THE OCONTO COUNTY SOIL SURVEY TO ANSWER QUESTIONS

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1 2011 Wisconsin Envirothon KEY Soils and Land Use Exam Answers that are correct but differ strongly from answer key must be initialed by Station Captain as an approved answer prior to delivery to score stewards. USE THE OCONTO COUNTY SOIL SURVEY TO ANSWER QUESTIONS 1-4 The Pensaukee River Wetland Complex is a mixture of state (Pensaukee Wildlife Area) and privately owned lands. This estuary is located on a sandy lake plain near the mouth of the Pensaukee River on the western Green Bay shore of Oconto County. The site includes many wetland community types. Of greatest interest are the large emergent marshes along the shoreline, which are best developed south of the river. 1. What is the soil mapping unit symbol and name (including slope) at the intersection of County Trunk Highway SS and County Trunk Highway S in Section 11 of T. 27N. R. 21E.? IsA Iosco loamy fine sand_0 to 3 percent slopes 2. In the marsh north of the mouth of the Pensaukee River as it empties into Green Bay locate the large area of Cormant loamy fine sand in Section 12. (5pts; 2pts for a, 3pts for b ) a. What is the drainage class of this soil? Poorly and Very poorly b. What three landscape positions is Cormant loamy fine sand is located on? Flats, Depressions and Drainageways 3. A family which enjoys the Green Bay shoreline, wetlands, and viewing waterfowl would like to build a house and it could be located on Cormant loamy fine sand. Would this be a good place to build? Why or why not? (5pts; 2pts for yes/no and 3pts for reasoning) No. Acceptable reasons include: soil is subject to ponding or flooding or wetness or can t put a septic system in due to wetness and/ or too sandy providing a poor filter /12 Running Total: 12 4/29/2011 FINAL VERSION Page 1 of 8

2 4. Some soils on the fringe of the Green Bay estuary, (Pensaukee Wildlife area) are currently farmed. If the water control measures (drainage ditches or drainage tile) for fields where these soils occur were disabled allowing them to flood on a natural cycle what would likely happen to the soils? a. bedrock would be exposed to the surface b. parent material would change for the worse c. soil structure and organic matter would increase d. soil texture would change 5. Which of the following soil conditions is a proper characteristic of a soil for septic tank filter fields? a. high water table at 18 inches b. limestone bedrock at 24 inches c. sandy loam glacial till d. silty clay textured C horizon 6. Which of the following soil surface textures has the highest potential for wind erosion? a. loamy sand b. sandy clay loam c. silty clay d. silt loam 7. Soils that have a high water holding capacity usually have a high content of which soil texture particle size? a. clay b. loam c. sand d. silt /8 Running Total: 20 4/29/2011 FINAL VERSION Page 2 of 8

3 8. Soil structure is defined as the manner in which soil particles are assembled in aggregate form. What are four soil structures common to Wisconsin? (8pts, 2pts each) Acceptable answers include: Platy OR blocky OR subangular OR angular blocky OR granular or single grain OR prismatic OR columnar 9. Soil provides the physical material in which plants grow. Water held by soil particles is very important as well. (4pts, 2pts each) a. What is the term used when soil-water is no longer available to be taken up by plants? Wilting point b. What is the term used when the soil has reached the maximum amount of water it can hold? Field Capacity 10. What are three soil forming or environmental factors that contribute to soil profile development? (3pts) Acceptable answers include: Climate OR topography OR relief OR plants OR vegetation OR parent material OR time 11. What plant nutrient generally requires soil bacteria to make the nutrient available for plant root uptake? a. calcium b. nitrogen c. phosphorus d. potassium /17 Running Total: 37 4/29/2011 FINAL VERSION Page 3 of 8

4 12. What are two likely types of parent materials for soils occurring in the fresh water Green Bay estuary? (2pts, 1pt each) a. alluvial c. glacial b. eolian d. lacustrine 13. What best describes the redoximorphic features of the soils that occur in the fresh water Green Bay estuary? a. close to the soil surface with a high percent of coverage b. deeper in the soil profile with a high percent of coverage c. nonexistent redoximorphic features d. weak, faint barely visible redoximorphic features 14. Which soil ecosystem is more likely to have the largest amount of soil organisms (bacteria, fungi, protozoa, nematodes, arthropods, earthworms)? a. conventional tilled agricultural field b. no-till agricultural field c. scotch pine forest d. tallgrass prairie 15. What type of organism is found in the greatest numbers within the soil? a. earthworms b. insects c. bacteria d. fungi 16. What is the primary transport agent of colluvium? Gravity 17. What soil amendment is typically added to the soil to overcome excess soil acidity? Acceptable answers include: lime or ground limestone /12 Running Total: 49 4/29/2011 FINAL VERSION Page 4 of 8

5 18. Which soil horizon is characterized by very little mineral matter? a. A horizon b. C horizon c. E horizon d. O horizon 19. Which soil constituent has the most surface area per unit of measure? a. clay b. gravel c. sand d. silt 20. The Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) is A= R x K x L x S x C x P, and it is used to determine how much erosion is occurring on an agricultural field. Match the letter symbol of the USLE to the correct meaning of the letter. (7pts) a. P conservation practice factor e. L slope length factor b. C cropping factor f. K soil erodability factor c. R rainfall factor g. S slope steepness factor d. A annual soil loss USE THE SAMPLES IN THE CONTAINERS TO ANSWER QUESTIONS (ANSWERS TBA) 21. What is the name and Munsell color symbol for the soil in container 1? (3pts, 1pt for symbol, 2pts for name) 5YR 4/6 Yellowish red 22. What is the soil texture in container 2? Silt OR silt loam 23. What is the soil structure in container 3? Granular OR Subangular Blocky 24. What is the parent material in container 4? Glacial Till OR Till /20 Running Total: 69 4/29/2011 FINAL VERSION Page 5 of 8

6 ANSWER QUESTIONS BY USING THIS SOIL PROFILE DESCRIPTION: Ap--0 to 23 centimeters; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) silt loam, light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) dry; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; many fine roots; about 6 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles; ph 6.8; abrupt smooth boundary. E--23 to 30 centimeters; brown (10YR 5/3) silt loam, very pale brown (10YR 7/3) dry; weak thin platy structure; very friable; common fine roots; about 1 percent gravel and 1 percent cobbles; ph 6.1; clear wavy boundary. B/E--30 to 48 centimeters; about 70 percent dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) silt loam (Bt); moderate very fine angular blocky structure; friable; few distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; penetrated by brown (10YR 5/3) silt loam (E), very pale brown (10YR 7/3) dry; weak thin platy structure; very friable; common fine roots; ph 4.9; clear irregular boundary. Bt1--48 to 71 centimeters; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) silt loam; moderate fine angular blocky structure; friable; common fine roots; common distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; common coats of pale brown (10YR 6/3) clean silt and very fine sand grains on vertical faces of peds; about 1 percent gravel and cobbles; ph 4.5; abrupt wavy boundary. 2Bt2--71 to 79 centimeters; brown (7.5YR 4/4) loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common fine roots; common prominent dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) clay films on faces of peds and in pores; common coatings of pale brown (10YR 6/3) clean silt and sand grains primarily on vertical faces of peds; about 11 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles; ph 4.4; abrupt wavy boundary. 2Bt3--79 to 84 centimeters; brown (7.5YR 4/4) very gravelly sandy loam; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; friable; few fine roots; few distinct dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) clay bridges between mineral grains; about 34 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles; ph 4.5; abrupt wavy boundary. 3C--84 to 152 centimeters; brown (7.5YR 5/4) stratified sand and gravelly sand; single grain; loose; about 16 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles; few fine roots; ph /29/2011 FINAL VERSION Page 6 of 8

7 25. What is the texture of the 2Bt2 horizon? Loam 26. What is the grade of the structure in the E horizon? Weak 27. What is the type of structure in the Bt1 horizon? Angular blocky 28. How many parent materials does this soil have? Three 29. Based on the horizon soil colors and soil textures throughout the soil, what is the drainage class of this soil? Well drained VISIT THE SOIL PIT TO ANSWER QUESTIONS What is the structure of the horizon labeled II in the soil pit? (3pts, site specific question, answers TBA) Single Grain 31. What is the moist color (name and complete Munsell symbol) of the horizon labeled I? (3pts, 1 pt for symbol, 2pts for name; site specific question, answers TBA) 7.5YR 4/4, Brown OR 7.5YR 4/6, Strong Brown 32. What is the texture of the horizon labeled I? (3pts, site specific question, answers TBA) Sandy Loam OR Loamy Sand /19 Running Total: 88 4/29/2011 FINAL VERSION Page 7 of 8

8 33. What is the thickness of the A horizon? (3pts, site specific question, answers TBA) 9 OR 10 (3pts, site specific question, answer TBD) 34. Using a clinometer, what is the slope of the land between the two stakes? (3pts, site specific question, answers TBA) 9% OR 10% USING THE TEXTURE TRIANGLE, IDENTIFY THE TEXTURE OF THREE SOILS BASED ON THEIR RELATIVE PROPORTIONS OF CLAY, SAND, AND SILT. (s % clay, 31% silt, and 31% sand Clay Loam 36. 9% clay, 22% silt, and 69% sand Sandy Loam % clay, 44% silt, and 45% sand Loam TIEBREAKER Soil color helps you evaluate which two soil properties? (No point value, all or nothing) Organic matter content and soil drainage class /12 Running Total: 100 4/29/2011 FINAL VERSION Page 8 of 8