LOCATION AURA NJ+MD VAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, siliceous, semiactive, mesic Typic Fragiudults
TYPICAL PEDON: Aura sandy loam (in an area of Aura sandy loam, 2 to 5 percent slopes), in woods. (Colors are for moist soil.)
A--0 to 1 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2), sandy loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2), dry; moderate fine granular structure; friable; many fine roots and many medium roots; extremely acid, pH 4.0; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
E--1 to 1.5 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2), sandy loam; weak fine granular structure; friable; common fine roots and common medium roots; extremely acid, pH 4.0; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
Bh--1.5 to 2 inches; yellowish red (5YR 5/6), sandy loam; massive; friable, very weakly cemented; common fine roots and common medium roots; extremely acid, pH 4.0; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
BE--2 to 8 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4), coarse sandy loam; weak fine granular structure; friable; common fine roots and common medium roots; extremely acid, pH 4.0; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
Bt1--8 to 13 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6), coarse sandy loam; 1 percent medium distinct very pale brown (10YR 7/4) and 1 percent fine faint strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) mottles; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; many fine roots; 40 percent clay bridging between sand grains; 5 percent rounded 2 to 75 millimeter quartz fragments; extremely acid, pH 4.0; gradual wavy boundary.
Bt2--13 to 22 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6), gravelly coarse sandy loam; 1 percent medium distinct light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) mottles; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; many fine roots; 40 percent clay bridging between sand grains; 10 percent rounded 2 to 75 millimeter quartz fragments; extremely acid, pH 4.0; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 15 to 35 inches thick.)
2Btx1--22 to 28 inches; yellowish red (5YR 4/6), gravelly coarse sandy loam; 1 percent fine distinct strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) mottles; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; brittle; common fine roots in cracks; 15 percent clay films on surfaces along pores and 70 percent clay bridging between sand grains; 20 percent rounded 2 to 75 millimeter quartz fragments; very strongly acid, pH 4.7; soil material is very dense and compact, when removed moist aggregates shatter easily into clay coated grains; clear wavy boundary.
2Btx2--28 to 44 inches; yellowish red (5YR 4/6) and red (2.5YR 4/6), gravelly sandy clay loam; 10 percent medium distinct red (2.5YR 4/8) mottles; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; brittle; common fine roots in cracks; 70 percent clay bridging between sand grains; 20 percent rounded 2 to 75 millimeter quartz fragments; very strongly acid, pH 4.7; red color is in the upper 8 inches of the horizon; soil material is very dense and compact, when removed moist aggregates shatter easily into clay coated grains; cracks that roots can penetrate are several feet apart; gradual wavy boundary.
2Btx3--44 to 60 inches; red (2.5YR 4/6), gravelly sandy clay loam; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; brittle; 40 percent clay bridging between sand grains; 20 percent rounded 2 to 75 millimeter quartz fragments; very strongly acid, pH 4.7; soil material is very dense and compact, when removed moist aggregates crush easily into clay coated grains; gradual wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the 2Btx horizon is 15 to 30 inches.)
2C--60 to 80 inches; yellowish red (5YR 5/8), gravelly loamy coarse sand; massive; very firm; 20 percent rounded 2 to 75 millimeter quartz fragments; very strongly acid, pH 4.7; soil material is very friable when removed.
TYPE LOCATION: Gloucester County, New Jersey; about 0.5 mile northeast of Bluebell, from the intersection of Victoria Avenue and Tuckahoe Road; USGS Buena, NJ topographic quadrangle; lat. 39 degrees 34 minutes 23 seconds N. and long. 74 degrees 58 minutes 10 seconds W., NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to top of Argillic horizon: 6 to 15 inches
Depth to base of Argillic horizon: 40 to 80 inches or more
Depth to Fragipan: 15 to 40 inches
Depth to Lithologic Discontinuity (if it occurs): 15 to 40 inches to coarser textured materials
Silt Content above the Lithologic Discontinuity: 20 to 45 percent
Silt Content below the Lithologic Discontinuity: Less than 20 percent
Depth to Bedrock: Greater than 72 inches
Depth to Seasonal High Water Table: Greater than 72 inches
Rock Fragments: 0 to 20 percent, by volume in the A, E, and Bt horizons, 10 to 50 percent in the Btx horizon, and 0 to 50 percent in the C horizon; mostly rounded quartzite gravel and none to few rounded igneous and metamorphic pebbles and cobbles
Soil Reaction: Extremely acid or very strongly acid throughout, unless limed
Other Features: Pedons in wooded areas typically have a microsequence of thin A, E, and Bh horizons (micro-podzol). Total thickness of the A, E, and Bh horizon sequence is less than 6 inches and individual horizons are less than 2 inches thick.
RANGE OF INDIVIDUAL HORIZONS:
O horizon (if it occurs):
Color--hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 2 to 4, chroma of 1 to 3
Texture--Slightly decomposed to highly decomposed plant material
A horizon:
Color--hue of 7.5YR to 2.5Y, value of 3 to 5, chroma of 1 to 4
Texture (fine-earth fraction)--loamy sand, coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, or loam
Ap horizon (if it occurs):
Color--hue of 7.5YR to 2.5Y, value of 4 to 6, chroma of 2 to 4
Texture (fine-earth fraction)--loamy sand, coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, or loam
BE or E horizon:
Color--hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 5 to 8, chroma of 1 to 6
Texture (fine-earth fraction)--loamy sand, coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, or loam
Bh horizon:
Color--hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, chroma of 4 to 6
Texture (fine-earth fraction)--loamy sand, coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, or loam
BA horizon (if it occurs):
Color--hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, chroma 3 to 8
Texture (fine-earth fraction)--coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, or loam
Mottles--discontinuous bands, patches, or variegations in shades of brown or red
Bt horizon:
Color--hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, chroma 4 to 8
Texture (fine-earth fraction)--coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, loam, or sandy clay loam
Mottles--none to few discontinuous bands, patches, or variegations in shades of brown or red
2Btx horizon or Btx horizon (if it occurs):
Color--hue of 2.5YR to 7.5YR, value of 4 to 6, chroma of 4 to 8
Texture (fine-earth fraction)--coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, or sandy clay loam
Mottles--few to common discontinuous bands, patches, or variegations in shades of brown or red
2BC or BC horizons (if they occur):
Color--hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, chroma of 4 to 8
Texture (fine-earth fraction)--coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, loam, or sandy clay loam, and commonly is stratified
Mottles--few to common discontinuous bands, patches, or variegations in shades of brown or red
2C horizon or C horizon (if it occurs):
Color-hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, chroma of 4 to 8
Texture (fine-earth fraction)--sand, loamy sand, loamy coarse sand, coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, or sandy clay loam, and commonly is stratified
Mottles--few to common discontinuous bands, patches, or variegations in shades of brown or red
COMPETING SERIES:
Burketown soils--moderately well drained soils, formed in alluvium derived from sandstone, siltstone, and shale
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Landscape: Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain
Landform: Low hill, relic stream terrace
Geomorphic Component: Crest, head slope, nose slope, upper side slope, tread
Hillslope Profile Position: Summit, shoulder, backslope
Parent Material: Loamy and gravelly old alluvium
Slope: 0 to 15 percent
Elevation: 50 to 160 feet
Mean Annual Air Temperature: 50 to 57 degrees F.
Mean Annual Precipitation: 40 to 48 inches
Frost Free Period: 180 to 215 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
Chillum soils--have a fine-silty particle-size control section; on similar landforms
Croom soils--have a loamy-skeletal particle-size control section; on similar landforms
Dennisville soils--have seasonal high water tables at a depth of 48 to 72 inches (well drained) and do not have a fragipan; on lower landforms
Downer soils--do not have a fragipan; on lower landforms
Fallsington soils--have a seasonal high water table at a depth of less than 12 inches (poorly drained), have a fine-loamy particle-size control section, and do not have a fragipan; on lower landforms
Fort Mott soils--have sandy surfaces thicker than 20 inches, do not have a fragipan, on similar higher parts of the landform
Glassboro soils--have a seasonal high water table at a depth of 12 to 18 inches (somewhat poorly drained) and do not have a fragipan; on lower landforms
Ingleside soils--have a seasonal high water table at a depth of 48 to 72 inches (well drained), do not have layers with more than 15 percent, by volume rock fragments at a depth of 20 to 40 inches, and do not have a fragipan; on lower landforms
Mullica soils--have a seasonal high water table less at a depth of less than 12 inches (very poorly drained) and do not have a fragipan; on lower landforms
Sassafras soils--do not have a fragipan and have a fine-loamy particle-size control section; on slightly lower parts of similar landforms
Swainton soils--do not have a fragipan, on lower landforms
Woodstown soils--have a seasonal high water table at a depth of 18 to 42 inches (moderately well drained) and do not have a fragipan; on lower landforms
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY:
Depth Class: Moderately deep (20 to 40 inches) to fragipan and very deep (greater than 72 inches) to bedrock
Drainage Class (Agricultural): Well drained
Internal Free Water Occurrence: Very deep (greater than 60 inches) and absent (not observed)
Flooding Frequency and Duration: None
Ponding Frequency and Duration: None
Index Surface Runoff: Low to high
Permeability: Moderately slow
Shrink-swell Potential: Low
USE AND VEGETATION:
Major Uses: Production of vegetables, flowers, tree fruits, and some forage.
Dominant Vegetation: Wooded areas are dominantly oaks, pitch pine, Virginia pine, maple, and hickory.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Distribution: The Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain of New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia
Extent: Large
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Morgantown, West Virginia
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Gloucester County, New Jersey, 1960
REMARKS:
02/2000--The family particle-size class was revised from fine-loamy to coarse-loamy based on recent particle-size analysis and field observations.
05/1998. Aura soils were previously classified as Typic Hapludults (fine-loamy, mixed, mesic) with a dense, root restrictive layer. The classification and series description is updated to include the revised fragipan concept.
Diagnostic horizons and other soil characteristics recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon--the zone from the soil surface to a depth of 8 inches (A, E, Bh, and the BE horizons)
Argillic horizon--the zone from 8 to 59 inches (Bt and 2Btx horizons)
Fragipan horizon--the zone from 22 to 59 inches (2Btx horizons)
Lithologic Discontinuity: the zone from 22 to 80 inches (2Btx and 2C horizons)
ADDITIONAL DATA:
Reference particle-size data is available from the project soil survey staff, Hammonton, New Jersey.
Database Information:
OSD Data Mapunit ID: To be developed
Typical pedon Data Mapunit: 407343
OSD User Pedon ID: Aura-OSD
TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation NJ0017 AURA 0-15 50-57 180-215 40-48 50-160SOI-5 FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind Months Bedrock Hardness NJ0017 NONE >6.0 - >72 ---
SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay% -CEC- NJ0017 0- 8 LS 0- 0 85-100 2- 7 2- 7 NJ0017 0- 8 SL L 0- 0 80- 95 5-18 4- 12 NJ0017 0- 8 GR-SL GR-FSL 0- 0 70- 95 5-15 4- 11 NJ0017 8-22 SL SCL GR-SCL 0- 0 70- 90 10-20 5- 10 NJ0017 22-59 GR-SL GR-SCL 0- 0 70- 90 15-30 5- 10 NJ0017 59-72 SR GR-S SCL 0- 0 70-100 3-25 1- 7
SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salin Permeab Shnk-Swll NJ0017 0- 8 3.5- 5.0 .5-2. 0- 0 6.0- 20 LOW NJ0017 0- 8 3.5- 5.0 1.-3. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW NJ0017 0- 8 3.5- 5.0 1.-2. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW NJ0017 8-22 3.5- 5.0 .5-1. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW NJ0017 22-59 3.5- 5.0 0.-.5 0- 0 0.2- 0.6 LOW NJ0017 59-72 3.5- 5.0 0.-0. 0- 0 0.2- 0.6 LOW