The Soils of Brant County - Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

soils . A very common limitation to the use of Brantford soils issteep or irregular topography. Fields with complex and steepslopes are difficult to manage and generally reveal very serioussoil erosion on the knolls . Brantford map units with complextopography present additional problems in management dueto variability in drainage. Intermittent wet soil conditions cancause delays in seeding, as well as difficulties during harvestoperations . Over-compacted subsoils can occur as a consequenceof field operations during wet conditions .Burford Soils (BUF)General Soil Description Burford soils have developedon glaciofluvial deposits of gravelly sand and gravel textures .Theyare rapidly drained soils .Surface Ap horizons ofBurford soils usually consist of 15-20 cm of loam or silt loam with various amounts of gravel .They have an organic matter level of about 3-4% . Brownishcoloured Bm horizons underlie the surface horizons and alsoare loamy in texture. They are relatively thin and generally donot extend below a depth of 35 cm . Distinctive dark-brown Bthorizons are present between about 35-50 cm depth, and occasionallymay extend to 75 cm . They are noticeably higher inclay content than other horizons in the soil profile with gravellyclay loam textures being typical . They tend to develop at theinterface between the loamy surficial materials and the gravellysubsoil, hence they possess a high content of gravel .Strongly calcareous Ck horizons generally occur below 50 cmand are usually gravelly coarse sand or gravelly loamy sand intexture . Soil reaction of Burford soils ranges from near neutralin the upper horizons to moderately alkaline in the subsoil . Soilclassification is Brunisolic GrayBrown Luvisol .Burford cobbly phase (BURCO) soils are similar to theBurford soils described above, except for a predominance ofrounded, cobble-sized coarse fragments (7.5-25 cm diameter)in the surface horizons .Soil Moisture Characteristics Burford soils are rapidlydrained . They have high permeability and low water-holdingcapacity. The relatively high clay content of the Bt horizondoes enhance the moisture storage within the plant root zone ;however, significant moisture deficits do occur in Burford soilsduring prolonged dry periods . Surface runoff is low on Burfordsoils except on steep slopes where it is moderate .Commonly Associated Soils Burford soils occur withCaledon soils in map unit BUF 6 and with Teeswater soils inmap unit BUF 7 . In both instances, thin veneers of sandy orloamy materials 40-100 cm thick overlie the gravelly subsoil .Fox soils also may occur with Burford soils in mapunit BUF 3 .This soil combination arises where deposits of sandy materialin excess of 1 metre in depth overlies the gravelly-textured subsoilin parts of the landscape.Land Useand Management Burford soils on nearly levelor very gently sloping topography are moderately good soilsfor agricultural use. They are most commonly used for graincorn or winter wheat . They have slight to moderate soil moisturelimitations for these common field crops . Under intensivemanagement for specialty crops such as tobacco or potatoes,they can be highly productive where irrigation is used .Caledon Soils (CAD)General Soil Description Caledon soils have developedon sandy fluvial veneer 40-100 cm thick overlying gravelly fluvialdeposits . They are well-drained soils .Surface Ap horizons of Caledon soils consist of 15-20 cmof loam or sandy loam textures . They have an organic mattercontent of about 3% . Brownish-coloured Bm horizons ofsandy loamtexture underliethe surface horizons extending to adepth of about 40-50 cm . Distinct dark-brown Bt horizons arepresent, generally between 50 to 70 cm depth . They are noticeablyhigher in clay content than other horizons in the soil profileand are gravelly sandy clay loam texture. They develop atthe interface of the sandy surficial materials and the gravellysubsoil, hence they contain a relatively high content of gravel .The strongly calcareous Ck horizons generally are presentbelow 70 cm depth and are gravelly sand in texture . Soil reactionof Caledon soils ranges from near neutral in the upperhorizons to moderately alkaline in the subsoil . Soil classificationis Brunisolic Gray Brown Luvisol .Soil Moisture Characteristics Caledon soils are welldrained. They have high permeability and low water-holdingcapacity. The relatively high clay content of the Bt horizonsdoes enhance moisture storage within the plant root zone ;however, a significant moisture deficit does occur in Caledonsoils during periods of prolonged drought . Surface runoff isslow on Caledon soils .Commonly Associated Soils Camilla soils commonlyoccur with Caledon soils as subdominant components in mapunit CAD 2 . They have similar parent materials as Caledonsoils, but are imperfectly drained . Caledon soils also occurwith Burford and Teeswater soils as subdominant componentsin the CAD 3 and CAD 4 map units, respectively. In the CAD 3map unit, the gravelly-textured subsoil can be found within 40cm of the surface on significant occasions giving rise to Burfordsoils . In CAD 4, the texture of the overburden occasionallyranges from loam to silt loam, comprising the Teeswatersoils . Occurrences of deep, sandy-textured Fox or Plainfieldsoils in association with Caledon soils may occur in map unitsCAD 6 and CAD 7, respectively.Land Use and Management Caledon soils are moderatelygood soils for agricultural use. They are used for fieldcrops such as grain corn and hay crops, and have slight to moderatelimitations for these uses . Specialty crops such as tobaccoand potatoes are commonly produced on Caledon soils . Underintensive management where irrigation is used, these soils canbe highly productive.Camilla Soils (CML)General Soil Description Camilla soils have developedon sandy fluvial veneer 40-100 cm thick overlying gravelly fluvialdeposits . They are imperfectly drained soils .Surface Ap horizons of Camilla soils consist of about 30cm of sandy loam texture and are relatively high in organicmatter content . Brownish mottled Bm horizons underlie thesurface horizon and are of similar texture . They extend to adepth of about 45 cm . The gravel content increases in the Bthorizons, with textures ranging from gravelly sandy loam tosandyloam . Thesehorizons also are slightly higher in claycontentthan the adjacent horizons . The Ck horizons which occurgenerally at about 55 cm depth show a marked increase ingravel with gravelly sandy loam textures . They are stronglycalcareous . Soil reaction ofCamilla soils ranges from near neutralin the upper horizons to moderately alkaline in the subsoil .Soil classification is Gleyed Brunisolic Gray Brown Luvisot .