LOCATION SANTANONI NYEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy-skeletal, isotic Typic Humicryods
TYPICAL PEDON: Santanoni gravelly loamy sand, on a 55 percent slope in a wooded area. (Colors are for moist soils.)
Oe-- 0 to 2 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 2.5/2) moderately decomposed (hemic) plant material comprised of sphagnum moss, conifer needles, and roots; weak fine and medium granular structure; very friable; many very fine and fine, and common medium roots; extremely acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the O horizons is 2 to 20 inches.)
E-- 2 to 3 inches; gray (5YR 5/1) gravelly loamy sand; weak fine and medium granular structure; very friable; many fine and very fine, and few medium roots; 20 percent gravel; extremely acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (1 to 5 inches thick.)
Bhs1-- 3 to 7 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 2.5/2) stony loamy coarse sand; moderate fine and medium granular structure; very friable; strongly smeary; many very fine and fine and common medium roots; 13 percent gravel, 10 percent cobbles, and 5 percent stones; extremely acid; clear wavy boundary.
Bhs2-- 7 to 14 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) very gravelly loamy coarse sand; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; very friable; moderately smeary; common very fine and fine and few medium roots; 30 percent gravel, 10 percent cobbles, and 5 percent stones; extremely acid; gradual wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bhs horizons is 4 to 20 inches.)
Bs-- 14 to 31 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) very gravelly loamy coarse sand; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few very fine and fine roots; 39 percent gravel, 5 percent cobbles, and 15 percent stones; very strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary. (0 to 20 inches thick.)
BC-- 31 to 39 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) very stony coarse sand; weak medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; friable; 20 percent gravel, 10 percent cobbles, and 5 percent stones; very strongly acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
R-- 39 inches; Whiteface anorthosite bedrock.
TYPE LOCATION: Essex County, New York; Town of Wilmington, 2050 feet east of apex of the lower hairpin curve on Whiteface Memorial Highway toward the upper hairpin curve, and 160 feet south up a landslide scar, on west side of slide scar. USGS Lake Placid, NY topographic quadrangle; Latitude 44 degrees, 22 minutes, 07.5 seconds N., and Longitude 73 degrees, 54 minutes, 19.3 seconds W., NAD 1983.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness and depth to bedrock ranges from 20 to 40 inches from the mineral surface. Rock fragments range from 15 to 50 percent in the upper part of the mineral solum and from 35 to 70 percent in the lower part of the mineral solum, with 35 or greater percent weighted average by volume between a depth of 10 inches and the bedrock contact. Stones and boulders cover from .01 to 15 percent of the surface. Reaction ranges from ultra acid to very strongly acid in the surface and subsurface horizons, and from extremely acid to strongly acid in the subsoil.
The O horizons have hue of 10R to 10YR or are neutral, with value and chroma of 3 or less. It is fibric, hemic, or sapric material. It has weak or moderate, fine or medium granular or subangular blocky structure. Consistence is very friable or friable.
The E horizon has hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, value of 3 to 6, and chroma of 1 or 2. It is loamy fine sand, loamy sand, or loamy coarse sand in the fine-earth fraction. It has weak fine or medium granular or subangular blocky structure. Consistence is very friable or friable.
The Bhs horizons, and Bh horizons (where present), have hue of 10R to 7.5YR, with value and chroma of 3 or less. The Bhs and Bh horizons are loamy fine sand, loamy sand, or loamy coarse sand in the fine earth fraction. Thin horizons of sandy loam or coarse sandy loam are present in some pedons. Ortstein is present in less than 50 percent of some horizons. They have weak or moderate, fine, medium, or coarse granular or subangular blocky structure. Some pedons have weak platy structure. Consistence is very friable to firm. It is moderately or strongly smeary.
The Bs horizon has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 3 to 5, and chroma of 3 or 4. It is loamy fine sand, loamy sand, loamy coarse sand, sand or coarse sand in the fine-earth fraction. They have weak or moderate, fine, medium, or coarse subangular blocky structure, or are single grain. Consistence is very friable, friable, or loose.
The BC horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 3 to 5, and chroma of 3 to 6. It is loamy fine sand, loamy sand, loamy coarse sand, sand, or coarse sand in the fine-earth fraction. They have weak or moderate, fine, medium, or coarse subangular blocky structure, or are single grain. Consistence is very friable, friable, or loose.
Bedrock is anorthositic gneiss (metamorphosed anorthosite).
COMPETING SERIES: There are currently no competing series.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Santanoni soils are on very steep backslopes of mountains and ridges at elevations greater than 3000 feet. Slope ranges from 35 to 80 percent. The soils formed in sandy colluvium derived from till, with some sandy residual material, overlying anorthositic gneiss bedrock. The mean annual temperature ranges from 30 to 43 degrees F., and the mean annual precipitation ranges from 45 to 80 inches. The frost-free season ranges from 80 to 110 days. Elevations range from 3000 to 5400 feet above mean sea level.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Couchsachraga, Esther, Ricker, Skylight, and Wallface series. Couchsachraga, and Skylight soils occupy similar landscape positions as Santanoni soils, are not skeletal, and are very shallow and shallow to bedrock respectively. Ricker soils are organic and are very shallow or shallow to bedrock. Esther and Wallface soils occupy less sloping, more stable parts of the landscape, are coarse-loamy, and are very deep and moderately deep to bedrock respectively.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Somewhat excessively and excessively drained. The potential for surface runoff is high. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is high or very high in the mineral soil.
USE AND VEGETATION: Nearly all of these areas are forested and used for wildlife habitat and recreation. The native coniferous vegetation includes red spruce and balsam fir. Hardwoods include yellow birch, paper birch, gray birch, mountain ash, and striped maple.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The Adirondack Mountains of northern New York, and possibly northern New England. MLRA 143. The series is of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Amherst, Massachusetts.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Essex County, New York, 2007.
REMARKS: Some pedons have enough andic soil properties to key out as Andic Humicryods, and some pedons lacking E horizons will key out as Pachic or Typic Fulvicryands. These are similar soils in use and management to the Typic Humicryods concept.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
a. Albic horizon - the zone from 2 to 3 inches.
b. Spodic horizon - the zone from 3 to 31 inches (Bhs, and Bs horizons).
c. Humic Great Group - has 6 percent organic carbon throughout a layer 4 inches or more thick within the spodic horizon.
ADDITIONAL DATA: NSSL laboratory data is available for the following pedons: S93-NY-031-002, and S94- NY-031-003.