LOCATION PENNSUCO                FL

Established Series
Rev. SHM-MFV-AMS
12/2025

PENNSUCO SERIES

MLRA(s): 156A
Depth Class: Deep
Drainage Class: Very poorly poorly
Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity: Moderately high to high in the limnic material and negligible in the rock material
Index Surface Runoff: High
Parent Material: calcareous silty marl deposits from fresh water over oolitic limestone bedrock
Slope: 0 to 1 percent
Elevation: 0 to 1.2 meter above mean sea level.
Mean Annual Air Temperature: 24degrees C (75 degrees F)
Mean Annual Precipitation: 1345 millimeters (53 inches)

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-silty, carbonatic, isohyperthermic Typic Fluvaquents

TYPICAL PEDON: Pennsuco marly silt loam on a mangrove swamp. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

Lma1--0 to 20 centimeters (0 to 8 inches); dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) marly silt loam, light brownish gray (10YR 6/2), dry; moderate fine granular structure; very friable, soft, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; many fine roots throughout; strong effervescence with 1N HCl; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 25 centimeters thick)

Lma2--20 to 68 centimeters (8 to 27 inches); grayish brown (10YR 5/2) marly silt; moderate medium angular blocky structure; very friable, soft, slightly sticky, nonplastic; many fine and common medium roots throughout; about 5 percent fine distinct spherical light gray (10YR 7/2) iron depletions throughout; strong effervescence with 1N HCl; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); gradual smooth boundary.

Lma3--68 to 91 centimeters (27 to 36 inches); dark gray (10YR 4/1) marly silt; moderate medium angular blocky structure; very friable, soft, slightly sticky, nonplastic; common fine and medium roots throughout; about 5 percent fine distinct spherical light gray (10YR 7/2) iron depletions throughout; strong effervescence with 1N HCl; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); gradual smooth boundary.

Lma4--91 to 112 centimeters (36 to 45 inches); dark gray (10YR 4/1) marly silt loam; massive; very friable, soft, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine and few medium roots throughout; about 5 percent fine distinct spherical light gray (10YR 7/2) iron depletions throughout; strong effervescence with 1N HC l; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Lma horizons is 100 to 150 centimeters)

2R--112 centimeters (44 inches); weakly to strongly cemented oolitic limestone bedrock; solution holes up to 100 centimeters or more deep can be filled with sandy and/or loamy material.

TYPE LOCATION: Miami-Dade County, Florida; USGS topographic quadrangle: Arsenicker Keys, FL
Latitude-- 25.2881944 N
Longitude-- -80.4450833 W
Datum--WGS84


RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Solum thickness: 100 to 150 centimeters
Depth of ochric epipedon: 2 to 25 centimeters
Depth to limestone bedrock: 100 to 150 centimeters
Calcium carbonate equivalence: 40 to 80 percent or more
EC (mmhos/cm): 4 to 32 or more
Sodium Absorption Ratio: 5 to 15 percent or more
Exchangeable Sodium Percent: 0 to 13 percent
Thin laminations or varving are evident in many pedons.

Particle-size control section (weighted averages):
Clay content: 5 to 34 percent
Carbonate Clay content: 4 to 25 percent
Silt content: 70 to 95 percent

Oa horizon, where present:
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR, 10YR, or Neutral
Value: 2 to 4
Chroma: 1 or 2
Texture: muck
von Post: H7 to H9
Reaction: neutral to moderately alkaline (pH 6.6 to 8.4)
EC (mmhos/cm): 0 to 4
Exchangeable Sodium Percent: 0 to 5 percent
Sodium Absorption Ratio: 0 to 5 percent
The Oa horizon is less than 18 centimeters (7 inches) thick.

Lma horizon(s):
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 4 to 7 moist, 5 to 8 dry
Chroma: 1 to 4
Texture: marly silt loam, marly silt, or marly silty clay loam
Redoximorphic features: depletions or concentrations, 0 to 20 percent, and fine or medium in size

2AC horizon, where present:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 2 to 6 moist, 3 to 6 dry
Chroma: 1 to 4
Texture: fine sand, sand, loamy fine sand, loamy sand, fine sandy loam, sandy loam, or sandy clay loam
Redoximorphic features: depletions or concentrations, 0 to 20 percent, and fine or medium in size

2R horizon: weakly to strongly cemented oolitic limestone bedrock; solution holes up to 100 centimeters or more deep can be filled with sandy and/or loamy material.

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Lignumvitae and Perrine series.
Lignumvitae soils have limestone bedrock at depths less than 100 centimeters, are subjected to flooding by tides, storm surges, and hurricanes, and occur in low broad tidal flats.
Perrine soils have bedrock at depths less than 100 centimeters and occur on similar landform positions.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: calcareous silty marl sediments from fresh water over oolithic limestone bedrock
Landscape: Lower Coastal Plain
Landform(s): freshwater marshes, swamps, and low broad coastal flats on marine terrace
Mean annual temperature: 23 to 27 degrees C (73 to 81 degrees F)
Mean annual precipitation: 940 to 1570 millimeters (37 to 62 inches)
Frost-free period: 365 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Biscayne, Dade, and Perrine series.
Biscayne soils: have bedrock between 25 and 50 centimeters and are on similar landform positions
Dade soils: have a sandy particle-sized control section, have weakly expressed spodic horizons, have bedrock at depths less than 100 centimeters, are better drained, and occur on slightly higher landform positions.
Perrine soils: have bedrock at depths less than 100 centimeters and are on similar landform positions.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class: very poorly drained
Saturated hydraulic conductivity (KSAT): moderately high to high
Runoff: moderately high to high
Depth to seasonal high-water table: 0 to 46 centimeters (0 to 18 inches)
Ponding frequency and duration: in natural areas, frequent with duration of very long, depth of 0 to 61 centimeters (0 to 24 inches)
Hydric Indicators: F10 Marl

USE AND VEGETATION:
Major uses: wildlife habitat, water quality, inland areas have been drained for truck crops and ornamental nursey stock.
Dominant vegetation: in undrained areas consists of sawgrass, reeds, sedges, grasses, and scattered cabbage palm.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
General area: Florida Everglades and associated areas
Land Resource Region: U - Florida Subtropical Fruit, Truck Crop, and Range Region
Major Land Resource Area: 156A
Extent: Moderate

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Auburn, Alabama

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Broward County, Florida, 1981.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features in this pedon:
-Particle-size control section: 25 to 100 centimeters
-Limnic soil material: 20 to 68 centimeters (Lma2 horizon)
-Lithic contact 112 centimeters (2R horizon)
-Calcium carbonate equivalence of greater than 70 percent (0 to 112 centimeters) throughout.
-Aquic conditions: Endosaturation - 0 to 112 centimeters (0 to 44 inches)


Pennsuco soils will be limited to fresh water areas with the change in classification to isohyperthermic, Lignumvitae will be with mapped marine water in the tidal zone.

ADDITIONAL DATA:
Laboratory data is available on the National Soil Survey website at: http://ncsslabdatamart.sc.egov.usda.gov/querypage.aspx

OSD User Site ID: S1985FL025005

OSD User Pedon ID: S1985FL025005

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.