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| Clarion-Nicollet-Webster soils | |
|---|---|
| Name | Clarion-Nicollet-Webster soils |
| Type | Soil series complex |
| Region | Midwestern United States |
| Components | Clarion, Nicollet, Webster |
| Parent material | Glacial till, loess |
| Drainage | Well-drained |
| Dominant horizon | Mollisol |
| Typical vegetation | Tallgrass prairie |
Clarion-Nicollet-Webster soils are a complex of agriculturally important soil series developed on glacial till and loess within the Midwestern United States. They support intensive row-crop production and are central to regional land-use planning, watershed management, and conservation programs. These soils have been the subject of study by federal and state agencies and have influenced agricultural policy, research priorities, and landscape restoration efforts.
Clarion, Nicollet, and Webster series occur on upland landscapes associated with the Corn Belt, Driftless Area, and glaciated plains adjacent to the Mississippi River, Missouri River, and Illinois River. Their extent underlies counties governed by administrations in Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, South Dakota, and Wisconsin, and they intersect watersheds administered by the United States Geological Survey, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and state departments such as the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The productivity of these soils has driven agricultural enterprises tied to companies like Cargill, Archer Daniels Midland, and cooperatives linked to the Farm Service Agency and National Farmers Union. Scientific interest has engaged institutions including Iowa State University, University of Minnesota, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USDA Agricultural Research Service, and the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
These soils formed on Wisconsin and Illinoian glacial deposits derived from bedrock provinces influenced by the Superior Upland, Appalachian Mountains sources, and the Canadian Shield, modified by loess from continental sources affecting the Central Lowlands. The regional climate is classified by the Köppen climate classification as humid continental, with precipitation patterns influenced by the Gulf of Mexico moisture corridor, the Jet Stream, and synoptic systems that also affect the Great Lakes region. Pleistocene glaciation events such as the Wisconsin glaciation and landform units like moraines and outwash plains determined the parent materials, while Holocene processes including aeolian deposition and fluvial reworking by tributaries of the Mississippi River refined the profiles.
Pedogenesis produced deep, dark, humic A horizons characteristic of the Mollisol order as defined by the USDA Soil Taxonomy and correlated with the World Reference Base for Soil Resources mollic horizons. Key formative processes include bioturbation by native prairie grasses associated with ecosystems like the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, and cryoturbation during late-Pleistocene cold periods. The series were delineated using criteria from the Soil Survey Manual and mapped under the National Cooperative Soil Survey. Taxonomic placement sits within suborders and great groups recognized by the Soil Survey Staff and cross-referenced with state soil surveys authored by agencies and university extension services.
Profiles show deep, granular structure, high organic carbon in the upper horizons, and commonly fine to medium loamy textures derived from silt loess and glacial till similar to tills described in studies by the Geological Society of America. Bulk density, porosity, and water-holding capacity values make these soils favorable for root penetration of crops like Zea mays and Glycine max, grown under management by organizations such as Monsanto (now part of Bayer AG) and farm operations represented by John Deere. Chemical properties include base saturation trends, cation-exchange capacity influenced by clay minerals such as smectite and illite known from regional mineralogical surveys, and pH buffered by carbonate fragments in some parent materials dating to formations correlated with the Cretaceous and Paleozoic strata in subsurface maps compiled by the United States Geological Survey.
Historically dominated by native prairie, conversion to cropland occurred under incentives tied to policies from the Homestead Act era and later programs administered by the Soil Conservation Service and Farm Security Administration. Current management emphasizes rotations, tillage systems, conservation tillage, cover cropping promoted by Natural Resources Conservation Service programs, and nutrient management plans aligned with guidance from Extension services at land-grant universities like Iowa State University and University of Minnesota. Irrigation infrastructure and drainage practices interact with permits from entities such as the Environmental Protection Agency and state water resource boards. Commodity markets, futures exchanges like the Chicago Board of Trade, and supply chains governed by corporations and cooperatives shape cropping decisions.
Soil mapping conducted through the National Cooperative Soil Survey and digital products like the Web Soil Survey delineate map units of the series across counties and townships. Historical cartography involved the United States Department of Agriculture and state geological surveys; modern mapping integrates GIS platforms from ESRI and remote sensing datasets from Landsat and MODIS. Geospatial analyses inform conservation easements negotiated with organizations such as The Nature Conservancy and federal programs administered by the Farm Service Agency and Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Erosion, sediment transport to the Mississippi River Basin, and nutrient runoff contributing to hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico are major concerns prompting watershed initiatives by the Hypoxia Task Force and regional partnerships. Soil organic carbon loss and greenhouse gas fluxes are studied in contexts including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessments and university research projects funded by agencies like the National Science Foundation and USDA. Conservation measures include prairie restoration supported by The Nature Conservancy, riparian buffer programs under the Conservation Reserve Program, and nutrient-reduction strategies developed with the Environmental Protection Agency and state agencies.
The Clarion, Nicollet, and Webster series were named following conventions of the National Cooperative Soil Survey using locality names associated with townships and counties cataloged by the United States Geological Survey and state survey maps. Early 20th-century soil surveyors from the Soil Conservation Service and agronomists at land-grant institutions standardized series descriptions; subsequent revisions incorporated analytical methods developed at institutions like the USDA Agricultural Research Service laboratories and university soil science departments. Ongoing updates reflect changes in taxonomy from the Soil Survey Staff and integration of digital soil mapping promoted by organizations such as the International Union of Soil Sciences and national agencies.
Category:Soil types