The Paxton
soil series was established in
Worcester County, Massachusetts
Worcester County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 862,111, making it the second-most populous county in Massachusetts. Being 1,510.6 ...
in 1922, and is named for the town of
Paxton where it was first described and mapped, and is the
state soil
State most commonly refers to:
* State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory
**Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country
**Nation state, a ...
of
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
.
Taxonomic classification
Coarse-loamy, mixed, active, mesic Oxyaquic Dystrudepts.
Paxton soils are in the
Inceptisol
Inceptisols are a soil order in USDA soil taxonomy. They form quickly through alteration of parent material. They are more developed than Entisols. They have no accumulation of clays, iron oxide, aluminium oxide or organic matter. They have a ...
soil order of soil taxonomy.
The term "coarse-loamy" indicates that the soil has less than 18%
clay
Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...
and at least 15% or more particles that are fine sand or coarser.
The term "mixed" indicates no single mineral is over 40 percent. The term "active" represents a ratio of the cation-exchange capacity to clay of the pedon.
The term "mesic" indicates the soil developed in a temperature between 8 and 15 degrees C.
The "Typic Dystrudepts" are typical profiles
ypicwith low pH
ystrwith an
udic moisture regime and are within the Inceptisol order
pts
Distribution and uses of Paxton soils
Paxton soils are mapped on convex slopes of oval-shaped, streamline hills called drumlins. They are mapped throughout the mesic soil temperature regime of
New England
New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
and
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
.
Where stones have been cleared and slopes are gentle, Paxton soils are well suited to cultivate crops, hay, and improved pasture. Additional land uses include suburban housing and woodland production. The main agricultural uses for Paxton soils are apples, corn, and silage.
Paxton soils have a high water holding capacity and are well suited for intensive agricultural and woodland production. Trees commonly growing on Paxton soils include red, white, and black oak, hickory, sugar maple, red maple, gray and black birch, white pine, and hemlock. Paxton soils have slowly permeable dense till (lodgement till) layer (Cd horizon) that perch seasonal water tables. These limitations often interfere with
septic systems for commercial and residential development.
See also
*
List of U.S. state soils
This is a list of U.S. state soils. A state soil is a soil that has special significance to a particular U.S. state, state. Each state in the United States has selected a state soil, twenty of which have been legislatively established. These offic ...
References
{{reflist
External links
Paxton Soil Page
Pedology
Soil in the United States
Symbols of Massachusetts
Geology of Massachusetts
Types of soil