LOCATION ROPER NCEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, semiactive, acid, thermic Histic Humaquepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Roper muck--cultivated.
(Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Oap--0 to 8 inches; black (N 2/0), broken face and rubbed sapric material; less than 1 percent fibers rubbed; moderate medium and granular structure; very friable; many fine roots; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Oa--8 to 15 inches; black (10YR 2/1), broken face and rubbed sapric material; about 5 percent fibers unrubbed; weak medium subangular blocky structure; very friable; many fine roots and root channels; few fine pockets of clean silt grains; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Oa horizons is 8 to 16 inches.)
A--15 to 24 inches; very dark gray (10YR 3/1) mucky silt loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; many fine fibers, roots and root channels; few fine flakes of mica; extremely acid; clear wavy boundary. (4 to 10 inches thick)
Bg1--24 to 31 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) silty clay loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine roots; many fine fibers; common medium pores and root channels; common fine flakes of mica; extremely acid; clear wavy boundary.
Bg2--31 to 42 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) silt loam; common dark gray (10YR 4/1) pockets of silty clay loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine roots; common medium pores and root channels; common fine flakes of mica; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bg horizon is 15 to 35 inches)
BCg--42 to 55 inches; greenish gray (5GY 6/1) and greenish gray (5GY 5/1) silt loam; massive; friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine roots; common medium pores and root channels; common fine flakes of mica; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary. (10 to 20 inches thick)
2Cg--55 to 72 inches; 50 percent dark gray (5Y 4/1) and 50 percent greenish gray (5GY 5/1) stratified sand and loamy sand; massive; very friable; common fine flakes of mica; slightly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Washington County, North Carolina; 2 miles west of Lake Phelps; 1/4 mile west of Respess road (the Canal) and 100 feet north of Etheridge Canal in 4th cut.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Solum Thickness: 30 to more than 60 inches
Depth to Bedrock: Greater than 60 inches
Depth to Seasonal High Water Table: 0 to 12, November to May
Soil Reaction: Extremely acid to strongly acid in the control section and extremely acid to slightly alkaline below the control section and in the C horizon
Other Features: Organic suface layer 6 to 18 inches; charcoal fragments are common in the organic horizons of some pedons; few to common fine flakes of mica occur throughout the mineral portion of the soil
Oa or Oap horizon:
Color--hue 5YR to 2.5Y or is neutral, value of 2 or 3, and chroma of 0 to 4
Texture--muck (sapric material) unrubbed fiber content ranges from 2 to 15 percent and the rubbed fiber content ranges from 0 to 4 percent
Other Features:. Has weak to moderate medium and fine granular structure in undrained areas and weak or moderate medium subangular blocky structure in drained areas
A horizon:
Color--hue of 5YR to 5Y or is neutral, value of 2 to 4, and chroma of 0 to 2
Texture--silt loam, clay loam, mucky loam, mucky silt loam, silty clay loam or loam
Bg horizon:
Color--hue of 10YR to 5Y or is neutral, value of 3 to 7, and chroma of 0 to 2; or has hue of 5GY or 5G, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 1
Texture--dominantly silty clay loam, loam or silt loam; thin strata of clay loam, or silty clay are in some pedons
Redoximorphic features(if they occur)--iron masses in shades of brown, yellow, or red and iron depletions in shades of olive or gray
BCg horizon:
Color--hue of 10YR to 5Y or is neutral, value of 3 to 7, and chroma of 0 to 2; or has hue of 5GY or 5G, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 1
Texture--dominantly silty clay loam, loam or silt loam; thin strata of clay loam, or silty clay are in some pedons
Redoximorphic features(if they occur)--iron masses in shades of brown, yellow, or red and iron depletions in shades of olive or gray
2Cg or Cg horizon:
Color--hue of 10YR to 5Y or is neutral, value of 3 to 7, and chroma of 0 to 2; or has hue of 5GY or 5G, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 1
Texture--stratified silt loam, loam, sand, loamy fine sand, loamy sand, sandy clay loam, sandy loam, silty clay, or clay.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no other known series in the same family.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Landscape: Coastal Plain
Landform: Marine Terrace (on broad flats of the Pamlico surface)
Elevation: Less than 25 feet above mean sea level; elevation near the type location is about 16 feet above mean sea level
Parent Material: silty marine sediments
Mean Annual Air Temperature: 60 to 63 degrees
Mean Annual Precipitation: 48 to 54 inches
Frost Free Period: 210 to 250 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
Arapahoe soils--very poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) in coarse-loamy family on similar landscapes
Belhaven soils--very poorly drained organic soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) with organic layers 16 to 51 inches thick on similar landscapes
Cape Fear soils--very poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) in fine family on similar landscapes
Conaby soils--very poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) in coarse-loamy family with organic surface layers 8 to 16 inches thick on similar landscapes
Hyde soils--very poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) in fine-silty family on similar landscapes
Hydeland soils--very poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) in fine-silty family on similar landscapes
Pettigrew soils--very poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) in fine family with organic surface layers 8 to 16 inches thick on similar landscapes
Ponzer soils--very poorly drained organic soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) with organic layers 16 to 51 inches thick on similar landscapes
Portsmouth soils--very poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) in fine-loamy family on similar landscapes
Tomotley soils--poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) in fine-loamy family on similar landscapes
Wasda soils--very poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) in fine-loamy family with organic surface layers 8 to 16 inches thick on similar landscapes
Weeksville soils--very poorly drained soils (seasonal high water table 0 to 12 inches) in coarse-silty family on similar landscapes
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY:
Agricultural Drainage Class: Very poorly drained
Permeability: Moderately slow
USE AND VEGETATION:
Major Uses: Mostly wooded
Dominant Vegetation: Where wooded--loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), pond pine (Pinus serotina), sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua), southern baldcypress (Taxodium distichum), water oak (Quercus nigra), willow oak (Quercus phellos), and yellow- poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera). Major understory species include red maple (Acer rubrum), redbay (Persea borbonia), sweetbay magnolia (Magnolia virginiana), switchcane (Arundinaria tecta), inkberry (Ilex glabra), huckleberry (Gaylusscia spp.), and greenbrier (Smilex spp.). Where cultivated--corn, oats, soybeans, small grain, and pasture.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Distribution: Atlantic Coastal Flatwoods in North Carolina and possibly South Carolina and Virginia
Extent: Small
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Raleigh, North Carolina
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Washington County, North Carolina; 1979
REMARKS: Roper soils were previously included as a mucky phase of the Hyde series. However, Hyde soils have an umbric epipedon and do not allow a histic epipedon.
Diagnostic horizons and soil characteristics recognized in this pedon are:
Histic epipedon - the zone from the surface to a depth of 15 inches (Oap and Oa horizons)
Cambic horizon - the zone between depths of 15 to 55 inches (the Bg1, Bg2, and BCg horizons)
Aquic conditions - observed endosaturation to the surface and dominant redox depletions in the zone from 24 to 72 inches (Bg1, Bg2, BCg, 2Cg horizons)
MLRA(s): 153A, 153B
ADDITIONAL DATA: Lab data from a similar pedon as the site location is contained in A Study of Organic Soils in the Tidewater Region of North Carolina (site No. 3) by Dolman, J. D. and S. W. Buol. North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station, Tech. Bull. No. 181 December, 1976.
TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation NC0108 ROPER 0- 2 60- 63 210-250 48-54 5-25SOI-5 FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind Months Bedrock NC0108 NONE RARE 0-1.0 APPARENT NOV-MAY 60-60
SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay% -CEC- NC0108 0-15 MUCK 0-0 - 0-0 20- 50 NC0108 15-42 SIL SICL MK-SIL 0-0 100-100 18-35 6-22 NC0108 42-55 SIL SICL L 0-0 100-100 18-35 3-9 NC0108 55-72 VAR
SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salinity Permeability Shrink-Swell NC0108 0-15 3.5-5.5 20-50 0-0 0.2-6.0 LOW NC0108 15-42 3.5-5.5 3.-15 0-0 0.2-0.6 LOW NC0108 42-55 3.5-7.8 0.-2. 0-0 0.2-0.6 LOW NC0108 55-72 3.5-7.8 - - -