LOCATION NORTHWAY NYEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy over loamy, isotic, mesic Typic Epiaquods
TYPICAL PEDON: Northway loamy fine sand on a 2 percent slope in a pasture, (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted.)
Ap1-- 0 to 4 inches, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) loamy fine sand, brown (10YR 5/3) dry; weak fine and medium granular structure; very friable; many fine and very fine roots; 1 percent rock fragments; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary.
Ap2-- 4 to 8 inches, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) loamy fine sand, brown (10YR 5/3) dry; weak medium and coarse subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine and medium granular; friable; many fine and very fine roots; 1 percent rock fragments; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of Ap horizons is 6 to 9 inches).
Bs-- 8 to 12 inches; mixed brown (7.5YR 4/4) and dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) fine sand; weak medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; very friable; common fine roots; few medium and common fine pores; few medium and coarse prominent yellowish red (5YR 4/6), and few medium prominent pale brown (10YR 6/3) soft masses of Fe oxides; moderately acid; clear wavy boundary. (3 to 12 inches thick).
BC1-- 12 to 20 inches, light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/3) fine sand; single grain; loose; common fine roots; many medium and coarse prominent strong brown (7.5YR 4/6), and few medium prominent strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) soft masses of Fe oxides; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary.
BC2-- 20 to 32 inches, light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/3) fine sand; single grain; loose; few fine roots; common medium and coarse prominent strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) soft masses of Fe oxides; 1 percent rock fragments; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of BC horizons is 0 to 22 inches).
2Cg-- 32 to 42 inches, gray (10YR 6/1) upper part and gray (10YR 5/1) lower part, gravelly loam; weak medium and thin platy structure; friable; many medium prominent yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) and dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) soft masses of Fe oxides (common in lower part); 20 percent rock fragments; slightly alkaline; gradual wavy boundary.
2Cg-- 42 to 72 inches, dark gray (10YR 4/1) gravelly loam; moderate medium and thin platy structure; firm; few medium distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) soft masses of Fe oxides; 25 percent rock fragments; strong effervescence, moderately alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Clinton County, New York; in the town of Peru, about 0.9 mile north-northeast of the intersection of Rt. 22 and Brand Hollow Road, and about 1500 feet west of NY Route 22; USGS Peru NY topographic quadrangle; Latitude 44 degrees, 37 minutes, 01 seconds N. and Longitude 73 degrees, 30 minutes, 08 seconds W. NAD 1927.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of the solum is 18 to 40 inches. Depth to carbonates ranges from 30 to 80 inches. Redoximorphic features consisting of concentrations of Fe/Mn oxides, or Fe and clay depletions occur within 20 inches of the mineral soil surface. Depth to bedrock is greater than 60 inches. Rock fragments range from 0 to 10 percent by volume in the solum and from 10 to 35 percent in the substratum. Reaction ranges from strongly acid to neutral in the solum and from slightly acid to moderately alkaline in the substratum.
Some pedons have an Oi or Oe horizon.
The Ap horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 2 through 4 and chroma of 2 or 3. Undisturbed A horizons have value of 2 or 3 and chroma of 1 through 3. Texture is loamy fine sand, loamy sand, fine sand or sand in the fine earth fraction.
Some pedons have a thin E horizon. It has hue of 5YR through 10YR, value of 4 through 6 and chroma of 1 through 3. Texture is loamy fine sand, loamy sand, fine sand or sand in the fine earth fraction.
The Bhs horizon, if present, has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 3 and chroma of 2 or 3. Texture is loamy fine sand, fine sand or sand in the fine earth fraction. Structure is weak subangular blocky. Consistence is friable or very friable.
The Bs horizon has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 3 through 5 and chroma of 4 through 6. It has faint to prominent redox concentrations or depletions. Texture is fine sand, loamy fine sand, or sand in the fine earth fraction. Structure is weak subangular blocky. Consistence is very friable.
The BC horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 through 6 and chroma of 2 through 4. It has faint to prominent redox concentrations or depletions. Texture is fine sand or sand in the fine earth fraction. Structure is weak subangular blocky or it is single grain. Consistence is very friable or loose.
The 2C horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 through 6 and chroma of 1 through 3. It commonly has distinct or prominent redox concentrations or depletions. Texture is loam or fine sandy loam in the fine earth fraction and less commonly silt loam. Clay content averages less than 20 percent. Structure is weak or moderate platy or it is massive. Consistence is friable or firm.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no other series in the same family.
The AuGres, Avoca, Battlefield, Pipestone, Rapson, Squamscott, and Wainola series are in related families. AuGres, Battlefield and Wainola soils are very deep sands lacking a contrasting family particle size classes, and have frigid temperature regimes. The Pipestone soils are also very deep sands. The Avoca soils have 20 percent or more clay in the 2C horizon. Rapson soils have stratified 2C horizons above 40 inches. The Squamscott soils have substrata with an average clay content ranging from 22 to 35 percent and less than 5 percent rock fragments.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Northway soils are on nearly level and gently sloping glacial lake beaches and outwash plains. Slope ranges from 0 to 8 percent. They formed in outwash sands overlying loamy till. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 30 to 36 inches, mean annual air temperature ranges from 45 to 49 degrees F, and mean frost-free season ranges from 130 to 180 days. Elevation ranges from 100 to 500 feet above sea level
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the moderately well drained Covertfall soils which are in a drainage sequence. Appleton, Covert, Massena, Pipestone, and Plainfield soils are also associated. Covert, Pipestone and Plainfield soils are very deep sands and occur on more convex slopes. The Appleton and Massena soils are loamy till soils lacking the sandy solum.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat poorly drained. The potential for surface runoff is negligible to very high. Permeability is rapid in the solum and moderate or moderately slow in the substratum.
USE AND VEGETATION: Many areas are forested, used as pasture or reverting to brush. Some areas are used for growing hay. Forested areas contain red maple, eastern white pine, yellow birch, quaking aspen and white ash.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Champlain and St. Lawrence Valleys of Northern New York. MLRA 142. This series is of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Amherst, Massachusetts
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Clinton County, New York, 1995.
REMARKS: This represents a partial update of the series to Established. Not all items were reviewed at this time. Mineralogy class is changed from mixed to Isotic. Most lab data for Spodosols in the northeast supports changing mineralogy classes from mixed to Isotic.
Diagnostic horizons and other features recognized in the typical pedon are:
1) Ochric epipedon - from 0 to 8 inches (Ap1 and Ap2
horizons).
2) Spodic horizon - from 8 to 12 inches (Bs horizon)
3) Epiaquods - redoximorphic features in the spodic
horizon within 20 inches of the mineral surface,
perched water table.
4) Redoximorphic features - accumulation of Fe oxides,
and/or reduced matrices (all horizons below the
Ap).