LOCATION MASARDIS ME+NHEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy-skeletal, isotic, frigid Typic Haplorthods
TYPICAL PEDON: Masardis gravelly fine sandy loam on an 11 percent southeast-facing slope in a wooded area. (Colors are for moist soil.)
Oa--0 to 2 inches; black (5YR 2.5/1) sapric material; weak very fine granular structure; very friable; common very fine, fine, medium and coarse roots; very strongly acid, abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
E--2 to 3 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) gravelly fine sandy loam; weak very fine and fine granular structure; very friable; common very fine, fine, medium and coarse roots; 20 percent gravel; very strongly acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick)
Bh--3 to 4 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) gravelly fine sandy loam; weak very fine and fine granular structure; very friable; common very fine, fine, medium and coarse roots; 15 percent gravel; very strongly acid; abrupt broken boundary. (0 to 7 inches thick)
Bs1--4 to 6 inches; yellowish red (5YR 4/6) gravelly fine sandy loam; weak very fine and fine granular structure; very friable; common very fine, fine, medium and coarse roots; 20 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary.
Bs2--6 to 13 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/4) gravelly sandy loam; weak fine granular structure; very friable; common very fine, fine, medium and coarse roots; 30 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bs horizon is 4 to 18 inches.)
BC--13 to 19 inches; light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) very gravelly loamy sand; weak fine granular structure; very friable; common very fine and fine roots; 50 percent gravel; moderately acid; diffuse wavy boundary. (0 to 15 inches thick)
C1--19 to 36 inches; olive (5Y 5/3) extremely gravelly coarse sand; single grain; loose; 65 percent gravel; moderately acid; clear wavy boundary.
C2--36 to 43 inches; dark olive gray (5Y 3/2) very gravelly sand; single grain; loose; 40 percent gravel; strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary.
C3--43 to 65 inches; olive gray (5Y 4/2) extremely gravelly coarse sand; single grain; loose; 65 percent gravel; strongly acid. (Combined thickness of the C horizon is 27 to 50 inches.)
TYPE LOCATION: Piscataquis County, Maine; Town of Abbot; about 0.2 mile west from Maine Route 15 and about 800 feet south of the Piper Pond Road; USGS Guilford topographic quadrangle; lat. 45 degrees 11 minutes 29 seconds N. and long. 69 degrees 27 minutes 52 seconds W., NAD.27.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of the solum ranges from 15 to 38 inches. Depth to bedrock is more than 60 inches. Textures in the fine-earth fraction of the mineral solum range from silt loam to coarse sandy loam, loam inclusive, in the upper 10 inches, loam or fine sandy loam to coarse sand between 10 and 17 inches, and from loamy sand to coarse sand below 17 inches. The substratum is loamy coarse sand, sand, or coarse sand in the fine-earth fraction. Some pedons have strata of sand, gravel, and cobbles in the substratum. Rock fragment content averages 35 to 60 percent in the particle- size control section but individual horizons range from 5 to 60 percent in the upper part of the mineral solum and from 35 to 75 percent in the lower part of the solum and in the substratum. Rock fragments are mostly gravel with some cobbles and a few stones. In some pedons there is discontinuous cementation in the B and C horizons. Reaction ranges from extremely acid to moderately acid in the solum and very strongly acid to moderately acid in the substratum.
The Oa horizon, and the Oe horizon where present, has hue of 2.5YR to 7.5YR, value of 2.5 and chroma of 1 or 2. They have weak very fine or fine granular structure. Some pedons have an O1 horizon.
The A horizon, where present, has hue of 10YR, value of 3 or 4 and chroma of 1 or 2. Cultivated areas have an Ap horizon with hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 3 to 5 and chroma of 2 to 4. They have weak or moderate, very fine to medium granular structure. Consistence is very friable or friable.
The E horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 5 to 7 and chroma of 1 or 2. It has weak or moderate, very fine to medium granular or subangular blocky or very thin or thin platy structure. Consistence is very friable or friable.
The Bh horizon has hue of 2.5YR to 7.5YR, with value and chroma of 2 to 4. Some pedons have a Bhs horizon with hue of 2.5YR or 5YR, value of 3 and chroma of 2 or 3. The Bs horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6 and chroma of 4 to 8. The B horizon has weak to strong, very fine to medium granular or subangular blocky structure in the upper part and may grade to single grain in the lower part. Consistence is very friable or friable in the upper part and may grade to loose in the lower part.
The BC horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 3 to 6 and chroma of 2 to 8. It has weak very fine or fine granular structure or it is single grain. Consistence is loose to friable.
The C horizon has hue of 10YR to 5Y, value of 3 to 5 and chroma of 2 to 4. Some rock fragments may have thin discontinuous calcium carbonate coatings.
COMPETING SERIES: The Brownstone(T), Colton, Grotto, Guardlake, Hermon, Marblemount, Stetson, Teneriffe and Waiska series are in the same family. Brownstone and Marblemount soils are less than 40 inches deep to bedrock. Colton soils have rock fragments dominated by granite with lesser amounts of sandstone, and have a loamy cap less than 10 inches thick. Grotto soils have a ustic moisture regime. Guardlake soils have higher soil reaction in the substratum with rock fragments dominated by limestone. Hermon soils do not have stratification in the substratum and have formed in glacial till. Stetson soils have a loamy cap greater than 17 inches thick. Teneriffe soils do not have stratification in the substratum and formed in volcanic ash. Waiska soils have rock fragments dominated by red and white sandstone and have a loamy cap less than 10 inches thick.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Masardis soils are on glaciomarine deltas, pitted outwash, eskers, kames and kame terraces. Slope ranges from 0 to 80 percent. The soils formed in gravelly glaciofluvial deposits derived mainly from slate, phyllite, and other dark colored metamorphic and sedimentary rocks, and to a lesser extent from granite, gneiss, schist and other light colored igneous rocks. The climate is humid and cool temperate. The mean annual temperature ranges from 38 to 46 degrees F, and mean annual precipitation ranges from 34 to 48 inches. The frost-free season ranges from 80 to 160 days. Elevation ranges from 5 to 2000 feet above mean sea level.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Colton and Stetson soils, and the Adams, Allagash, Bucksport, Fryeburg, Machias, Ondawa, Sheepscot and Wonsqueak soils. The Adams, Allagash, Colton and Stetson soils are in similar positions on the landscape. Adams and Allagash soils have less than 20 percent rock fragments, Colton soils have a loamy cap less than 10 inches thick, and Stetson soils have a loamy cap greater than 17 inches thick. Bucksport and Wonsqueak soils are organic soils in adjacent bogs. Fryeburg and Ondawa soils are on nearby flood plains. Sheepscot and Machias soils are moderately well drained and are in lower positions on the landscape.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat excessively drained. Surface runoff is slow or medium depending on slope and thickness of the O horizon. Permeability is moderately rapid in the loamy cap and is rapid or very rapid below.
USE AND VEGETATION: Mostly forested. Common tree species include white and red spruce, red pine, eastern white pine, balsam fir, paper birch, sugar maple, yellow birch, northern white cedar.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Maine. (MLRA's 143, 144B and 146) The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Amherst, Massachusetts
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Waldo County, Maine, 1979.
REMARKS: 1. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
a. Albic horizon - the zone from 2 to 3 inches (E horizon) b. Spodic horizon - the zone from 3 to 13 inches (Bh and Bs horizons)
ADDITIONAL DATA: Source of data used in establishing taxonomic class and range in characteristics is Maine Agricultural Experiment Station, Technical Bulletin 108, 1982.
Soil interpretation record numbers for the Masardis series are: Masardis, ME0069; Masardis, cobbly, ME0099; and Masardis Variant (moderately deep), ME0066.