LOCATION NICELYTOWN VAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, siliceous, semiactive, mesic Aquic Paleudults
TYPICAL PEDON: Nicelytown on a 5 percent slope, in pasture at an elevation of 1,690 feet. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated)
Ap--0 to 5 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) silt loam; moderate medium granular structure; very friable, non-sticky and non-plastic; many fine and very fine roots; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick).
AB--5 to 8 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) silt loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable, non-sticky and non-plastic; common fine and very fine roots; common medium faint brown (10YR 5/3) and common fine faint dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) iron depletions; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick)
Bt1--8 to 17 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) silty clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and very fine roots; few fine vesicular pores; very few, patchy clay films on faces of peds; common fine faint brown (10YR 5/3) iron depletions and common fine faint yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) masses of iron concentration; strongly acid; diffuse smooth boundary.
Bt2--17 to 26 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few fine and very fine roots; few fine vesicular pores; very few, patchy clay films on faces of peds; many fine and medium faint to distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) and yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) masses of iron concentration; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt3--26 to 34 inches; light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/3) clay loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few very fine roots; few fine vesicular pores; very few, patchy clay films on faces of peds; many fine and medium prominent gray (10YR 6/1) iron depletions and many fine prominent brown (7.5YR 5/4) and strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) masses of iron concentration; 5 percent rounded sandstone gravel; strongly acid; diffuse smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 15 to 60 inches)
Btg--34 to 48 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) silty clay loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; few very fine roots; very few, patchy clay films on faces of peds; many fine prominent strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) and distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) masses of iron concentration; 5 percent rounded sandstone gravel; strongly acid; diffuse smooth boundary. (0 to 30 inches thick)
BCg--48 to 65 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) gravelly silty clay loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; few very fine roots; many fine and medium distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) masses of iron concentration; 16 percent rounded sandstone gravel; strongly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Alleghany County, Virginia, approximately 3,000 feet with a bearing of 28 degrees from the Dameron Church; and 300 feet east of VA Route 311, near the community of Crows. U.S.G.S. Alleghany topographic quadrangle; Latitude 37 degrees, 42 minutes, 4 seconds N and Longitude 80 degrees, 12 minutes, 47 seconds W; NAD 1927.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness and depth to bedrock are more than 60 inches. Depth to low chroma iron depletions accompanied by iron concentrations range from 16 to 30 inches. Gravel and cobbles are 0 to 15 percent in the Ap, A, AB, EB, BA and BE horizons; 0 to 35 percent in the upper 20 inches of the Bt horizon; and 0 to 50 percent in the lower part of the Bt horizon and in the BC horizon. Reaction is very strongly acid to strongly acid throughout.
The Ap horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 3 or 4. It is loam, silt loam, or fine sandy loam.
Some pedons have an A horizon with hue of 10YR, value of 2 to 5, and chroma of 1 to 3. It is loam, silt loam, or fine sandy loam. Thickness of the A horizon is 3 to 6 inches.
The AB horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 to 6 and chroma of 3 to 6. Iron concentrations are in shades of brown or yellow. Low chroma iron depletions in shades of gray are present in some pedons. It is loam, silt loam, or fine sandy loam.
Some pedons have an EB, BA, or BE horizon with hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 to 6 and chroma of 3 to 6. Iron concentrations are in shades of brown or yellow. Low chroma iron depletions in shades of gray are present in some pedons. It is loam, silt loam, or fine sandy loam.
The Bt horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 3 to 8; or hue of 7.5YR, value of 5 and chroma of 6. Iron concentrations in shades of brown, yellow, or red accompanied by iron depletions in shades of gray are present within a depth of 30 inches. It is loam, silt loam, clay loam, or silty clay loam with less than 35 percent clay.
The Btg horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 1 or 2. Iron concentrations in shades of brown, yellow, or red are present. Texture is loam, clay loam, or silty clay loam.
The BCg horizon is below a depth of 40 inches. It has hue of 10YR, 2.5Y, 5B or is neutral, value of 5 or 8, and chroma of 1 or 2. Iron concentrations in shades of brown, yellow, or red and iron depletions in shades of gray are present. It is loam, clay loam, or silty clay loam.
Some pedons have a BC horizon below a depth of 40 inches. It has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 3 to 6. Iron concentrations in shades of brown, yellow, or red and iron depletions in shades of gray are present. It is loam, clay loam, or silty clay loam.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no other series in this family.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Nicelytown soils formed in loamy alluvial sediments from sandstones and shales and are on stream terraces. Slope gradients range from 0 to 15 percent. Climate is humid continental. Mean annual air temperature ranges from 50 to 54 degrees F., mean annual precipitation ranges from 35 to 50 inches, and elevation ranges from 1,100 to 2,200 feet above sea level.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Alonzville, Cottonbend, Moomaw, Purdy, Shottower, Sugarhol, Tygart, and Zoar series. Alonzville, Cottonbend, Shottower, and Sugarhol soils are well drained. In addition, Shottower and Sugarhol soils are in the fine texture family. Moomaw soils have a fragipan. Purdy, Tygart, and Zoar soils are in the fine texture family. In addition, Purdy and Tygart soils have dominant chroma of 2 or less in the upper 5 inches of the argillic horizon.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well drained. The potential for surface runoff potential is low to high. Permeability is moderately slow. In undisturbed areas the depth to the top of an apparent seasonal high water table is at one and one half to three feet for two to four weeks following heavy rains or snow melt during the winter months.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas have been cleared and are used for pasture or for crop or hay production. Some areas have been developed for residential or urban uses. Other small areas have been planted to pine, or remain in their native vegetation. The overstory in most wooded areas consists of white oak, scarlet oak, red oak, eastern white pine, red maple, sugar maple, hickory, pitch pine, Virginia pine, and yellow-poplar. The understory contains mountain laurel, flowering dogwood, eastern white pine, cedar, honeysuckle, blackberry, raspberry, blueberry, sourwood, sassafras, Virginia creeper, greenbrier, and young hardwoods.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRA 128, Appalachian Ridge and Valley areas of Virginia. The soils are of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Morgantown, West Virginia
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Alleghany County, Virginia, 2003. Source of the name is a small community near where this soil was identified.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons or features recognized in this pedon are-
a). Ochric epipedon: The zone from 0 to 8 inches. (A and AB horizons)
b). Argillic horizon: the zone from 8 to 48 inches. (Bt and Btg horizons)
c). Aquic feature: Redoximorphic depletions within 30 inches of the mineral soil
surface.
d). Palic feature: The clay content of the argillic horizon does not decrease
more than 20 percent relative from the maximum clay content within 60 inches
of the mineral soil surface.
Physical and chemical analyses were run on one pedon through Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Soil Characterization Lab (S93VA-005-003)