IDENTIFICATION AND GENESIS OF FRAGIPANS IN OCHREPTS OF NORTH CENTRAL WISCONSIN

The morphological and physical properties of a fine-loamy, mixed, frigid Aquic Fragiochrept at two locations in Taylor County, Wisconsin were examined. At both sites, the fragic zone occurs in bisequal soils beneath eluvial horizons and transgresses a lithologic discontinuity where the loess cap grades into a dense sandy loam till. This study evaluated the utility of several field and laboratory tests for demarcation of the fragipan, and it examined the morphological and physical features of the fragipan in relation to its potential origin. Bulk density was measured using the saran-coated clod and Uhland ring methods. Soil strength tests showed that the site with >10% clay in its fragic horizons had twice the strength of the site with <10% clay.