Soils and Geology

Soils

Easy to dig through and free of large rocks, the soil on plot nine is a sandy clay texture.  The pit is located in the southeast part of our plot on a north facing aspect.  The surrounding cover is white pine and hemlock, and the pit lies only a few feet downhill from the muehley trail.  A thick organic layer of approximately two inches overlays the soil.  This layer is composed mostly of needles, leaves, decomposing branches and roots. 

A soil pit showing the O, A, B, and C horizons.

Photo Credit: Eric Donnelly

Beneath this layer is the A layer, dark and thick (approximately a foot). Both the A and O horizons have a PH of 4.5.   Acidity increased with soil depth as can be seen in the graph below.

This is likely due to the high concentration of White Pine and Eastern Hemlock in the soil.  The B layer was approximately eight inches deep, somewhat more clay feeling in texture, and with a PH of 6.5.  There were roots growing all the way down to the C horizon, which was light colored sandy clay.  Small chunks of clay were present in the soil at this depth. 

PH of the various horizons.

From top to bottom is the C, B, A horizons.

Soil samples from each horizon of soil pit.

Photo Credit: Eric Donnelly

Although this soil pit gives us an idea of the types of soil found in our one hectare plot, it should be noted that this is only one sample of the soil.  Although it was beyond the timescope of this project it would have been interesting to dig soil pits on different parts of the plot and compare them.  The start of a second soil pit on a steeper slope nearby showed a much thinner organic layer and A horizon, with the B horizon starting at approximately 8 inches.
According to a map by the Vermont Center for Geographic Information made in 2005, the underlying bedrock is made up of Dunham Dolostone, although we were unable to locate any protruding bedrock within our site to confirm this. 

Surficial Geology

Multiple streams cut through the plot and meet up into one larger stream. The stream cuts deep into the soil revealing a layer of clay that is between 2-3 feet in some places. Near the western end of the plot there is a wet marsh area were the stream splits into two again. There is no visibly bedrock, only organic soil and clay are visible.

The stream running east-west through the plot.

Photo Credit: Eric Donnelly