The University of Vermont

The University of Vermont Fall Semester, 2006

PLANT AND SOIL SCIENCE 261: SOIL MORPHOLOGY CLASSIFICATION AND LAND USE

A Fourteen Week Guided Field and Independent Study of Vermont Soils

http://pss.uvm.edu/pss261/

Schedule: Wednesday, 12:20-4:25 pm, 234 Hills Bldg. or in the field

Instructors: Thom Villars, Soil Scientist

Natural Resources Conservation Service

28 Farmvu Drive

White River Junction, VT 05001

Phone: 802-295-1662 Ext *824

thomas.villars@vt.usda.gov

Don Ross, Research Associate Professor

Plant and Soil Science

209 Hills Building, UVM

Phone: 802-656-0138

dross@uvm.edu

Textbooks and E-Resources:

1. Soil Genesis, and Classification 5^th edition. S.W. Buol et al. 2003.

2. Keys to Soil Taxonomy. USDA/SCS Soil Survey Staff. 9th ed. 2003. also see:

http://soils.usda.gov/technical/classification/tax_keys/

3. Soil Survey Manual. Soil Survey Division Staff. 1993. Also see:

http://soils.usda.gov/technical/manual/

4. Official Soil Series Descriptions: http://soils.usda.gov/technical/classification/osd/index.html

5. Hydric Soils of the US: http://soils.usda.gov/use/hydric/

6. NRCS National Wetlands Science Institute: http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/wli/

7. National Soil Quality Institute: http://soils.usda.gov/sqi/

8. NRCS Soil Home Page: http://soils.usda.gov/

9. NRCS Soil Survey: http://soils.usda.gov/survey/

10. Vermont’s NRCS Home Page: http://www.vt.nrcs.usda.gov/

11. Keys to Vermont Soils by County: http://efotg.nrcs.usda.gov/efotg_locator.aspx?map=VT

12. Field Book for Describing and Sampling Soil. P.J. Schoeneberger, D.A. Wysocki, E.C. Benham and W.D. Broderson. NRCS/USDA.1998. (Copies of version 1 and 2 in our field box) http://soils.usda.gov/technical/fieldbook/

13. Glossary of Soil Science Terms: http://www.soils.org/sssagloss/

14. Soil Taxonomy 2^nd Ed. http://soils.usda.gov/technical/classification/taxonomy/

Course Description and Activities:

Soil Morphology, Classification and Land Use trains students to use field techniques that describe soil properties and helps students understand processes of soil development, how soils are classified, and their land use limitations and potentials. Students thus gain an understanding of how to describe and classify soils, why soils develop specific characteristics and what the land use potential of a specific soil/site may be. Topics covered include: soil taxonomy, soil genesis principles and processes, soil mapping, land use potential, land conservation techniques, and GIS.

Course activities in this field based independent-study include: weekly field descriptions and interpretation of soils, a service-learning project, a field final, and two take-home exams that cover material from class and the reading assignments.

Course Objectives:

The objectives of this course are to help students:

1) develop skills for determining soil properties by field examination;

2) develop an appreciation and understanding of soil genesis and classification;

3) become familiar with relationships between land forms and soil morphology;

4) interpret basic soil information from field observations and surveys for various land uses; and

5) participate in a research project on soil P and soil mapping in Lake Champlain basin river corridors.

Tentative Schedule of Course Activities and Field Laboratories:

Date

What

Where

8/30

Introductions and Pit Prep

Sandy Entisols

Our Classroom & East Woods, South Burlington

9/6

Lacustrine Soils: Inceptisols to Alfisols

Shelburne Farms

9/13

Alluvial Soils: Entisols and Inceptisols

Clifford Farm, Starksboro

9/20

Till Soils: Inceptisols and weak Spodosols

Proctor Maple Research

9/27

Wetlands Soils: Histosols

TBA

10/4

No class

10/7 Saturday, 7:00am-7:00pm

Tour of Southern VT Soils

Windsor County

10/11

Plant communities as Site Indicators

Jericho Research Forest

10/18

Taxonomy / Project

Hills 234

10/25

Field Final Practice

Essex Junction or Jericho

11/1

Field Final

TBA

11/8

Field Final Review and Project

Field Final Site

11/15

Project

TBA

11/29

GIS- w/Carolyn Alves, NRCS

Our Classroom and the NRCS Office, Williston

12/6

Project Presentations & Course Evaluation

Hills 234

Field Safety:

We will go out when scheduled regardless of the weather. Please be prepared and dress appropriately! Bring a clipboard in a clear plastic bag for writing in wet weather. Always be prepared for cold, wet weather. Bring rain gear, fingerless gloves, extra clothes, and wear boots. Snack food like "trail mix" can help warm you up if you're chilled. We go out in rain-hail-snow-sleet-slush-mush or shine. Please come prepared and we'll have a great time!

If you are allergic to insect stings or plants (like poison ivy), please let us know ahead of time, and tell us what to do in the event you get stung. We will tell you if we see any poison ivy on the sites we visit.

Course Requirements:

It is important that you attend all our scheduled field and classroom time. Your participation is important. The field labs and discussions provide you with insightful hands-on experience, which is an important aspect of the learning process.

It is your responsibility to complete the reading assignments before the field class that covers the material. Reading your assignments provides you with a foundation of understanding that we build on, which allows you to interpret and relate information, pose questions, and challenge yourself.

The reality of your learning in this course can be described as follows. There is a huge learning curve to climb in order to be able to describe and understand soils in the field. There are lots of details for the terminology, and it may take some time for you to get up to speed and feel comfortable using them. In the beginning of the term, you will immerse yourself in the reading to help to start understanding what we see each day in the field. As you work with the terminology to describe soils and classify them, you will "see" more in the pits and understand more about how soils form their properties, how we describe them, and land use implications. By the end of the term you should have developed some skill in these areas.

Assignment Due Date Schedule:

We expect you to turn assignments in on-time according to the schedule below. Late assignments will lose points (5 to 10) for each day they are late. If you are having problems completing assignments please talk to us. We are here to help.

Assignment Due Date Schedule: All assignments are due at the beginning of class unless noted.

Project topic Sept. 20^th

Take Home Exam I Oct. 6^th

Project Outline Oct. 18^th

Field Final Nov. 1^th Completed in Class

Take Home Exam II Nov 17^th

Project Report Dec. 8^th

Project Presentation & Discussions Dec. 6^th In Class

Course Project: The service-learning aspect of this course will focus on assisting with the research project described below. The complete text of the project proposal is available at:

http://pss.uvm.edu/pss261/USGS_VTANR_P_proposal.pdf

Students will work in pairs and develop a research project focused on i) verifying the current mapping along a stream corridor segment of an important tributary of Lake Champlain and ii) sampling the soil series found for P determination. Working in conjunction with the NRCS, students will select the area of interest, examine the existing soil mapping, develop a strategy for field sampling, perform the study, prepare a report for the class and for the overall research project, and participate in feedback on the success of the work.

Overall Research Project Title: Phosphorus availability from the soils along two streams of the Lake Champlain Basin: mapping, characterization and seasonal mobility. Funded by the US Geological Survey (Water Center) and the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources. Cooperators include the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service.

Abstract

Nonpoint source phosphorus (P) inputs into lakes and streams can be a major source of nutrient loading. A critical need is a better understanding of the relative importance of various P sources (e.g. sediment from streambank erosion, runoff from agricultural fields, or release from aquatic sediments). The ability to predict P input from erosion is limited by a lack of soils data and outdated soils mapping. We will perform an extensive remapping, soil sampling and P analysis of the floodplain areas of two Vermont streams in the Lake Champlain Basin—Lewis Creek and Rugg Brook. Results will include a new digital soils map of the stream corridors and a data layer that includes total P content and a range of availability indices. We will also determine the transferability of results and the effort needed to provide updated map layers for other stream reaches in Vermont. Intensive, site specific soil studies will be carried out on an area along each stream where restoration projects are planned or underway. These studies will provide more detailed soils mapping and characterize the spatial variability of soil P. Results from these sites will be used to both inform the project managers and to determine the adequate scale necessary for soil P data layers. Field and laboratory studies will also determine P release potential of sediments and soils under reducing conditions on samples from critical source areas including eroded sediments, stream sediments and frequently flooded riparian zones. Results from these experiments will determine the likelihood of additional P release from sediments under oxygen-limiting environments. Geomorphic data from Lewis Creek will be used, along with the new soils map layers, to develop a conceptual model of P transport and storage in the watershed. Our research will develop and refine relationships between soil P fractions and produce simple predictive models of total and potentially mobile P. This will be a collaborative effort between University researchers, NRCS soil specialists and practitioners. Results will enhance our ability to quantify the effects of stream restoration and other best management practices on the control of P transport.

Statement of regional or State water problem: The Lake Champlain watershed includes areas of northwestern Vermont, northeastern New York and southern Quebec. Phosphorus has been identified as the nutrient limiting algal blooms. There is a clear need for a better understanding of the factors controlling phosphorus movement from the soils into the streams of the Lake Champlain watershed. Besides the erodibility of stream banks, it is important to know the P content of the eroding soil, both surface and subsurface, and the likelihood of this P becoming mobilized from aquatic sediments. It is also important to gain a better understanding of the relative importance of various P sources. Will erosion of subsoil sediments, either as part of natural stream processes or because of an altered landscape, contribute significant quantities of potentially mobile P? Are other sources, such as frequently flooded riparian soils important? This project will seek to answer some of these questions, focusing on refining the soil mapping along two streams, Lewis Creek in Addison and Chittenden Counties and Rugg Brook in Franklin County. In addition, we will intensively study areas on each stream where restoration projects are underway. Results will be used by the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service, and the University of Vermont Extension.

Statement of results or benefits: Results will include a new digital soils map of the stream corridors. We will also provide a data layer that includes P content, both total and a range of available indices. After performing this research on two streams, we will also determine the transferability of results to other stream reaches (and how much effort will be needed to provide updated map layers). Additionally, our research will develop and refine relationships between soil P fractions and produce simple predictive models of total and potentially mobile P. The intensive, site specific, studies will result in a more detailed soils map and an explicit characterization of the range and spatial variation of soil P availability. Lastly, results from laboratory experiments will be compared with in situ measurements of solution P to determine the feasibility of using soil P fractions to predict P release from soils and aquatic sediments (stream and riparian sediments). Results will be published in peer reviewed journals. The work with restoration projects will be designed to provide useable and pertinent data to the project managers. All data will be made available to University, State and federal personnel.

Objective 3. Develop a GIS layer containing revised soil mapping and P data. Determine the effort needed for similar remapping of other stream floodplains and the transferability of the data we have generated.

…..The representative soil series found in the two study watersheds will be compared to those currently mapped in the major sediment-contributing stream corridors of Vermont’s Champlain basin (e.g. Mississquoi and Otter Creek) to determine potential transferability of results. In year two, we will perform sampling outside of our study watersheds to i) obtain data for any dominant soil series not found in our two stream reaches and ii) determine if our results for individual soil series will transfer to similar series located in other areas of the basin.

Examinations:

There are two take-home examinations during the semester. The exams are short and long essays covering materials from class and from your reading assignments.

Following each exam we will report the average and range of grades. When you receive your graded exam, please review it. If you believe a question has been graded incorrectly or you wish to challenge your instructors' interpretation of your answer, contact us within two weeks of the date we returned it.

Your field final will require you to describe and classify two soils using the NRCS pedon description forms you have worked with all semester. A practice field final will be held the week before.

Course Grading:

The final course letter grades will be a percentile average made up of the scores on your activities listed below. Course grades may be curved at our discretion.

Grading System:

Attitude, Effort and Attendance, Participation, and Weekly Field Sheets 15%

Field Final 15%

Take Home Exams (2 @ 15% each) 30%

Project 40%

Academic Honesty:

Honesty in all aspects of your academic and professional life is central to the meaning of the university, to the life of a professional, and to personal relationships between colleagues and friends. We expect you to follow the code of academic honesty set by this institution in the work that you submit to us for this class. We encourage you to review the UVM Academic Honesty Policy on the WWW http://www.uvm.edu/~dosa/handbook/?Page=Academic.html. You really should read the policy so you know what is expected of you. If you are having problems understanding material or completing assignments, please talk with us. We are here to help you, and we want you to succeed!