LOCATION RAWLINGS GAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, subactive, thermic Typic Hapludults
TYPICAL PEDON: Rawlings gravelly sandy loam on a southwest facing 19 percent slope, at an elevation of 620 feet, in woodland. (Colors are for moist soil.)
A1--0 to 2 inches; dark brown (7.5YR 4/2) gravelly sandy loam; moderate medium granular structure; very friable; many very fine, fine, and medium, and few coarse roots; few fine flakes of mica; 10 percent pebbles, 5 percent cobbles, and 5 percent stones; slightly acid; abrupt smooth boundary.
A2--2 to 10 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/3) sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; common very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots; few fine flakes of mica; 10 percent pebbles; moderately acid; gradual wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the A horizon is 5 to 12 inches.)
Bt1--10 to 15 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/4) sandy loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots; few distinct brown (10YR 5/3) clay films on faces of peds; few fine flakes of mica; 5 percent pebbles; moderately acid; clear wavy boundary.
Bt2--15 to 30 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) sandy clay loam; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky and moderately plastic; few very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots; many distinct brown (7.5YR 5/3) clay films on faces of peds; common fine flakes of mica; 2 percent pebbles; moderately acid; clear irregular boundary.
Bt3--30 to 33 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/3) sandy clay loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots; few distinct brown (10YR 5/3) clay films on faces of peds; common fine flakes of mica; 2 percent pebbles; moderately acid; abrupt irregular boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizons is 12 to 27 inches.)
R--33 inches; hard granite gneiss with widely spaced fractures.
TYPE LOCATION: Morgan County, Georgia; located within Hard Labor Creek State Park, about 5,100 feet southeast of the confluence of Hard Labor Creek and Mountain Hill Branch; USGS Quadrangle, Rutledge North, GA (1971), lat. 33 degrees 34 minutes 37 seconds N. and long. 83 degrees 39 minutes 16 seconds W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness ranges from 20 to 39 inches. Depth to hard bedrock is 20 to 40 inches. Reaction ranges from very strongly acid to moderately acid throughout the profile, unless limed. Rock fragments range from 0 to 35 percent by volume in the A, E, and C horizons, and from 0 to 15 percent by volume in the BA, BE, Bt, and BC horizons. Content of mica flakes ranges from none to common in the A, E, BE, BA, and upper Bt horizons, and from few to many in the lower Bt, BC, and C horizons.
The A or Ap horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 3 to 5, and chroma of 2 to 4. In areas not significantly affected by erosion, it is sandy loam or loam in the fine-earth fraction. In severely eroded areas, texture is sandy clay loam in the fine-earth fraction.
The E horizon, if it occurs, is less than 6 inches thick, and has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 3 to 8. It is loamy sand or sandy loam in the fine-earth fraction.
The BA or BE horizon, if it occurs, is less than 8 inches thick, has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 3 to 6. It is sandy loam, loam, or sandy clay loam.
The Bt horizon typically has hue of 2.5YR to 7.5YR, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 4 to 8, but includes hue of 10YR with value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 4 to 6. Mottles are none to common in shades of red, brown, and yellow. It is sandy loam, loam, sandy clay loam, or clay loam.
The BC horizon, if it occurs, is less than 10 inches thick, and has hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 4 to 8. Mottles in shades of red, brown, and yellow are none to common. It is sandy loam, loam, sandy clay loam, or clay loam.
The C horizon, if it occurs, is less than 15 inches thick, and is similar in color to the BC horizon. It is loamy saprolite in the fine-earth fraction.
The Cr horizon, if it occurs, is less than 6 inches thick of highly weathered felsic igneous or metamorphic bedrock, which overlies the R horizon.
The R horizon is hard felsic igneous or metamorphic bedrock, primarily granite or granite gneiss.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Buckhead, Cheaha, Fruithurst, Montonia, Rion, Rome, Sherwood, State, Sugargrove, Tidings, and Wickham series of the same family, and the Saw series in a related family. Buckhead, Rion, Rome, State, and Wickham soils do not have bedrock within 60 inches of the soil surface. Cheaha soils have sandstone bedrock, and have greater than 15 percent sandstone cobbles in each horizon. Fruithurst and Montonia soils have a paralithic contact of weathered slate or serecite schist at depths of 20 to 40 inches. Saw soils are in a fine family. Sherwood soils have sandstone bedrock at depths of 30 to 60 inches. Sugargrove soils have a paralithic contact of weathered interbedded siltstone and limestone at depths of 40 to 60 inches. Tidings soils have a paralithic contact of weathered interbedded sandstone and shale at depths of 40 to 60 inches.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Rawlings soils are on gently sloping to steep summits and side slopes in the Piedmont uplands. Slope ranges from 6 to 45 percent. These soils formed in material weathered from felsic igneous and metamorphic rock, primarily granite or granite gneiss. Mean annual temperature is in the range of 59 to 62 degrees F. Mean annual precipitation is in the range of 45 to 50 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Buckhead, and Wickham soils, and the Cecil, Gwinnett, Lloyd, and Pacolet soils. Except for Gwinnett soils, none of these soils have bedrock within a depth of 60 inches. Gwinnett soils have a paralithic contact of hornblende gneiss at depths of 40 to 60 inches. Additionally, Cecil, Gwinnett, Lloyd, and Pacolet soils are in fine families, and are generally on less sloping landform positions, and Wickham soils are on stream terraces. Buckhead soils are on landform positions similar to those of Rawlings.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium to very rapid runoff; moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most of the acreage is wooded, with the remainder in pasture. Common trees in forested areas are loblolly pine, white oak, southern red oak, hickory, and American beech. Common understory plants include flowering dogwood, American holly, muscadine grape, honeysuckle, greenbrier, and poison ivy.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Piedmont area of Georgia. The series is of small extent.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Raleigh, North Carolina
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Morgan County, Georgia; 1998
REMARKS: The Rawlings series was formerly included with the Rion series. However, Rion soils do not have bedrock within a depth of 60 inches of the soil surface.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - the zone from the surface to 10 inches (A1 and A2 horizons)
Argillic horizon - the zone between depths of 10 and 33 inches (Bt horizon)
Lithic contact - the occurrence of hard bedrock at a depth of 33 inches (R horizon)
MLRA- 136
TABULAR SERIES DATA:
SOI-5 Soil Name Slope Airtemp FrFr/Seas Precip Elevation GA0111 RAWLINGS 6- 45 59- 62 184-241 39- 49 500-800SOI-5 FloodL FloodH Watertable Kind Months Bedrock Hardness GA0111 NONE 6.0-6.0 - 20-40 HARD
SOI-5 Depth Texture 3-Inch No-10 Clay% -CEC- GA0111 0-10 SL 0- 5 80-100 5-20 3- 6 GA0111 0-10 ST-SL 5- 15 55- 85 5-20 2- 5 GA0111 10-15 COSL SL SCL 0- 5 80-100 10-30 3- 9 GA0111 15-33 SCL CL L 0- 15 60-100 18-35 3- 12 GA0111 33-43 UWB - - - -
SOI-5 Depth -pH- O.M. Salin Permeab Shnk-Swll GA0111 0-10 4.5- 7.3 .5-2. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW GA0111 0-10 4.5- 7.3 .5-2. 0- 0 2.0- 6.0 LOW GA0111 10-15 4.5- 6.5 0.-.5 0- 0 0.6- 2.0 LOW GA0111 15-33 4.5- 6.0 0.-.5 0- 0 0.6- 6.0 LOW GA0111 33-43 - - - -