LOCATION WACHUSETT AK
Established Series
IRD. JDP/NDP/SCD
02/2022
WACHUSETT SERIES
Landscape--hills and mountains
Landform--hillslopes and mountain slopes
Slope--5 to 80 percent
Parent material--organic material over till over residuum
Mean annual precipitation--about 2600 mm
Mean annual air temperature--about 6 degrees C
Depth class--moderately deep
Drainage class--moderately well drained
Soil moisture regime--udic
Soil temperature regime--cryic
Soil moisture subclass--aquic
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive Folistic Humicryods
TYPICAL PEDON: Wachusett silt loam, forested, on a hillslope of 20 percent at an elevation of 65 m (When described on July 30, 2014, the soil was moist from the surface to a depth of 60 cm and wet from a depth of 60 to 85 cm.)
Oe--0 to 23 cm; moderately decomposed plant material; extremely acid (pH 3.9); clear wavy boundary
Oa--23 to 34 cm; highly decomposed plant material; extremely acid (pH 4.1); abrupt wavy boundary
E--34 to 41 cm; silt loam, gray (2.5Y 6/1) dry, dark gray (2.5Y 4/1) moist; 2 percent fine brown (7.5YR 4/4) mottles; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots throughout; common very fine and fine irregular pores; very strongly acid (pH 4.5); clear wavy boundary
Bhs--41 to 60 cm; channery silt loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) dry, 70 percent very dark brown (7.5YR 2.5/3) and 30 percent strong brown (7.5YR 5/8) moist; weak medium granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots throughout; common very fine and fine irregular pores; 17 percent subrounded channers; very strongly acid (pH 4.5); gradual wavy boundary
BC--60 to 80 cm; channery loam, brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) dry, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/6) moist; weak fine and medium granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots throughout; common very fine and fine irregular pores; 5 percent medium masses of oxidized iron, strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) moist, and 10 percent fine masses of oxidized iron, dark red (2.5YR 3/6) moist; 25 percent subrounded channers; strongly acid (pH 5.2); abrupt wavy boundary
Cg--80 to 85 cm; channery sandy loam, light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) dry, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine, fine, and medium and many coarse roots throughout; common very fine and fine irregular pores; 5 percent fine masses of oxidized iron, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; 25 percent subrounded channers; slightly acid (pH 6.1); abrupt wavy boundary
2R--85 cm; lithic bedrock
TYPE LOCATION: Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve-Gustavus Area, Alaska; Hoonah-Angoon Census Area; latitude 58.4396510, longitude -135.6249780, datum WGS84 (coordinates determined by a GPS unit)
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean annual soil temperature--1 to 7 degrees C
Soil moisture--dry less than 45 consecutive days in June through October (udic)
Thickness of folistic epipedon--15 to 35 cm
Thickness of albic horizon--1 to 10 cm
Thickness of spodic horizon--15 to 45 cm
Depth to redoximorphic features--50 to 60 cm
Depth to lithic contact--50 to 100 cm (moderately deep)
Other features--lithologic discontinuity
Particle-size control section
*Clay content--5 to 18 percent
*Total rock fragment content--15 to 34 percent
*Organic carbon content in upper 10 cm of spodic horizon--6 to 14 percent
O horizon
Combined thickness--15 to 35 cm
E horizon
Hue-10YR to 2.5Y moist or dry
Value-4 to 6 moist, 6 to 8 dry
Chroma-1 or 2 moist or dry
Clay content--4 to 10 percent
Reaction (pH)--4.0 to 4.5
Thickness--1 to 10 cm
Bhs horizon
Hue--7.5YR or 10YR moist or dry
Value--2 to 4 moist, 3 to 5 dry
Chroma--1 to 4 moist or dry
Clay content--5 to 25 percent
Total rock fragment content--15 to 25 percent
Gravel content--0 to 20 percent
Cobble content--0 to 20 percent
Reaction (pH)--4.5 to 5.2
Thickness--15 to 35 cm
BC horizon
Hue--7.5YR to 2.5Y moist or dry
Value--3 to 5 moist, 5 to 7 dry
Chroma--3 to 6 moist or dry
Fine-earth texture--sandy loam, loam
Clay content--5 to 12 percent
Total rock fragment content--15 to 35 percent
Gravel content--0 to 35 percent
Cobble content--0 to 35 percent
Reaction (pH)--5.1 to 5.3
Thickness--15 to 35 cm
Cg horizon
Hue--10YR to 5Y moist or dry
Value--3 to 5 moist, 5 to 7 dry
Chroma--1 or 2 moist or dry
Clay content--5 to 18 percent
Total rock fragment content--15 to 35 percent
Gravel content--0 to 35 percent
Cobble content--0 to 35 percent
Reaction (pH)--6.1 to 6.9
Thickness--0 to 10 cm
COMPETING SERIES: None
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Elevation--30 to 250 m
Climate--cool, moist summers; mild, wet winters
Mean annual precipitation--1990 to 3230 mm
Mean annual air temperature--3 to 9 degrees C
Frost-free period--90 to 154 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
Boussole--umbric epipedon; on similar landforms
Enigma--no aquic conditions; on adjacent landforms
Kashoto--organic throughout; on adjacent landforms
Kutskloh--umbric epipedon; on similar landforms
Maquinna--umbric epipedon; on adjacent landforms
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class--moderately well drained
Depth to saturation in normal years--more than 50 cm year round
Flooding--none
Ponding--none
Saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat)--moderately high or high in BC horizon, moderately high in E and Bhs horizons, high in Cg horizon
USE AND VEGETATION:
Use--wildlife habitat, recreation, subsistence
Potential native vegetation--fernleaf goldthread, bunchberry dogwood, dicranum moss, spiny woodfern, oakfern, splendid feather moss, rusty menziesia, devilsclub, Sitka spruce, goose neck moss , five-leaved bramble, salmonberry, sphagnum moss, small twistedstalk, western hemlock, mountain hemlock, dwarf bilberry, oval-leaf blueberry
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Alexander Archipelago-Gulf of Alaska Coast, Alaska; MLRA 220; moderate extent
SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: WASILLA, ALASKA
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve-Gustavus Area, Alaska; 2020.
REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and other features recognized in this pedon
*Folistic epipedon--zone from the surface to a depth of 34 cm
*Albic horizon--zone from 34 to 41 cm
*Spodic horizon--zone from 41 to 60 cm
*Aquic conditions--zone from 60 to 85 cm
*Redoximorphic concentrations--zone from 60 to 85 cm
*Reduced matrix--zone from 80 to 85 cm
*Depth to lithic contact--85 cm
*Depth to lithologic discontinuity--85 cm
*Particle-size control section--zone from 59 to 85 cm
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.