LOCATION SYLCO TN+NC VAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, active, mesic Typic Dystrudepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Sylco channery silt loam forested. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
A1--0 to 1 inch, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) channery silt loam; weak fine granular structure; very friable; few fragments of phyllite up to 10 inches long on surface; many roots; strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 3 inches thick)
A2--1 to 5 inches, brown (10YR 4/3) channery silt loam; weak medium granular structure; very friable; many roots; about 20 percent by volume of flat fragments of phyllite up to 3 inches long; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (3 to 7 inches thick)
Bw1--5 to 12 inches, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) channery silt loam, weak medium and fine subangular blocky structure; friable; many roots; about 20 percent by volume of thin, flat fragments of phyllite ranging from less than 1 to about 4 inches long; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary.
Bw2--12 to 24 inches, strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) channery silt loam; weak medium and fine subangular blocky structure; friable; many roots; about 30 percent by volume of thin, flat fragments of phyllite ranging from less than 1 to about 4 inches long; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary.
Bw3--24 to 33 inches, strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) very channery silt loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common roots; about 60 percent by volume of flat fragments of phyllite up to 6 inches long; strongly acid. (Thickness of the Bw horizon is 10 to 35 inches)
R--33 inches, hard phyllite rock.
TYPE LOCATION: Monroe County, Tennessee; from Indian Boundary 2 miles northeast on Citico Creek road; 0.5 mile southeast of Bee House Gap; 50 yards east of gravel road; along old logging road.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to slate, metasandstone, or phyllite bedrock that is not fractured enough to contain some fine material ranges from 20 to 40 inches. Amount of thin, flat fragments of phyllite, metasandstone, or of slate ranges from about 10 to 50 percent in the A horizon, 15 to 45 percent in the B horizon, and from 40 to 70 percent in the C horizon. The average content of these fragments between 10 inches and bedrock ranges from 35 to 50 percent. Fragments are channers, flagstones, or stones. The amount of weatherable minerals, mainly chlorite, sericite, and hydrobiotite, exceeds 30 percent in the silt and sand fractions. The soil is extremely acid to strongly acid. Transition horizons have colors and textures similar to adjacent horizons.
The A1 horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 3 or 4, and chroma of 2 to 4. The A2 horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 3 or 4. The A horizon is silt loam or loam in the fine earth fraction.
The Bw horizon has hue of 7.5 or 10YR, value of 3 to 5, and chroma of 3 to 8. It is silt loam, loam, or silty clay loam in the fine earth fraction.
The C horizon, where present, has colors and texture similar to the Bw horizon, but contains more rock fragments.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Berks, Blasdell, Brownstown, Brownsville, Cadosia, Calvin, Centralpark (T), Deadline, Highsplint, Jubin, Judyville, Keyesville (T), Lippitt, Manlius, Matewan (T), Nailkeg, Peaks, Warwick, and Wyoming series. Berks, Brownstown, Calvin, Judyville, Manlius, and Matewan soils formed from sedimentary rocks such as shale, siltstone, and sandstone and contain fragments of these rocks. Blasdell, Cadosia, Centralpark, Highspint, Jubin, Warwick, and Wyoming soils Have bedrock at depths greater than 60 inches. Brownsville and Deadline soils have bedrock at depths of 40 to 60 inches. Keyesville and Lippett soils have a paralithic contact at depths of 20 to 40 inches. Nailkeg and Peaks soils formed from high grade metamorphic rocks and contain fragments of those rocks.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Sylco soils are on mountain summits and side slopes in the Blue Ridge (MLRA 130). Elevations generally range from about 1,800 to 4,500 feet. Slope gradients range from 7 to 95 percent, but most areas as are 35 to 95 percent. The soil formed in residuum that is affected by soil creep in the upper part, and weathered from metasedimentary rocks such as metasandstone, slate and phyllite. Estimated mean annual temperature at the type location is about 54 degrees F., and mean annual precipitation about 52 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Brookshire, Cataska, Citico, Jeffrey, Santeetlah, Soco, Spivey, and Stecoah soils. Brookshire, Citico, Santeetlah, and Spivey soils formed in colluvium on toe slopes, fans, and benches in coves, and are deeper than 40 inches to bedrock. Cataska soils formed in residuum and have paralithic contact at less than 20 inches. Jeffrey, Soco, and Stecoah soils formed in residuum and contain less than 35 percent rock fragments.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat excessively drained; medium surface runoff; moderately rapid permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Practically all of the acreage is in forest consisting chiefly of chestnut oak, scarlet oak, white oak, Virginia pine, pitch pine, maple, and white pine.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The Blue Ridge (MLRA 130) of Tennessee, North Carolina and Virginia. The series is of large extent. An estimated 15,000 acres are in Monroe County, Tennessee.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Morgantown, West Virginia
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Monroe County, Tennessee; 1974.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - 0 to 5 inches (A1 and A2 horizons)
Cambic horizon - 5 to 24 inches (Bw1, Bw2, and Bw3 horizons)
Lithic contact - the occurrence of hard bedrock at 33 inches
Loamy-skeletal particle-size class - weighted average content of more than 35 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section (10 to 33 inches).
In past mapping in Tennessee, Sylco soils have been included in broad mapping units of Ramsey and Ranger soils.