LOCATION SHEBEON MIEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, active, mesic Aeric Epiaqualfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Shebeon loam - on a nearly level cultivated area of 1 percent slope on a till plain. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 11 inches; dark brown (10YR 3/3) loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) dry; weak coarse granular structure; friable; few fine roots; 1 percent gravel and cobbles; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary. (6 to 12 inches thick)
Bt--11 to 17 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) clay loam; few fine prominent gray (10YR 5/1) and yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) mottles; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; few fine roots; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) clay films on faces of peds; 3 percent gravel and cobbles; slightly alkaline; gradual wavy boundary.
Btg--17 to 23 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) clay loam; common medium prominent yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) mottles; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; brown (10YR 4/3) clay films on faces of peds; 3 percent gravel and cobbles; slightly alkaline; abrupt wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizons are 5 to 20 inches thick)
Cg--23 to 33 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) loam; common medium prominent yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) and few fine distinct brown (7.5YR 5/4) mottles; weak medium platy structure; firm; 3 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline; gradual wavy boundary. (6 to 15 inches thick)
Cd1--33 to 49 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) loam; common fine distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) mottles; moderate thick platy structure; very firm; faces of peds are gray (10YR 6/1); 3 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles; strong effervescence; moderately alkaline; gradual wavy boundary.
Cd2--49 to 70 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) loam; few fine prominent yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) mottles; strong thick platy structure; very firm; horizontal and some vertical faces of peds are dark reddish brown (5YR 3/2); light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) coatings on other vertical and oblique faces of peds and fracture planes; 3 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles; strong effervescence; moderately alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Huron County, Michigan; about 3 miles north and 4 miles east of Bayport; 2,160 feet south and 510 feet west of the northeast corner, sec. 21, T. 17 N., R. 10 E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness and depth to carbonates ranges from 11 to 26 inches. The depth to very firm or extremely firm dense till ranges from 24 to 40 inches. Reaction throughout the solum ranges from neutral to slightly alkaline. Gravel content ranges from 1 to 15 percent in the A horizon and from 2 to 10 percent in the remainder of the pedon. Cobble content ranges from 0 to 25 percent in the A horizon and from 0 to 8 percent in the remainder of the pedon.
The Ap horizon has 10YR hue, value of 3 or 4, and chroma of 2 or 3. It is loam, cobbly loam, cobbly sandy loam, or sandy loam. Some pedons have a loamy sand surface.
A B/E horizon is present in some pedons. The Bt horizon has a hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 3 through 5, and chroma of 2 through 4. Faces of peds have a hue of 10YR, 2.5Y or 5Y, value of 3 through 5, and chroma of l through 3. It is loam or clay loam.
The C horizons are loam or sandy loam calcareous till. It has medium or thick platy structure or is massive. Vertical or oblique fracture planes are observable in the C horizons in an exposed cut. The fractures are at intervals of 12 to 36 inches.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Angola, Burdett, Crosier, Darien, Haskins, Lamberjack and Ovid. Angola soils have bedrock above a depth of 40 inches. Burdett and Haskins, soils have lithologic discontinuities. Crosier, and Ovid soils lack the very firm compact till above a depth of 40 inches. Darien soils have a significant amount of shale fragments throughout the solum. Lamberjack soils have thicker sola.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Shebeon soils are on nearly level and gently sloping parts of till plains and moraines. Slopes range from 0 to 4 percent. These soils formed in calcareous loamy till of Wisconsinan age. Mean annual temperature ranges from 45 to 50 degrees F, and the mean annual precipitation is 29 to 37 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: Shebeon soils are a part of a drainage sequence which includes the moderately well drained Grindstone soils and the poorly drained Kilmanagh soils. Badaxe soils are nearby in some places where a thin sandy loam layer overlies the loam till.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat poorly drained. Surface runoff is slow or medium. Permeability is moderate in the solum and very slow in the Cd horizon.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most of these soils are cultivated. Corn, beans, small grains, and sugar beets are the principal crops.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Upper thumb of lower Michigan. The series is extensive with a total of about 150,000 acres.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Huron County, Michigan, 1978.
REMARKS: Classification changed to agree with ST Issue #17 on 2 Sept 94 by CLG. See lab data of the typical pedon number S74-MI-63-2. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: ochric epipedon - the zone from the surface to 11 inches (Ap horizon); argillic horizon - the zone from 11 to 23 inches (Bt and Btg horizons); aquic soil moisture regime.