LOCATION HOUGHTON MI+IA IL IN MN WIEstablished Series
The Houghton series consists of very deep, very poorly drained soils formed in herbaceous organic deposits more than 51 inches thick in depressions on lake plains, outwash plains, ground and end moraines and on floodplains. These soils have moderately slow to moderately rapid permeability. Slope ranges from 0 to 2 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 35 inches, and mean annual temperature is about 50 degrees F.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Euic, mesic Typic Haplosaprists
TYPICAL PEDON: Houghton muck - on a level area in a cultivated field. (Colors are for moist soils unless otherwise stated.)
Oa1--0 to 9 inches; black (N 2.5/0) broken face and rubbed muck (sapric material); about 5 percent fiber, a trace rubbed; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; neutral (pH 7.0 in KCl); abrupt smooth boundary.
Oa2--9 to 13 inches; black (N 2.5/0 ) broken face, very dark brown (7.5YR 2/2) rubbed muck (sapric material); about 5 percent fiber, a trace rubbed; weak medium granular structure; neutral (pH 7.0 in KCl); abrupt smooth boundary.
Oa3--13 to 24 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 3/2) broken face, dark reddish brown (5YR 2/2) rubbed muck (sapric material); about 15 percent fiber, less than 5 percent rubbed; massive, breaking to thick platy fragments; neutral (pH 7.0 KCl); abrupt smooth boundary.
Oa4--24 to 32 inches; black (5YR 2/1) broken face and rubbed muck (sapric material); about 10 percent fiber, a trace rubbed; massive; about 1 percent woody fragments; neutral (pH 7.0 in KCl); clear wavy boundary.
Oa5--32 to 48 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 2/2) broken face, black (5YR 2/1) rubbed muck (Sapric material); about 20 percent fiber, less than 10 percent rubbed; massive, breaking to thick platy fragments; neutral (pH 7.0 in KCl); abrupt smooth boundary.
Oa6--48 to 80 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 2/2) broken face and rubbed muck (sapric material); about 10 percent fiber, less than 10 percent rubbed; massive; slightly sticky; about 15 percent mineral soil; neutral (pH 7.0 in KCl).
TYPE LOCATION: Clinton County, Michigan; about 3 miles northeast of the village of Bath; 200 feet north and 400 feet east of the southwest corner of sec. 12, T. 5 N., R. 1 W. USGS Bath topographic quadrangle, lat. 42 degrees 49 minutes 43.4 seconds N. and long. 84 degrees 52 minutes 56.9 seconds W.; NAD 27.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The organic layers are more than 51 inches thick. The organic fibers are derived primarily from herbaceous plants, but some pedons contain individual layers which contain as much as 30 percent woody material, however, the woody fragment content averages less than 15 percent by volume in the control section. It is very strongly acid to slightly alkaline.
The organic layers have hue of 10YR, 7.5YR, or 5YR, value of 2 to 3, and chroma of 1 to 3, or is in 2.5/0. The layers are predominantly muck (sapric material), but in some pedons mucky peat (hemic material) has a combined thickness of less than 10 inches and peat (fibric material) less than 5 inches. Some pedons have coprogenous material or marly material below 51 inches
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Carlisle, Lena, Peteetneet, Saltese, and Semiahmoo series. Similar soils are the Adrian, Carbondale, Greenwood, Linwood, Lupton, Palms, Rifle, and Willette series. Carlisle soils derived dominantly from woody materials and contain an average of 15 to 30 percent woody fragments in the control section. Lena soils contain free carbonates throughout. Peteetneet soils are massive or platy in bottom tier, are on elevations of about 4,500 feet, and are substantially drier in the moisture control section during the 120 days following the summer solstice. Saltese and Semiahmoo soils are in areas with mild humid climates. Adrian, Linwood, Palms, and Willette soils have a mineral substrata depths ranging from 16 to about 50 inches. Carbondale, Greenwood, Lupton, and Rifle soils are frigid.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Houghton soils occupy closed depressions within lake plains, outwash plains, ground and end moraines, and on floodplains. Slope gradients are less than 2 percent. The mean annual precipitation ranges from about 30 to 42 inches, and the mean annual temperature is about 48 to 53 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Adrian, Edselton, Edwards, Moston, Muskego, Palms, and Willette soils. Edselton and Edwards soils are underlain by marly material at depths of 16 to 51 inches. Moston, and Muskego soils are underlain by coprogenous material between 16 and 51 inches. Poorly or very poorly drained mineral soils are commonly associated along the margins of the bogs.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Very poorly drained. Depth to the seasonal high water table ranges from 2 foot above the surface in ponded phases to 1 foot below the surface from September to June. The potential for surface runoff is very slow or ponded. Permeability is moderately slow to moderately rapid.
USE AND VEGETATION: A considerable area of these soils is used for cropland or pasture. Common crops are onions, lettuce, potatoes, celery, radishes, carrots, mint, and some corn. Native vegetation was primarily of marsh grasses, sedges, reeds, buttonbrush, and cattails. Some water-tolerant trees were near the margin of the bog.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRA 95, 98, 104, 105, 110, 111. Southern part of the lower peninsula of Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, and Illinois. The series is of large extent.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Roscommon County, Michigan, 1924.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: Well decomposed organic material from the surface to greater than 51 inches (Oa1, Oa2, Oa3, Oa4, Oa5 and Oa6 horizons)
histic epipedon - muck from the surface to 16 inches (Oa1, Oa2, Oa3);
aquic conditions - from the surface to 40 inches.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Soil Interpretation Record - (MI0024, MI0291 (PONEED), MI0532 (SLOPING), MI0390 (MAAT>50), MI0383 (FREQUENTLY FLOODED). Transect data (T98-MI-003) is on file in MLRA project office, Plymouth, Indiana. Transect shows 100 percent Houghton.