LOCATION BRONSON MI+IN OHEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, active, mesic Aquic Hapludalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Bronson sandy loam, on a 2 percent slope in a cultivated field at an elevation of about 751 feet. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 9 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) sandy loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) dry; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common roots; about 3 percent gravel; slightly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (7 to 11 inches thick)
BE--9 to 20 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; common roots; about 2 percent gravel; strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 11 inches thick)
Bt1--20 to 29 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) sandy loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few thin clay films on faces of peds; common medium prominent grayish brown (10YR 5/2) iron depletions in the matrix; about 3 percent gravel; moderately acid; abrupt wavy boundary.
Bt2--29 to 43 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) sandy clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common thin clay films on faces of peds; common coarse prominent gray (10YR 5/1) iron depletions in the matrix; about 8 percent gravel; moderately acid; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 8 to 30 inches.)
2BC--43 to 56 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) loamy sand; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; about 10 percent gravel; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 30 inches thick)
2C--56 to 80 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) sand and coarse sand; single grain; loose; about 10 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Van Buren County, Michigan; about 3 miles west of Lawton; 2,568 feet north and 1,290 feet east of the southwest corner of sec. 34, T. 3 S., R. 14 W.; U.S.G.S. Pawpaw topographic quadrangle; lat. 42 degrees 9 minutes 51.95 seconds N. and long. 85 degrees 55 minutes 52.67 seconds W., NAD 27; UTM Zone 16, 588278 easting and 4668590 northing, NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The depth to the base of the argillic horizon and the depth to carbonates range from 40 to 70 inches.
The Ap horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 3 to 5, and chroma of 2 to 4. It is loamy sand, fine sandy loam, or sandy loam. Uncultivated areas have an A horizon, 2 to 6 inches thick, which has hue of 10YR, value of 3 or 4, and chroma of 1 or 2. Rock fragment content ranges from 2 to 14 percent. Reaction ranges from strongly acid to neutral.
Some pedons have an E horizon with hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 5 to 7, and chroma of 2 to 4. It is sand, loamy sand, or sandy loam, and is up to 8 inches thick. Rock fragment content ranges from 2 to 14 percent. Reaction ranges from strongly acid to neutral.
The BE horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 3 to 6. It is loamy sand or sandy loam. Rock fragment content ranges from 2 to 14 percent. Reaction ranges from strongly acid to neutral.
The Bt horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 3 to 6, and chroma of 3 to 6. It is sandy loam or sandy clay loam, or their gravelly analogues. It averages between 10 to 20 percent clay and contains less than 50 percent fine sand and very fine sand. In some pedons, the lower part is stratified with 1/8 to 4 inches bands of sandy loam separated by sand or loamy sand. Rock fragment content ranges from 2 to 25 percent. Reaction ranges from strongly acid to neutral.
The 2BC horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 3 to 6, and chroma of 3 or 4. It is gravelly loamy sand or loamy sand. Rock fragment content ranges from 2 to 25 percent. Reaction ranges from moderately acid to neutral.
The 2C horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 2 or 3. It commonly is sand or gravelly sand, or less commonly very gravelly coarse sand or coarse sand. Rock fragment content ranges from 10 to 50 percent. Reaction is slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline.
COMPETING SERIES: These are Badaxe and Harbor series. Badaxe soils are less than 40 inches to the base of the argillic horizon. Harbor soils have a Bt horizon less than 8 inches thick.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Bronson soils formed in loamy and sandy materials overlying loamy sand or gravelly sand deposits on outwash plains, valley trains, and low-lying moraines. Slope gradients range from 0 to 7 percent. Mean annual temperature ranges from 48 to 53 degrees F., mean annual precipitation ranges from 30 to 42 inches, frost-free period ranges from 130 to 170 days, and elevation ranges from 580 to 1020 feet above sea level.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Boyer, Brady, Gilford, Hillsdale, Lapeer, Oshtemo, Perrin, and Spinks soils. Boyer, Perrin, and Spinks soils are associates on outwash plains and valley trains. Boyer soils are well drained. Perrin soils have sand and gravel deposits within 40 inches of the surface. Spinks soils are sandy throughout. The somewhat poorly drained Brady, the well drained Oshtemo, and the poorly drained or very poorly drained Gilford soils are in a drainage sequence with the Bronson soils. The well drained Hillsdale and Lapeer soils are associates on moraines.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well drained. The potential for surface runoff is negligible to low. Permeability is moderately rapid. Depth to a seasonal high water table ranges from 1.5 to 2.5 feet below the surface from November to May in normal years.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are cropped to small grains, beans, corn, and hay. A small part is in permanent pasture or in forest of oaks, shagbark hickory, and sugar maple. The native vegetation is hardwood forest.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRA 98 in southern Michigan and northern Indiana. The soils are of moderate extent.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Branch County, Michigan, 1928.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: ochric epipedon - from the surface to 9 inches (Ap horizon); argillic horizon - from 20 to 43 inches (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons); aquic conditions - iron depletions present from 20 to 43 inches (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons).
ADDITIONAL DATA: Lab characterization data is available from the National Soil Survey Laboratory, Lincoln, NE. Transect data (T98MI-159-001) is on file in MLRA project office, Plymouth., Indiana. Transect shows 80 percent Bronson and 20 percent Brady soils.