LOCATION JENNINGS INEstablished Series
The Jennings series consists of very deep, moderately well drained soils formed in loess, and the underlying paleosol in till and residuum from black shale. They are moderately deep or shallow to a fragipan. These soils are on dissected till plains and have slopes ranging from 2 to 12 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 1092 mm (43 inches), and mean annual temperature is about 12 degrees C (54 degrees F).
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, active, mesic Typic Fragiudults
TYPICAL PEDON: Jennings silt loam on a 5 percent convex slope in a cultivated field at an elevation of about 177 meters (580 feet) above MSL. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 23 cm (0 to 9 inches); 75 percent brown (10YR 4/3) and 25 percent yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) silt loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) and yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure parting to moderate medium granular; friable; common fine and very fine roots; common fine iron and manganese concretions; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary. (13 to 25 cm or 5 to 10 inches thick)
Bt1--23 to 53 cm (9 to 21 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) silty clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few very fine roots; many distinct strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) clay films on faces of peds; common distinct brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) silt coatings on faces of peds; common distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) organic coatings on faces of peds; common fine iron and manganese concretions; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary.
Bt2--53 to 69 cm (21 to 27 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) silt loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few very fine roots between peds; common distinct strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) and few grayish brown (10YR 5/2) clay films on faces of peds; many distinct light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) silt coatings on faces of peds; common fine iron and manganese concretions; very strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 25 to 56 cm or 10 to 22 inches.)
2Btx--69 to 99 cm (27 to 38 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) silt loam; moderate very coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate thick platy; very firm; few very fine roots between peds; common prominent grayish brown (10YR 5/2) clay films on vertical faces of peds; common distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; few red (2.5YR 5/6) iron stains on faces of peds and in pores; common fine iron and manganese concretions; common distinct light gray (10YR 7/2) clay depletions on faces of peds; 1 percent gravel; 65 percent brittle; very strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary. (20 to 51 cm or 8 to 20 inches thick)
3Btb1--99 to 124 cm (38 to 49 inches); strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) clay loam; weak very coarse prismatic structure parting to weak medium subangular blocky; firm; common prominent grayish brown (10YR 5/2) clay films on vertical faces of peds; common distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; common fine iron and manganese concretions; few prominent light gray (10YR 7/2) clay depletions on vertical faces of peds; few fine prominent light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) iron depletions in the matrix; 1 percent gravel; very strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary.
3Btb2--124 to 165 cm (49 to 65 inches); strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) clay loam; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; common prominent gray (10YR 6/1) clay films on faces of peds; common prominent red (2.5YR 5/6) iron stains on faces of peds; few fine prominent light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) iron depletions in the matrix; few prominent light gray (10YR 7/2) clay depletions on faces of peds; 2 percent gravel; extremely acid; gradual wavy boundary.
3Btb3--165 to 185 cm (65 to 73 inches); strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) clay loam; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; common prominent gray (10YR 6/1) clay films on faces of peds; common medium faint yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) masses of iron accumulation in the matrix; common medium prominent light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) iron depletions in the matrix; 2 percent gravel; extremely acid; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Btb horizon is 69 to 91 cm or 27 to 36 inches.)
4BC--185 to 196 cm (73 to 77 inches); 60 percent brown (7.5YR 4/4) and 40 percent strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) very parachannery silty clay; moderate medium platy structure; firm; many medium distinct brown (7.5YR 5/2) iron depletions in the matrix; 50 percent parachanners (shale); extremely acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (8 to 25 cm or 3 to 10 inches thick)
4Cr--196 to 201 cm (77 to 79 inches); black (10YR 2/1) and dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) weakly cemented shale bedrock; abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 18 cm or 2 to 7 inches thick)
4R--201 to 226 cm (79 to 89 inches); black, fissile, very strongly cemented shale bedrock.
TYPE LOCATION: Scott County, Indiana; 1,030 feet west and 890 feet south of the northeast corner of sec. 16, T. 3 N., R. 7 E. USGS Scottsburg, Indiana topographic quadrangle; lat. 38 degrees 42 minutes 20 seconds N. and 85 degrees 44 minutes 31 seconds W.; NAD 27; UTM Zone 16, easting 609395.6 and 4284853.9 northing, NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to the base of the argillic horizon: 127 to 191 cm (50 to 75 inches)
Depth to the top of the fragipan: 51 to 81 cm (20 to 32 inches), but severely eroded pedons can range from 38 to 51 cm (15 to 20 inches)
Depth to a lithic contact: 152 to 229 cm (60 to 90 inches)
Ap horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 3 to 6
Texture: silt loam
Reaction: very strongly acid to neutral
A horizon (5 to 13 cm or 2 to 5 inches thick), where present:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 3 or 4
Chroma: 2 or 3
Texture: silt loam
Reaction: very strongly acid or strongly acid
Bt horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 5 or 6
Chroma: 4 to 6
Texture: silt loam or silty clay loam
Clay content: 24 to 32 percent
Sand content: 6 to 15 percent
Reaction: extremely acid or very strongly acid, and the upper part ranges to neutral in limed areas
2Btx horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 5 or 6
Chroma: 4 to 6
Texture: commonly silt loam, and less commonly loam or silty clay loam
Clay content: 18 to 28 percent
Sand content: 18 to 30 percent
Reaction: extremely acid or very strongly acid
Rock fragment content: 1 or 2 percent fine gravel
3Btb horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 5 or 6
Chroma: 4 to 6
Texture: commonly clay loam, and less commonly silty clay loam
Clay content: 28 to 39 percent
Sand content: 15 to 35 percent
Reaction: extremely acid or very strongly acid
Rock fragment content: 2 to 10 percent gravel
4BC, 4CB or 4Btb horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 4 to 6
Texture: silty clay loam or silty clay and their parachannery to extremely parachannery analogues
Clay content: 38 to 48 percent
Sand content: 4 to 8 percent
Reaction: extremely acid or very strongly acid
Pararock fragment content: 5 to 70 percent parachanners
4Cr horizon (5 to 18 cm or 2 to 7 inches thick), where present:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 2 to 4
Chroma: 1 to 4
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Medora and Spickert series. Spickert soils average less than 38 percent clay in the lower part of the series control section. Medora soils average more than 8 percent sand in the lower part of the series control section.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: These soils are on summits, shoulders and backslopes of dissected till plains considered to be formed during the Illinoian stage. Slopes range from 2 to 12 percent. They formed in 76 to 127 cm (30 to 50 inches) of loess, and the underlying paleosol in glacial till, and residuum from black shale. The lower part of the loess called "gritty loess" contains a significantly higher sand content. The shale is from the New Albany formation, Devonian System. The mean annual air temperature ranges from 52 to 57 degrees F, and the mean annual precipitation ranges from 1016 to 1168 mm (40 to 46 inches), frost free period ranges from 170 to 200 days, and elevation ranges from 152 to 213 meters (500 to 700 feet) above mean sea level.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Avonburg, Cincinnati, Deputy, Nabb, and Trappist soils. The somewhat poorly drained Avonburg soils are on summits of till plains. The moderately well drained Cincinnati and Nabb soils do not have a lithic contact within 203 cm (80 inches), and are on similar landform positions as the Jennings soils. The moderately well drained, deep Deputy soils and the well drained, moderately deep Trappist soils are on hills and on strath terraces.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Moderately well drained. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high or high (4.23 to 14.11 micrometers/s) above the fragipan and low to moderately high (0.07 to 1.41 micrometers/s) within the fragipan. Permeability is moderate above the fragipan and slow or very slow within the fragipan. The potential for surface water runoff ranges from medium to very high. In non-eroded to moderately eroded soils, depth to an intermittent perched seasonal high water table is 0.6 to 1.0 meters (2.0 to 3.0 feet) in normal years. In severely eroded soils, depth to an intermittent perched seasonal high water table is 0.5 to 0.6 meters (1.5 to 2.0 feet) in normal years.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas are used to grow corn and soybeans. Some areas are used to grow wheat, hay or used for pasture. A few areas are in forest. The native vegetation is mixed deciduous forest.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southeastern Indiana. The series is of moderate extent in the east part of MLRA 114A.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Indianapolis, Indiana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Jennings County, Indiana, 1938.
REMARKS: The type location was changed to Scott County in 1995 to more typically represent the Jennings series. A severely eroded phase is recognized.
Representative component and horizon data is in DMU# 124519, and for the severely eroded phase DMU# 124521.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: 1) Ochric epipedon: the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of 23 cm (9 inches) (Ap horizon); 2) Argillic horizon: the zone from approximately 23 to 185 cm (9 to 73 inches) (Bt1, Bt2, 2Btx, 3Btb1, 3Bt2, and 3Btb3 horizons); 3) Fragipan: the zone from 69 to 96 cm (27 to 38 inches) (2Btx horizon); 4) Redoximorphic features at 53 to 196 cm (21 to 77 inches); and 5) Lithic contact at 201 cm (79 inches).
ADDITIONAL DATA: Lab data available from Agricultural Experiment Station, Purdue University, File No.'s JF7608 (S76IN077-8) and SC8703 (S87IN143-3, typical pedon).