Soil Report - Agriculture et Agroalimentaire Canada

General Land Use Comments
(1) Wetness can be a limitation for the agricultural use of
Niagara soils, and some tile drainage may be necessary ;
otherwise, they are good agricultural soils used for general
field crops such as grain corn, soybeans, and winter wheat .
(2) Forest production on Niagara soils is fair to moderately
good, being somewhat limited by factors associated with the
high clay contents of many of the soils .
Normandale Soils (NDE)
Location and Extent Normandale soils are located on
relatively level sand plains in the region, especially in the
Waterford and Turkey Point areas . There are 182 ha of pure
Normandale map units, and 2155 ha of Normandale soils in
complex map units in which they are most extensively
associated with St. Williams and Wauseon soils .
Landform and Topography Normandale soils are located
on lacustrine sand plains having wind-modified and windsorted
surfaces, sometimes formed into low dunes. These
sands often merge into lacustrine silt deposits . The topography
ranges from level to very gently sloping .
Parent Materials and Textures Normandale soils have
developed on wind-modified glaciolacustrine sediments
ranging from very fine sandy loam to very fine sand.
Surface textures are most often loamy fine sand, very fine
sand or very fine sandy loam, whereas in the subsoil, very
fine sandy loam and fine sandy loam textures predominate .
Soil Moisture Characteristics Normandale soils are imperfectly
drained and rapidly tomoderatelypermeable . Groundwater
levels may be near the surface during the early part of the
growing season . Normandale soils have low to moderate
water-holding capacities, so that the surface horizons can be
droughty during summer. Surface runoff is slow to moderate
depending on slopes and textures .
General foil Description The surface Ap horizons of
Normandate soils usually range between 20 and 30 cm in
thickness, and textures consist, most commonly, of loamy
fine sand, very fine sandy loam or very fine sand . Similar
textures are found in the subsoil, but occasional layers of
loamy very fine sand, fine sand and fine sandy loam also
occur . Subsoil horizons have distinct or prominent mottles,
usually reddish-yellow or yellowish-brown . A distinct Bt
horizon is usually present just above the calcareous C
horizon . The Ck horizons usually begin at depths between
50 and 110 cm, and tend to be strongly calcareous . Soil
reaction in the surface and upper subsoil horizons ranges
from very strongly acidic to neutral, but in the Ck horizons it
is usually mildly alkaline . Soil classification is usually Gleyed
Brunisolic Gray Brown Luvisol .
Commonly Associated Soils St. Williams (SLI) and Wauseon
(WUS) soils are those most often associated with Normandale
soils, in map units NDE 3 and NDE 8, respectively . St.
Williams soils are composed of soil materials similar to
Normandale soils, but are poorly drained. Wauseon soils are
also poorly drained, but have clays underlying 40 to 100cm
of sandy surface deposits .
General Land Use Comments
(1) Normandale soils are very good agricultural soils, used
for common crops like grain corn and winter wheat, and
special crops like tobacco, sweet corn, strawberries, lima
beans and onions. Supplemental irrigation is necessary
during the summer for certain special crops like tobacco .
(2) Normandale soils are very suitable for most forest tree
species . Wind erosion could be a problem for seedlings .
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Oakland Soils (OKL)
Location and Extent Oakland soils are found on the
Norfolk sand plain where shallow sands overlie gravelly
sand materials, in the northwest part of the region . There
are 225 ha of pure Oakland map units, and 1959 ha of
Oakland soils in complex map units where they are associated
most commonly with Scotland and Vanessa soils .
Landform and Topography Oakland soils occur on relatively
shallow lacustrine and eolian sands overlying gravelly,
sandy Wentworth till and outwash gravels associated with
the Galt and Paris moraines. The topography is level to very
gently sloping .
Parent Materials and Textures Oakland soils have developed
on 40 to 100cm of nearshore, glaciolacustrine sand, modified
by wind action, over Wentworth till . The texture of the
surface horizons is usually fine sandy loam, sometimes
grading into fine sand or loamy sand, with depth. The
Wentworth Till ranges from somewhat gravelly loam to
gravelly fine sandy loam .
Soil Moisture Characteristics Oakland soils are imperfectly
drained and are rapidly permeable. The groundwater table
is near the soil surface during the winter and early spring but
recedes during the summer . Seepage along the sand-till
contact, emanating from adjacent moraines, is fairly common .
They have low water-holding capacity and slow surface
runoff .
General Soil Description The surface layers usually consist
of 20-30 cm of fine sandy loam . Underlying them is a zone,
usually 30-40 cm thick, of fine sandy loam or fine sand that
contains distinct or prominent strong brown to dark yellowishbrown
mottles . The underlying till, which is usually very
strongly calcareous, begins at 50 to 70 cm depth, and ranges
in texture from loam, containing 10-20% gravel, to a gravelly
fine sandy loam . Soil reaction is usually neutral in the
surface horizons, and ranges from mildly to moderately
alkaline in the gravelly subsoil . Soil classification is usually
Gleyed Brunisolic Gray Brown Luvisol .
Commonly Associated Soils Scotland (STD) and Vanessa
(VSS) soils often occur in close association with Oakland
soils . Such associations occur in map units OKL 2 and OKL
3, respectively. They have developed on parent materials
similar to Oakland soils, but have different drainage conditions
. Scotland soils are rapidly to well-drained, and Vanessa
soils are poorly drained .
General Land Use Comments
(1) Oakland soils are good agricultural soils, widely used for
tobacco, grain corn and winter wheat . They are also used, to
some extent, for tomatoes, peppers, and some tree fruits
such as apples . Some tile drainage may be necessary for
certain tree fruits. Supplemental irrigation is necessary for
tobacco and certain other vegetable crops .
(2) Oakland soils, because of properties related to coarse
textures, are just average to fair for commercial forest
production . Reasonable yields of white pine, red pine, white
ash and red oak can be expected .
Oakview Soils (OVW)
Location and Extent Oakview soils are mapped in some
poorly drained depressional areas in the northern parts of
the Township of Delhi and the City ofNanticoke . There are
16 ha of pure Oakview map units, ancj 225 ha of Oakview
soils in complex map units . Kelvin soils are associated with
Oakview soils northwest of Teetervillr .