LOCATION TALMOON            MN
Established Series
Rev. PRCN-DMH-ROP
3/98

TALMOON SERIES


The Talmoon series consists of very deep, very poorly drained and poorly drained soils formed in loamy glaciofluvial materials and the underlying loamy till. They are in shallow depressions, swales and nearly level areas on till-floored lake plains and moraines. These soils have moderate permeability in the upper part and moderately slow permeability in the lower part. Slopes range from 0 to 2 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 24 inches. Mean annual air temperature is about 40 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, frigid Mollic Endoaqualfs

TYPICAL PEDON: Talmoon silt loam in a nearly level area under lowland hardwood forest. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

A--0 to 6 inches; very dark gray (10YR 3/1) silt loam; gray (10YR 5/1) dry; weak and moderate very fine and fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; many medium and fine roots; moderately acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (3 to 10 inches thick)

Eg1--6 to 9 inches; gray (10YR 5/1) and dark gray (10YR 4/1) silt loam; weak thick platy structure parting to weak fine subangular blocky; very friable; many medium and fine roots; few medium prominent light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) Fe concentrations; slightly acid; abrupt wavy boundary.

Eg2--9 to 16 inches; grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) and light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) very fine sandy loam; weak medium platy structure parting to weak fine subangular blocky; very friable; many fine and very fine roots; common medium distinct light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) and few fine distinct light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) Fe concentrations; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of E horizons is 4 to 12 inches.)

Btg1--16 to 33 inches; olive gray (5Y 5/2) sandy clay loam; moderate medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; common fine and very fine roots; many faint olive gray (5Y 4/2) clay films on faces of peds; many medium prominent yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) Fe concentrations; about 5 percent gravel, about 2 percent soft shale fragments; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary.

2Btg2--33 to 42 inches; olive gray (5Y 5/2) loam; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; few very fine roots; few distinct olive gray (5Y 4/2) clay films on faces of peds; common medium prominent yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) and few medium prominent light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) Fe concentrations; about 5 percent gravel, about 2 percent soft gray shale fragments; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Btg horizons is 6 to 30 inches)

2Cg--42 to 60 inches; light olive gray (5Y 6/2) and olive gray (5Y 5/2) loam; massive; friable; common medium prominent light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) Fe concentrations; about 5 percent gravel, about 2 percent soft gray shale fragments; slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Itasca County, Minnesota; about 7 miles north and 2 miles west of Deer River; about 2500 feet north and 250 feet west of the southeast corner of sec. 21, T. 146 N., R. 25 W.; USGS Quadrangle Deer River NE quadrangle; lat. 47 degrees 26 minutes 52 seconds N. and long. 93 degrees 50 minutes 20 seconds W., NAD27.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The depth to free calcium carbonate typically ranges from 18 to 44 inches, but it is greater than 60 inches in some pedons. Rock fragments are 1 to 10 percent by volume in the 2B and 2C horizons.

Some pedons have an Oa horizon up to 7 inches thick. It has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 2, chroma of 1 or is neutral.

The A horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 2 or 3, and chroma of 1 or 2, or is neutral with value of 2. It is silt loam, loam, very fine sandy loam, fine sandy loam, sandy loam, or their mucky modifiers. Reaction is strongly acid to neutral. Some pedons have an Ap horizon that has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 2 or 3 (5.5 or less dry), and chroma of 1 or 2. Pedons with the thinner A horizons typically have an O horizon that is muck.

The Eg horizon has hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 1 or 2. It is fine sandy loam, sandy loam, very fine sandy loam, loam, or silt loam. It is neutral to strongly acid.

Some pedons have a thin BE horizon.

The Btg and 2Btg horizons have hue of 2.5Y or 5Y, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 1 or 2. It is clay loam, sandy clay loam, or loam. It is moderately acid to moderately alkaline. Clay content is 18 to 35 percent and sand content is 25 to 55 percent.

The 2Cg or 2Bkg (where present) horizons have hue of 2.5Y or 5Y, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 1 or 2. Texture typically is loam, sandy clay loam, or clay loam, but subhorizons of sandy loam, silt loam, or silty clay loam are common. It is slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline. Clay content ranges from 15 to 30 percent and sand content from 25 to 55 percent.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Egglake, Jevne, and Willosippi Series. The Egglake soils have rock fragments in the upper part of the control secttion. The Willosippi soils do not have gravel in the argillic horizon. Jevne soils have stratified textures in the lower one-third of the series control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: These soils are in shallow depressions and swales and nearly level areas on till-floored lake plains and moraines of Late Wisconsinan Age. Slopes are 0 to 2 percent. These soils formed in loamy glaciofluvial material and underlying loamy till. Mean annual air temperature ranges from 36 to 45 degrees F. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 22 to 30 inches. Frost-free days range from 88 to 150. Elevation above sea level ranges from 800 to 1600 feet.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Alstad, Beltrami, Bluffton, Cathro, Nebish, Shooker, Stuntz, and Warba soils. Alstad, Beltrami, Nebish, and Warba soils are all on higher, better drained landscape positions. The somewhat poorly drained Stuntz soils are on slightly higher landscape positions. Very poorly drained Bluffton soils are in depressions. Cathro soils formed in organic materials in depressions. The poorly drained Shooker soils are on nearly level flats adjacent to Talmoon soils.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Very poorly drained and poorly drained. Surface runoff is low or very low. Permeability is moderate in the upper part and moderately slow in the lower part. The apparent seasonal water table is at +1 to 0.5 foot in the very poorly drained phase and 0.5 to 1.5 feet in the poorly drained phase at some time during November to June in most years.

USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas grow native vegetation of lowland hardwoods or aspen or a cover of sedges and willows. Some areas are pastured. Significant areas of Talmoon, poorly drained are used to grow cultivated crops.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: North-central and east-central Minnesota. These soils are of moderate extent.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Itasca County, Minnesota, 1982.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: ochric epipedon - the zone from the surface to 16 inches (A and Eg horizon); albic horizon - the zone from 6 to 16 inches (Eg horizon); argillic horizon - the zone from 16 to 33 inches (Btg horizons); aquic conditions- low chroma in argillic horizon; mollic subgroup - the A horizon qualifies for mollic epipedon except for thickness. This series was formerly classified as a Mollic Ochraqualfs.

ADDITIONAL DATA: Soil Interpretation Record numbers: MN0592 and MN0380, depressional.


National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.