LOCATION OTHELLO            MD+DE NJ PA VA
Established Series
JEB/Rev. JAK
11/2002

OTHELLO SERIES


MLRA(S): 148, 149A, 153A, 153B, 153C, 153D
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Morgantown, West Virginia
DEPTH CLASS: Very deep
DRAINAGE CLASS: Poorly drained
PERMEABILITY: Moderately slow
SURFACE RUNOFF: Slow to ponded
PARENT MATERIAL: Silty eolian sediments underlain by coarser marine, eolian, or alluvial sediments
SLOPE: 0 to 5 percent
MEAN ANNUAL AIR TEMPERATURE (type location): 54 degrees F.
MEAN ANNUAL PRECIPITATION (type location): 45 inches

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, active, mesic Typic Endoaquults

TYPICAL PEDON: Othello silt loam, cultivated. (Colors are for moist soil.)

Ap--0 to 9 inches; dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) silt loam; very weak fine and medium granular structure; friable; slightly sticky, slightly plastic; many fine roots; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (2 to 9 inches thick)

Btg1--9 to 18 inches; light olive gray (5Y 6/2) silty clay loam; weak fine and medium blocky and subangular blocky structure; firm; moderately sticky, slightly plastic; common fine roots; common distinct dark grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) clay films on faces of peds; few medium faint light gray (5Y 7/1) iron depletions and common medium prominent yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) iron accumulations; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.

Btg2--18 to 29 inches; gray (5Y 6/1) silty clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few fine roots; many distinct light olive gray (5Y 5/2) clay films on faces of peds; common coarse prominent yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) and few medium prominent strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) iron accumulations; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Btg horizon is 15 to 40 inches.)

2Cg1--29 to 34 inches; gray (N 5/0) sandy loam; massive; friable; slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common medium prominent strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) iron accumulations; extremely acid; gradual smooth boundary.

2Cg2--34 to 65 inches; light gray (N 7/0) loamy sand; single grain; loose; common coarse yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) irregularly shaped iron accumulations; extremely acid.

TYPE LOCATION: Queen Annes County, Maryland, 1.0 mile north of Bryantown and 0.5 mile east of Robinson Church.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Thickness of the Underlying Material: Greater than 72 inches
Solum Thickness: 24 to 50 inches
Depth to Bedrock: Greater than 60 inches
Depth to Seasonal High Water Table: 0 to 12 inches, January to May
Depth to Lithologic Discontinuity: 25 to 40 inches
Rock Fragments: 0 to 5 percent, by volume in the A horizon, 0 to 10 in the B horizon, and 0 to 20 percent in the C horizon, mostly quartz pebbles
Soil Reaction: Extremely acid to strongly acid, throughout the profile, unless limed
Other Features: The weighted average clay content of the particle-size control section ranges from 18 to 27 percent

RANGE OF INDIVIDUAL HORIZONS:
Ap horizon:
Color--hue of 7.5YR to 5Y, value of 4 or 5, chroma of 1 to 3
Texture--silt loam, mucky silt loam, fine sandy loam, or silty clay loam

A horizon (if it occurs):
Color--hue of 7.5YR to 5Y, value of 3 or 4, chroma of 1 to 3
Texture--silt loam, mucky silt loam, fine sandy loam, or silty clay loam

E or Eg horizon (if it occurs):
Color--hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 5 to 7, chroma of 1 to 3
Texture--silt loam, fine sandy loam, or silty clay loam

Btg horizon:
Color--hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 5 to 7, chroma of 1 or 2, or is neutral with value of 5 to 7
Texture-silt loam or silty clay loam
Redoximorphic Features--iron depletions in shades of olive or gray and iron accumulations in shades of red, brown, yellow, or olive

BCg or 2BCg horizon (if it occurs)
Color--hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 4 to 7, and chroma of 1 or 2, or is neutral with value of 4 to 8
Texture-sandy clay loam, loam, fine sandy loam, or sandy loam
Redoximorphic Features--iron depletions in shades of olive or gray and iron accumulations in shades of red, brown, yellow, or olive

2Cg horizon:
Color--hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 4 to 7, chroma of 1 or 2, or is neutral with value of 4 to 8
Texture-sand, loamy sand, loamy fine sand, or sandy loam
Redoximorphic Features--iron depletions in shades of olive or gray and iron accumulations in shades of red, brown, yellow, or olive

2C horizon (if it occurs):
Color--hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 4 to 8, chroma of 3 or 4
Texture-sand, loamy sand, loamy fine sand, or sandy loam. Some pedons have thin strata of finer-texture material.
Redoximorphic Features--iron depletions in shades of olive or gray and iron accumulations in shades of red, brown, yellow, or olive

COMPETING SERIES:
Elkton soils--have an particle-size control section with a weighted average clay content of 27 to 35 percent, a solum thickness of more than 40 inches, and slow permeability
Knowlton soils--formed in acid alluvium derived from shale, siltstone, and sandstone and do not have underlying sandy materials

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Landscape: Coastal Plain
Landform: Upland interfluves, lowlands, marine terraces, and depressions
Elevation: 2 to 70 feet
Parent Material: Silty eolian sediments underlain by coarser marine, eolian, or alluvial sediments
Mean Annual Air Temperature: 52 to 58 degrees F.
Mean Annual Precipitation: 42 to 48 inches
Frost Free Period: 190 to 210 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
Elkton soils--have an particle-size control section with a weighted average clay content of 27 to 35 percent and slow permeability, on similar landforms
Fallsington soils--have a fine-loamy particle-size control section, on similar landforms
Leonardtown soils--have a fragipan, on similar landforms
Beltsville soils--have a fine-loamy particle-size control section, have a fragipan, and are moderately well drained, on higher landforms
Butlertown soils--have a fragipan and are moderately well drained, on higher landforms
Keyport soils--have a fine particle-size control section and are moderately well drained, on higher landforms
Matapeake soils--are well drained, on higher landforms
Mattapex soils--are moderately well drained, on higher landforms
Sassafras soils--have a fine-loamy particle-size control section and are well drained, on higher landforms
Whitemarsh soils--have an abrupt texture change at the top of the argillic horizon, on similar landforms
Woodstown soils--have a fine-loamy particle-size control section and are moderately well drained, on higher landforms

USE: Cleared areas are used for corn and soybeans with minor acreages of pasture or truck crops.

VEGETATION: Wooded areas are wetland hardwoods, mostly sweetgum, red maple, and wetland oaks. Loblolly pine and pond pine occur in some wooded areas.

DISTRIBUTION: Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania

EXTENT: Large

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Pasquotank County, North Carolina, 1951

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and other diagnostic soil characteristics recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon--the zone from the surface to 9 inches (Ap horizon)
Argillic horizon--the zone from 9 to 29 inches (Btg1 and Btg2 horizons)
Aquic conditions--the zone from 9 inches to a depth of 80 inches is periodically saturated (endosaturation)

SERIES INTERPRETATION RECORD(S): MD0032, MD0152

TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation
MD0032 OTHELLO 0- 5 52- 58 190-210 42- 48 2- 70
MD0152 OTHELLO 0- 2 54- 58 190-210 42- 48 2- 20

SOI-5  FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind   Months  Bedrock Hardness
MD0032 NONE            0-1.0  APPARENT JAN-MAY  60-60        
MD0152 NONE             -     APPARENT    -     60-60        

SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay% -CEC- MD0032 0- 9 SIL FSL SICL 0- 0 100-100 15-28 8- 20 MD0032 9-29 SICL SIL 0- 0 100-100 18-30 5- 15 MD0032 29-50 SL L SCL 0- 0 85-100 12-27 1- 5 MD0032 50-72 S LS LFS 0- 0 85-100 4-10 1- 5 MD0152 0- 6 MK-SIL SIL 0- 0 100-100 14-22 10- 30 MD0152 6-12 SIL 0- 0 100-100 12-20 3- 15 MD0152 12-40 SIL SICL 0- 0 100-100 18-30 5- 20 MD0152 40-48 SCL SL FSL 0- 0 85-100 15-24 5- 20 MD0152 48-72 LS S 0- 0 85-100 3-10 3- 10

SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salin Permeab Shnk-Swll MD0032 0- 9 4.5- 5.5 1.-2. 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 LOW MD0032 9-29 3.6- 5.5 0.-.5 0- 0 0.2- 0.6 LOW MD0032 29-50 3.6- 5.5 0.-.5 0- 0 0.2- 2.0 LOW MD0032 50-72 3.6- 5.5 0.-.5 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW MD0152 0- 6 3.6- 5.5 3.-10 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 LOW MD0152 6-12 3.6- 5.5 0.-1. 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 LOW MD0152 12-40 3.6- 5.5 0.-.5 0- 0 0.2- 0.6 LOW MD0152 40-48 3.6- 5.5 0.-.5 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW MD0152 48-72 3.6- 5.5 0.-.5 0- 0 6.0- 20 LOW


National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.