LOCATION PARTLOW VA
Established Series
Rev. JHE-WJE-MHC
10/2021
PARTLOW SERIES
The Partlow series consists of deep, poorly drained, moderately permeable soils that formed in local colluvial and alluvial materials derived from granite, gneiss, and schist. These soils are in depressions, on toe slopes, and along drainageways in the Southern Piedmont Plateau. Slopes are concave and range in gradient from 0 to 7 percent. Mean annual temperature is about 62 degrees F, and mean annual precipitation is about 42 inches.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, semiactive, thermic Typic Endoaquults
TYPICAL PEDON: Partlow sandy loam- on a 2 percent concave slope along a drainageway in a mixed hardwood forest. (Colors are for moist soil.)
Oi--0 to 1 inches; undecomposed and partially decomposed leaves and twigs.
A--1 to 3 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) sandy loam; moderate fine granular structure; very friable; many fine and medium roots; 5 percent angular quartz gravel; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (1 to 4 inches thick)
E--3 to 15 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) sandy loam; few fine distinct yellowish red (5YR 4/6) mottles; moderate fine granular structure; very friable; many fine and medium roots; common fine flakes of mica; 5 percent angular quartz gravel; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 15 inches thick)
Btgl--15 to 21 inches; gray (10YR 5/1) sandy loam; few medium distinct strong brown (7.5YR 5/8) mottles; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; friable; many fine roots; few faint clay films on faces of peds and clay bridges between sand grains; common fine flakes of mica; 2 percent angular quartz gravel; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Btg2--21 to 40 inches; light gray (N 7/0) and gray (10YR 6/1) sandy clay loam; few medium distinct brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) mottles; friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine roots; few faint clay films on faces of peds; common fine flakes of mica; 2 percent angular quartz gravel; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Btg3--40 to 56 inches; light gray (N 7/0) sandy clay loam; few medium distinct olive yellow (2.5Y 6/6) mottles; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few fine roots; few faint clay films on faces of peds; 3 percent angular quartz gravel; common fine flakes of mica; strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 28 to 66 inches.)
2Cg--56 to 71 inches; light gray (N 7/0) sandy loam; many medium distinct strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) and brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) mottles; massive; firm in place, friable when dug; common medium clay flows in the upper part; strongly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Spotsylvania County, Virginia; 2 1/2 miles south of Chancellor; 330 yards south of the end of VA-625.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness ranges from 40 to more than 60 inches. Depth to bedrock is more than 60 inches. Angular quartz gravel ranges from 0 to 15 percent throughout. The soil is very strongly acid or strongly acid throughout unless limed. Flakes of mica range from few to many and usually increase with depth.
The A horizon is neutral or has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 2 through 5, and chroma of 0 through 3. It is coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or loam.
The E horizon, where present, is neutral or has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 through 7, and chroma of 0 through 2. It is coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or loam.
The Bt horizon is neutral or has hue of 10YR through 5Y, value of 4 through 7 and chroma of 0 through 2. It commonly has high chroma mottles. It is sandy loam, fine sandy loam, sandy clay loam, or clay loam.
The BC horizon, where present, is neutral or has hue of 10YR through 5Y, value of 4 through 7 and chroma of 0 through 2. It is sandy loam, fine sandy loam, sandy clay loam, or clay loam.
The C horizon colors are variable and are commonly mottled in shades of gray, olive, yellow, and brown. It is sandy loam, sandy clay loam, or loam. Some pedons have stone lines in the C horizon.
COMPETING SERIES: This is the
Tomotley series in the same family. The Tomotley soils do not have angular quartz fragments in the solum.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Partlow soils are in depressions, along drainageways, and on toe slopes in the Southern Piedmont. Slopes are commonly concave and range in gradient from 0 to 7 percent. The soils formed in local colluvial and alluvial materials derived from granite, gneiss, and schist. The mean annual air temperature ranges from 59 to 66 degrees F, and mean annual precipitation ranges from 38 to 46 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Abell,
Appling,
Cecil,
Colfax,
Louisburg,
Pacolet, and
Wedowee soils. The Appling, Cecil, Louisburg, Pacolet, and Wedowee soils are on higher landscape positions and do not have gray matrix colors. The Abell and Colfax soils are on similar landscape positions and do not have gray matrix colors throughout the solum.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Poorly drained. Runoff is slow to medium. Permeability is moderate.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most of the Partlow soils are in mixed pine and hardwood forest. Native vegetation was hardwood forest.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Partlow soils are moderately extensive. They occur on the southern Piedmont Province of Virginia, and possibly North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Raleigh, North Carolina
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Spotsylvania County, Virginia, 1980. The name is from the town of Partlow in Spotsylvania County.
REMARKS: Data from 3 pedons in Spotsylvania County by Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University supports the classification. These soils were included with the Worsham soils in the past. They were correlated as a fine-loamy Variant of the Myatt series (siliceous) in Hanover County, Virginia. The soil horizon depths were revised on 10/2021 to ensure the description began at the soil surface.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
1. Ochric epipedon-the zone from 0 to 15 inches (O, A and E horizons)
2. Argillic horizon-the zone from 15 to 56 inches (Btg horizons)
3. Gleyed feature-matrix chroma of 2 or less in the subsoil
SIR = VA0153
MLRA = 136
REVISED = 1/23/90
TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation
VA0153 PARTLOW 0- 7 59- 66 180-220 38- 46 300- 900
SOI-5 FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind Months Bedrock Hardness
VA0153 NONE COMMON 0-1.0 APPARENT NOV-MAY 60-60
SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay% -CEC-
VA0153 0-15 L 0- 0 95-100 10-25 -
VA0153 0-15 COSL 0- 0 80- 95 5-15 -
VA0153 0-15 SL FSL 0- 0 85-100 5-18 -
VA0153 15-56 SCL CL SL 0- 0 85-100 18-35 -
VA0153 56-71 SL L SCL 0- 0 85-100 5-35 -
SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salin Permeab Shnk-Swll
VA0153 0-15 4.5- 5.5 .5-2. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW
VA0153 0-15 4.5- 5.5 .5-2. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW
VA0153 0-15 4.5- 5.5 .5-2. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW
VA0153 15-56 4.5- 5.5 0.-.5 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 LOW
VA0153 56-71 4.5- 5.5 0.-.5 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.