alicia_ballard
Anotaciones
Alicia Ballard
Unido: 06.oct.2023 Última actividad: 11.sep.2024
Commercial Beekeeper & Business Owner - King Cobra Apiary in Alamance County, North Carolina.
Graduate from North Carolina State University - Entomology & Plant Biology.
Former Research Scientist - Entomology.
I am currently working on identifying the historical plant communities that once existed on my farm so that I can convert as much as I can back into these natural habitats.
Theory:
My farm's most up-to-date soil survey is incorrect - the soil is classified as being in the Cullen soil series, however I believe it is actually the Davidson or the Mecklenburg soil series.
Our soil is mafic and not consistent with the Cullen soil series. It is more consistent with the Davidson or Mecklenburg soil series.
1) Some native plant species I've found here that are consistent with mafic soil - large populations of Ruellia purshiana, Geum virginianum, Celtis occidentalis, many more.
2) The soil's pH has tested at 6.0.
3) The soil's total base saturation is 59.8%.
4) There are gabbro outcrops here, which is documented in the 1960 Alamance County soil survey.
5) We have very high levels of magnesium (198 ppm), average levels of calcium (694 ppm), low levels of phosphorus (16 ppm), and high levels of manganese (182 ppm).
The Alamance County Soil Survey in 1960 classified the soil on my farm as the Davidson soil series and mentions that the subsoil of the Davidson soil series can act similarly to the Mecklenburg soil series. According to the most recent Alamance County Soil Survey, the Mecklenburg soil survey does not occur in Alamance County, but was mentioned in the 1960 soil survey. If you refer to the SEE: Soil Series Extent Explorer by the California Soil Resource Lab at UC Davis, Alamance County appears as a weird gap when viewing the extent of the Mecklenburg soil series.
I believe the Alamance County soil survey needs to be revisited by the state. I also believe that Alamance County is under-surveyed in regards to native plant species and native plant communities. If the soil survey is incorrect in Alamance County, then these species and plant communities can not be appropriately documented.
