YR 2.5/1) and dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) manganese and iron concretions; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary.
Btx3--25 to 33 inches; yellowish red (5YR 4/6) silty clay loam; moderate medium angular and subangular blocky structure; friable; few fine roots; few distinct reddish brown (5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; common medium prominent light brown (7.5YR 6/4) and dark red (2.5YR 3/6) redox concentrations, and light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) redox depletions; common fine black (5YR 2.5/1) and dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) manganese and iron concretions; brittle in approximately 50 percent of the mass; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary.
Btx4--33 to 41 inches; yellowish red (5YR 4/6) silty clay loam; moderate medium angular blocky structure; firm; few distinct reddish brown (5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; common medium prominent pale brown (10YR 6/3) and light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) redox depletions, and strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) redox concentrations; common dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) and black (5YR 2.5/1) manganese and iron concretions; brittle in approximately 50 percent of the mass; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary.
Btx5--41 to 55 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) silty clay loam; weak medium and coarse angular blocky structure; firm; many distinct brown (7.5YR 5/4) clay films on faces of peds; common medium and fine distinct yellowish red (5YR 5/6) and yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) redox concentrations, and light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) and pinkish gray (7.5YR 7/2) redox depletions; common dark brown (7.5 3/3) and black (5YR 2.5/1) concretions; brittle in approximately 50 percent of the mass; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizon ranges from 30 to 60 inches)
2Bt6--55 to 65 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) clay, weak medium and coarse angular blocky structure; very firm, sticky and plastic; few distinct brown (7.5YR 5/4) clay films on faces of peds; common fine and medium distinct very pale brown (10YR 7/4) and gray (10YR 6/1) redox depletions, and strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) redox concentrations; common dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) and black(5YR 2.5/1) manganese and iron concretions; strongly acid;
TYPE LOCATION: Rutherford County, Tennessee; 1.5 miles east of Salem/Overall Community; 200 feet north of State Highway 99; 150 feet southwest of barn. No USGS Quad or latitude/longitude available.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to rock is greater than 60 inches. Reaction is moderately acid or strongly acid except where the surface layer has been limed. Content of coarse fragments range from 0 to 5 percent in the A and Bt horizons and 0 to 10 percent in the 2Bt horizon. Fragic characteristics in one or more horizons are commonly present within 30 inches of the surface, but the range extends to 40 inches or deeper.
The A horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 3 or 4, and chroma of 3 or 4. Texture is silt loam, except severely eroded areas are silty clay loam.
Many pedons have a transitional horizon with color and texture similar to adjacent horizons.
The Bt horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 4 to 8. Redox features with chroma 2 or less are present within 30 inches of the soil surface. These redox features are in shades of brown, gray, or red and range from none to common throughout. Texture is silt loam or silty clay loam. Commonly, the middle and lower parts of the Bt horizon are brittle in 25 to 50 percent of the mass. Some pedons have up to 5 percent of grayish silty eluvial material in seams, streaks, and pockets in the lower part of the Bt horizon and upper part of the 2Bt horizon.
The 2Bt horizon has hue of 10YR to 5YR, value of 4 or 5 and chroma of 4 to 8. Redox features are in shades of brown, red and gray. Texture is silty clay loam, silty clay, or clay.
COMPETING SERIES: The soil is the only one in this family.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Nesbitt soils are on nearly level to gently rolling uplands and terraces in the Nashville Basin and smooth uplands and stream terraces of the Highland Rim/ Pennyroyal. Slopes range from 0 to 10 percent. These soils formed in a silty mantle of loess or old alluvium and the underlying residuum from limestone. Near the type location the mean annual temperature is 58.1 degrees F. and the mean annual precipitation is 53.1 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Bradyville, Cumberland, and Talbott series on adjacent uplands and the Arrington and Egam soils on flood plains in the Nashville Basin. Bradyville, Cumberland, and Talbott soils are well drained and clayey. Arrington and Egam soils have mollic epipedons. Bewleyville, Crider, Pembroke, and Baxter soils of the Highland Rim. Bewleyville, Crider, and Pembroke are well drained and lack fragic characteristics. Baxter soils are well drained and clayey.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well drained; very low to high runoff; moderately slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Hay, pasture, corn, small grain, and tobacco. Native vegetation was mixed hardwoods.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Nashville Basin and Highland Rim of Tennessee and the Pennyroyal of Kentucky. The series is of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Morgantown, West Virginia
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Rutherford County, Tennessee; 1974.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in the pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - from 0 to 8 inches (Ap horizon).
Argillic horizon - from 8 to 65 inches (Bt1-Bt5, 2Bt6 horizons)
Fragic characterics brittleness ranges from 20 to 50 percent between 25 to 55 inches (Bt3, Bt4 and Bt5 horizons)