LOCATION RIDGEPORT          IA+MN
Established Series
Rev. RGJ-DBO-TWN
03/2007

RIDGEPORT SERIES


The Ridgeport series consists of somewhat excessively drained soils formed in 50 to 100 centimeters of moderately coarse textured alluvium and the underlying calcareous sandy and gravelly sediments. These soils are on nearly level to convex slopes on treads and risers on stream terraces. Slope ranges from 0 to 14 percent. Mean annual air temperature is about 7 degrees C. Mean annual precipitation is about 775 millimeters.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Hapludolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Ridgeport fine sandy loam, on a 1 percent slope, in a bromegrass-alfalfa meadow. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

Ap--0 to 18 centimeters; very dark brown (10YR 2/2) fine sandy loam; weak fine granular structure; very friable; many fine roots; black (10YR 2/1) coats on faces of peds; neutral; gradual smooth boundary.

A--18 to 33 centimeters; very dark brown (10YR 2/2) to very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) fine sandy loam; weak fine granular structure; very friable; many fine roots decreasing with depth to common fine roots; black (10YR 2/1) and very dark brown (10YR 2/2) coats on faces of peds; neutral; gradual smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the A horizon is 25 to 49 centimeters.)

BA--33 to 48 centimeters; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) fine sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine granular; very friable; common fine roots; very dark brown (10YR 2/2) coats on faces of peds; common medium distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) redoximorphic concentrations; neutral; gradual smooth boundary. (0 to 16 centimeters thick)

Bw1--48 to 61 centimeters; brown (10YR 4/3) sandy loam; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine granular; very friable; common fine roots; few very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) coats in old root channels; dark brown (10YR 3/3) coats on faces of peds; neutral; gradual smooth boundary.

Bw2--61 to 91 centimeters; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) sandy loam; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine granular; very friable; common fine roots; dark brown (10YR 3/3) coats on faces of peds; neutral; gradual smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bw horizon is 20 to 50 centimeters.)

2BC--91 to 99 centimeters; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) gravelly sandy loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure parting to single grain; very friable; dark brown (10YR 3/3) coats on faces of peds; neutral; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 16 centimeters thick)

2C--99 to 152 centimeters; brown (7.5YR 4/4) to dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) sand and gravel; single grain; loose; few cobbles, 2 to 5 centimeters in diameter; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Major Land Resource Area (MLRA) 103-Central Iowa and Minnesota Till Prairies, Palo Alto County, Iowa subset; about 1 mile northeast of the town of Graettinger; located about 2,600 feet north and 900 feet east of the southwest corner of section 3, T. 97 N., R. 33 W.; USGS Ingham Lake topographic quadrangle; lat. 43 degrees 14 minutes 57 seconds N. and long. 94 degrees 44 minutes 07 seconds W., NAD 83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Thickness of the mollic epipedon--25 to 49 centimeters
Depth to carbonates--50 to 120 centimeters
Depth to sandy and gravelly sediments--50 to 100 centimeters
Clay content in the particle-size control section (weighted average)--10 to 18 percent
Sand content in the particle-size control section (weighted average)--60 to 80 percent, 1 to 5 percent coarse sand and 0 to 1 percent very coarse sand

Ap or A horizon:
Hue--10YR
Value--2 or 3
Chroma--1 or 2
Texture--loam, sandy loam, or fine sandy loam
Clay content--10 to 25 percent
Sand content--40 to 60 percent
Rock fragment content--0 percent
Reaction--moderately acid to neutral

BA horizon (when present):
Hue--7.5YR or 10YR
Value--3 or 4
Chroma--2 to 4
Texture--sandy loam or fine sandy loam
Clay content--10 to 18 percent
Sand content--60 to 75 percent
Rock fragment content--0 to 15 percent
Reaction--moderately acid to neutral

Bw horizon:
Hue--7.5YR or 10YR
Value--3 to 5
Chroma--3 or 4
Texture--sandy loam or fine sandy loam
Clay content--10 to 18 percent
Sand content--60 to 75 percent
Rock fragment content--0 to 15 percent
Reaction--moderately acid to neutral

2BC horizon (when present):
Hue--7.5YR or 10YR
Value--4 or 5
Chroma--4 to 6
Texture--loamy sand, gravelly loamy sand or gravelly sandy loam
Clay content--2 to 10 percent
Sand content--70 to 85 percent
Rock fragment content--5 to 35 percent
Reaction--neutral to moderately alkaline

2C horizon:
Hue--7.5YR or 10YR
Value--4 or 5
Chroma--3 to 6
Texture--sand, gravelly sand or gravelly loamy sand
Clay content--1 to 10 percent
Sand content--85 to 95 percent
Rock fragment content--5 to 35 percent
Reaction--slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Augusta Lake, Aureola, Becker, Bertram, Bolan, Dickinson, Elrick, Etter, Filley, Flagler, Gardencity, Olin, Roine, Wadenill, and Zenor series.
Augusta Lake--have a clay content of 10 to 27 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Aureola--have a rock fragment content of less than 5 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Becker--have mollic epipedons more than 49 centimeters thick
Bertram--have a lithic contact with limestone within a depth of 100 centimeters
Bolan--do not have carbonates within a depth of 120 centimeters
Dickinson--have a rock fragment content of less than 5 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Etter--have a sand content that averages 15 to 50 percent in the particle-size control section
Filley--have a rock fragment content of less than 5 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Flagler--do not have carbonates within a depth of 180 centimeters
Gardencity--have a sand content that averages 15 to 50 percent in the particle-size control section
Olin--have a clay content of 18 to 27 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Roine--have a clay content of 10 to 33 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Wadenill--have a sand content of less than 80 percent in the lower third of the series control section
Zenor--have a clay content of 14 to 18 percent and a sand content of less than 60 percent in the upper third of the series control section and have a rock fragment content of 4 to 15 percent in the upper third of the series control section

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material--50 to 100 centimeters of moderately coarse textured alluvium and the underlying calcareous sandy and gravelly sediments
Landform--nearly level to convex slopes on treads and risers on stream terraces
Slope--0 to 14 percent
Elevation--200 to 470 meters above sea level
Mean annual air temperature--4 to 10 degrees C
Mean annual precipitation--585 to 965 millimeters
Frost-free period--135 to 205 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Biscay, Cylinder, Estherville and Linder soils.
Biscay--are at lower landscape positions on toe slopes and are frequently saturated at the soil surface during the wettest periods of normal years
Cylinder--are at lower landscape positions and have a frequently saturated zone at a depth of 0.3 meter during the wettest periods of normal years
Estherville--are on landscape positions similar to those of the Ridgeport soils and have a sand content of more than 75 percent in the upper half of the series control section
Linder--are at slightly lower landscape positions and have a frequently saturated zone at a depth of 0.3 meter during the wettest periods of normal years

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class--somewhat excessively drained--a frequently saturated zone does not occur within a depth of 1.8 meters during the wettest periods of normal years
Saturated hydraulic conductivity--10.00 to 100.00 micrometers per second in the moderately coarse textured alluvium and 100.00 to 705.00 micrometers per second in the underlying sandy and gravelly sediments
Surface runoff potential--negligible to low

USE AND VEGETATION:
Most areas are cultivated or pastured. The principal crops are corn, soybeans, small grains, and legume and grass hay. The native vegetation is big bluestem, little bluestem, switchgrass, and other grasses of the tall grass prairie.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Physiographic Division--Interior Plains
Physiographic Province--Central Lowland
Physiographic Section--Western lake section, Wisconsin driftless section, and Dissected till plains
MLRAs--Wisconsin and Minnesota Thin Loess and Till (90),
Central Minnesota Sandy Outwash (91A),
Central Iowa and Minnesota Till Prairies (103),
Eastern Iowa and Minnesota Till Prairies (104), and
Northern Mississippi Valley Loess Hills (105)
LRR K and LRR M; central, north-central, and northwestern Iowa, and southern Minnesota
Extent--moderate

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: St. Paul, Minnesota

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Boone County, Iowa, 1977.

REMARKS:
Particle-size control section--the zone from a depth of 25 to 100 centimeters;
series control section--the zone from the surface to a depth of 150 centimeters.

Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon include:
mollic epipedon--the zone from the surface to a depth of 48 centimeters (Ap, A, and BA horizons);
cambic horizon--the zone from a depth of 48 to 99 centimeters (Bw1, Bw2, and 2BC horizons);
udic moisture regime.

Cation-exchange activity class is inferred from lab data from similar soils in the surrounding area.

Taxonomy version--Keys to Soil Taxonomy, tenth edition, 2006.


National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.