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

Soil Moisture Characteristics Gobles soils are imperfectlydrained . They are moderately to slowly permeable.Groundwater rises within the B horizons of Gobles soils fortemporary periods each year . They have high water-holdingcapacities and surface runoff is also relatively high .Commonly Associated Soils Muriel (MUI), Kelvin(KVN) and Colwood (CWO) soils . are commonly associatedwith Gobles soils as subdominant components in map unitsGOB 4, GOB 3 and GOB 13, respectively. Muriel and Kelvinsoils are moderately well and poorly drained, respectively, withsoil materials similar to Gobles . Colwood soils are poorlydrained, but occur on deep silt loam materials.Land Use and Management Gobles soils are good agriculturalsoils for general field crops . Grain corn, hay andspring grains are the most common crops on these soils . Theiruse and productivity is usually enhanced with tile drainage. Ofthe specialty crops, soybeans are occasionally produced onGobles soils, and they are fairly well-suited to this use .Granby Soils (GNY)General Soil Description Granby soils have developedon glaciolacustrine materials with textures of sand and loamysand . They are poorly drained .Surface Ap horizons ofGranby soils are about 20 cm thickconsisting of sandy loam or loamy sand textures . They are normallyquite high in organic matter content, and peaty surfacehorizons are not uncommon . This is the usual situation inwooded sites . Thin A or B horizons with prominent mottlesand gleyed colours usually occur between 20-25 cm depth . Thisoverlies prominently mottled Btg horizons extending fromabout 25 to 60 cm . They have a slight increase in clay content,and textures ofsandy loam . Granby Ck horizons occur at variabledepths ranging from 50 to more than 100 cm . Their carbonatecontents also tend to be variable and calcareousnessranges from weakly to strongly calcareous, the latter conditionusually occurring with increasing depth. Soil reaction ofGranby soils ranges from strongly acidic or neutral in the surfacehorizons to mildly alkaline in the subsoil . Soil classificationis usually Humic Luvic Gleysol in Brant County.Elsewhere, it is usually Orthic Humic Gleysol .Soil Moisture Characteristics Most Granby soils arepoorly drained, except for some peaty phase Granby soilswhich are very poorly drained . They usually are rapidly permeable . Most horizons are saturated by groundwater for long periodseach year unless artificially drained . Granby soils havelow water-holding capacities and slow surface runoff.Commonly Associated Soils Brady (BAY) and Stayner(STN) soils are commonly associated with Granby soils as subdominantcomponents in map units GNY 4 and GNY 10,respectively. Brady soils are imperfectly drained, with soilmaterials similar to Granby. Stayner soils are very poorlydrained and occur in depressional areas where 40 to 100 cm oforganic materials have accumulated over the sand .Land Use andManagement Granby soils in their naturalcondition are relatively poor soils for agricultural use becauseof wetness limitations . A large portion of them still occur inundrained forested swamps in Brant County. On cleared areas,undrained Granby soils can be used for pasture. Where artificialdrainage has been established, Granby soils are well-suitedfor grain corn, soybeans, tobacco and some commercial vegetablecrops .Guelph Soils (GUP)General Soil Description Guelph soils have developedon glacial till, mainly of loam texture . They are well-drained .Surface Ap horizons of Guelph soils are about 20 cm thickand are low to medium in organic matter content . They areusually loam or silt loam in texture . Brownish-coloured Bmhorizons underlie the surface horizon to a depth of 35 to 45 cm .They also are loam or silt loam in texture. These horizons maybe absent on slopes where surface erosion has occurred, as theyhave been incorporated by plowing into the Ap horizon . Distinctivedark-brown Bt horizons usually occur at a depth rangingfrom 35 to 70 cm . They have a pronounced increase in claycontent and are usually loam to clay loam in texture . Thesehorizons often have awavy, tongueing boundary with underlyingCk horizons . Ck horizons occur at variable depths, withthe mean depth being 60 to 70 cm . They are generally loam intexture and are strongly calcareous . Soil reaction of Guelphsoils ranges from near neutral in the surface horizons to moderatelyalkaline in the subsoil . Soil classification is BrunisolicGray Brown Luvisol .Soil Moisture Characteristics Guelph soils are welldrained. They are moderately permeable and have mediumwater-holding capacities . Surface runoff can be moderatelyhigh and it increases markedly as slope increases, and as theorganic matter content of the surface horizon decreases .Commonly Associated Soils London (LOD), Woolwich(WOW), Colwood (CWO) and Scotland (STD) soils are commonlyassociated with Guelph soils as subdominant components in map units GUP 2, GUP 4, GUP 6 and GUP 7,respectively. London soils are imperfectly drained with soilmaterials similar to Guelph soils . Woolwich soils are welldrained,and have a surficial veneer of silt overlying the loamtill of the Guelph soils . Colwood soils are poorly drained andconsist of silty deposits in excess of 100 cm in depth . Scotlandsoils are rapidly drained, and are characterized by sandy texturesoverlying gravelly loam glacial till . .Land Use and Management Guelph soils are good soilsfor agricultural use. They are commonly used for field cropssuch as grain corn, hay, winter wheat and spring grains .Recently, specialty crops such as soybeans have appeared onGuelph soils . The only limitations of significance affecting theuse of Guelph soils for field crops are topography and past erosion. Complex slopes exceeding 3 °Io have a slight topographiclimitation . This limitation becomes more severe as slopeincreases . Hummocky or rolling topography may also havemoderate to severe erosion limitations due to loss of topsoil bywater erosion .Haldimand Soils (HIM)General Soil Description Haldimand soils have developedon glaciolacustrine sediments of clay or heavy clay textures. They are imperfectly drained .Surface Ap horizons of Haldimand soils are about 20 cmthick and silty clay loam or silty clay in texture . They are moderatelyhigh in organic matter, ranging from 4 to 6 016 . The Bmhorizons underlying the surface horizon are prominently mottledand generally silty clay in texture . They extend to an averagedepth of about 40 cm . The Bt horizons normally havedistinctive prismatic and angular blocky structure. In cultivatedfields, they often have compacted and amorphous structure. Soil texture usually is silty clay or clay. The Ck horizons