LOCATION ROTAMER            WI

ROTAMER SERIES

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, active, mesic Typic Argiudolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Rotamer loam - on a 14 percent slope in a cultivated field at an elevation of about 980 feet above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)

Ap--0 to 8 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; friable; contains few worm casts of yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) subsoil material; common fine fibrous roots; many very fine, fine, and medium continuous dendritic pores; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary. (7 to 9 inches thick)

Bt1--8 to 16 inches; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) and brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay loam; strong medium and fine subangular blocky structure; firm; common fine fibrous roots; common fine and very fine and few medium and coarse, continuous dendritic pores; common faint clay films on faces of peds and in pores; neutral; clear wavy boundary.

Bt2--16 to 19 inches; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) gravelly loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; common very fine, mostly obliquely-oriented, continuous pores; many faint clay films on faces of peds and in pores; about 15 percent light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) partially weathered dolomitic gravel; slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizons ranges from 3 to 12 inches)

C--19 to 60 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) gravelly sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable; few very fine and fine, mostly obliquely-oriented, continuous pores; about 30 percent fine and medium gravel and about 4 percent cobbles; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Rock County, Wisconsin; about 4 1/2 miles southeast of Milton; 2520 feet north and 600 feet west of the southeast corner of sec. 18, T. 3 N., R. 14 E. USGS Janesville East, Wisconsin topographic quadrangle;lat. 42 degrees 43 minutes 12 seconds N., and long. 88 degrees 52 minutes 41 seconds W., NAD 27.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to the base of the argillic horizon ranges from 12 to 20 inches. Depth to carbonates ranges from 10 to 20 inches. The particle-size control section averages from 20 to 30 percent clay. Volume of gravel ranges from 0 to 2 percent in the upper part of the solum, from 2 to 10 percent in the lower part of the solum, and from 5 to 22 percent in the substratum. Volume of cobbles or stones ranges from 0 to 2 percent in solum and 1 to 5 percent in the substratum. Reaction ranges from slightly acid to slightly alkaline in the solum and is slightly or moderately alkaline in the substratum. Calcium carbonate equivalent in the substratum ranges from 15 to 40 percent.

The Ap or A horizon has hue of 10YR, and value and chroma of 2 or 3. Texture is sandy loam or loam.

Some pedons have a BA horizon with hue of 7.5YR or 10YR and value and chroma of 3 or 4. Texture is sandy loam or loam.

The Bt horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, and value and chroma of 3 or 4. Texture is sandy clay loam, clay loam, or loam in the upper part and is loam, sandy loam, or the gravelly analogs in the lower part. Many pedons have a thin dark colored layer (Beta B) at the contact between the B and C horizons that results from the accumulation of organic matter contained in the illuviated material.

The C horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 5 or 6, and chroma of 3 to 6. Texture is sandy loam or gravelly sandy loam with more than 52 percent sand. The calcium carbonate equivalent ranges from 15 to 40 percent.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Hochheim, La Rose, Lickcreek, Linkville, Markesan, Plattville, Wea, and Wyanet series. Hochheim soils have calcium carbonate equivalentranging from 40 to 60 percent in the C horizon. La Rose soils have 52 percent sand or less in the C horizon. Lickcreek, Linkville, Wea, and Wyanet soils are more than 20 inches deep to the base of the argillic horizon and to carbonates. Markesan soils have a calcium carbonate equivalent of 60 to 90 percent in the C horizon. Plattville soils have a lithic contact at 40 to 60 inches.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Rotamer soils typically are on ground moraines, but some are on end moraines. Slope ranges from 2 to 45 percent. Rotamer soils formed in calcareous sandy loam till. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 28 to 33 inches. Mean annual air temperature ranges from 45 to 49 degrees F.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Kidder, McHenry, and Miami soils, but they do not have mollic epipedons. Kidder soils occupy nearby areas where the thickness of sola over sandy loam glacial till is greater. McHenry soils occupy similar topography, but have higher silt and lower sand content in the upper sola. Miami soils occupy similar topographic positions on contiguous areas where the underlying glacial till is loam, rather than sandy loam.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. The potential for surface runoff ranges from low to very high. Permeability is moderate.

USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas are used as cropland. Common crops are corn, small grains, and legumes. Some areas are used for pastureland or woodland. Native vegetation is open stands of mixed hardwoods and prairie grasses.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southeastern Wisconsin. This soil is of moderate extent.

MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Rock County, Wisconsin, 1970.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: mollic epipedon - 0 to 8 inches (Ap); the thickness of the epipedon is more than 1/3 the thickness from the top of the epipedon to the base of the argillic horizon; argillic horizon - 8 to 19 inches (Bt1, Bt2).