LOCATION HONONEGAH IL+INEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy, mixed, mesic Entic Hapludolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Hononegah loamy coarse sand - on a southeast-facing slope of less than 1 percent in a cultivated field at an elevation of 777 feet (237 meters) above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 8 inches (0 to 20 cm); very dark brown (10YR 2/2) loamy coarse sand; weak fine subangular blocky structure parting to moderate medium granular; very friable; many fine roots; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary.
A--8 to 15 inches (20 to 38 cm); very dark brown (10YR 2/2) loamy coarse sand; moderate medium subangular and angular blocky structure; very friable; common fine roots; few medium distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) masses of iron accumulation throughout; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 10 inches or 0 to 25 cm thick)
AB--15 to 19 inches (38 to 48 cm); dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) loamy coarse sand; weak medium and fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; few fine roots; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the A horizon is 10 to 24 inches or 25 to 61 cm.)
Bw--19 to 24 inches (48 to 61 cm); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) loamy coarse sand; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; few fine roots; common fine gravel; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (2 to 16 inches or 5 to 41 cm thick)
2BC--24 to 31 inches (61 to 79 cm); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) very gravelly loamy coarse sand; single grain; loose; few fine roots; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 21 inches or 0 to 53 cm thick)
2C--31 to 60 inches (79 to 152 cm); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very gravelly loamy coarse sand; single grain; loose; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Winnebago County, Illinois; 1.25 miles (2 kilometers) northwest of Rockton; 170 feet (52 meters) north and 2,060 feet (628 meters) east of the center of sec. 11, T. 46 N., R. 1 E.; USGS South Beloit topographic quadrangle; lat. 42 degrees 28 minutes 40 seconds N. and long. 89 degrees 4 minutes 54 seconds W., NAD 27; UTM Zone 16, 328890 easting and 4704931 northing, NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The thickness of the solum typically is 30 to 40 inches (76 to 102 cm) and the depth to sand and gravel commonly is about 24 inches (61 cm), but they range from 20 to 40 inches (51 to 102 cm). The depth to carbonates is typically 30 to 40 inches, but ranges from 20 to 50 inches (51 to 127 cm). The mollic epipedon ranges from 10 to 24 inches (25 to 61 cm) in thickness. Pebbles may be in any horizon throughout the sola but are more common in the lower part. Some subhorizons contain more than 35 percent by volume of rock fragments. The particle-size control section (10 to 40 inches or 25 to 102 cm) averages loamy sand or sand but some subhorizons are sandy loam or loam.
The Ap or A horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 2 or 3, and chroma of 1 to 3. It is loamy coarse sand, loamy sand, or sandy loam. Reaction ranges from moderately acid to slightly alkaline.
The Bw horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 3 or 4, and chroma of 2 to 4. It commonly is coarse sand or loamy coarse sand but individual horizons include loam, sandy loam, sand, and loamy sand, and the gravelly analogs of these textures. The dominant sand size is medium sand or coarser. It averages less than 15 percent clay. Reaction ranges from moderately acid to slightly alkaline.
Some pedons have a 2BC horizon that is gravelly or very gravelly coarse loamy sand.
The 2C horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 2 to 6. It is commonly loose sand and gravel. It commonly is strongly effervescent and moderately alkaline, but in some pedons it is neutral or slightly alkaline.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Bellechester, Finchford, Fruitfield, Hawick, Komro, Lasa, Sparta, Trempe, and Zumbro series. Bellechester soils have a paralithic contact with sandstone bedrock at depths ranging from 40 to 70 inches (102 to 178 cm) and commonly contain rock fragments of sandstone or limestone within the solum. Finchford, Fruitfield, Sparta, and Trempe soils are more acid in the lower sola and lack effervescence in the C horizon. In addition, Sparta soils contain less gravel throughout and have in the control section, 20 percent or less of coarse or very coarse sand, and 30 percent or more of fine sand or finer, and Trempe soils have redder hue in the upper part of the C horizon.. Hawick soils have thinner sola. Komro soils have redox features within the series control section. Lasa soils have less than 5 percent of medium sand and coarser particles and are deeper to carbonates. Zumbro soils have mollic epipedons greater than 24 inches (61 cm) thick, have dominant sand size of medium or fine throughout, and have less than 20 percent gravel in the solum and C horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Hononegah soils are on stream terraces and adjacent escarpments, outwash plains, terraces, beach ridges on old glacial lake plains, and on valley trains. The soils formed in sandy alluvial or eolian material underlain within 20 to 40 inches (51 to 102 cm) by water-sorted sand and gravel. Slope gradients commonly are 0 to 3 percent but range from 0 to 25 percent. Mean annual temperature ranges from 47 to 52 degrees F (8 to 11 degrees C), and mean annual precipitation ranges from 30 to 36 inches (760 to 910 mm).
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Flagler, Volinia, Warsaw, and Wea soils. All of these soils are on nearby landscapes and contain less sand in the solum. In addition Volinia, Warsaw, and Wea soils are finer textured in the upper part of the solum and have argillic horizons. Wea soils also have thicker sola.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Excessively drained. The potential for surface runoff is negligible to medium. Permeability is very rapid. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is very high (greater than 141.11 micrometers/s).
USE AND VEGETATION: A large part is in meadow, hay, and small grain. Some corn and soybeans are grown but yields are generally low. Native vegetation is mixed prairie grasses that were tolerant to droughty conditions.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Illinois and Indiana. This soil is of moderate extent in MLRAs 95B, 105, 108B, 110, 111C, and 111D, and is mainly on the Rock River terrace in Winnebago County, Illinois.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Winnebago and Boone Counties, Illinois, 1976.
REMARKS: These soils are borderline between sandy and sandy-skeletal. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: mollic epipedon - the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of 19 inches (0 to 48 cm) (Ap, A and AB horizons).
ADDITIONAL DATA: Mechanical analysis data are on file with the author for three pedons including the typical pedon.