1

National

Cooperative

Soil

Survey Newsletter

Issue 6

February 1999

In This Issue—

Editor’s Note

Issues of this newsletter are

available on the World Wide Web

(www.statlab.iastate.edu/soils/soildiv).

Click on NCSS and then on the desired

issue number of the NCSS Newsletter.

You are invited to submit stories for

future issues of this newsletter to

Stanley Anderson, National Soil

Survey Center, Lincoln, Nebraska.

Phone—402-437-5357; FAX—402-

437-5336; email—

sanderson@nssc.nrcs.usda.gov.

Soil Business Area

Analysis Group

Reactivated

By Jon Gerken, Soil Scientist, USDA,

Natural Resources Conservation Service,

Columbus, Ohio.

The Soil Business Area AnalysisGroup (SBAAG) was

reactivated in October 1998. The

group’s function is to analyze the

overall need for automation of soil

survey technical and operational

processes. The personnel working with

SBAAG include the following: Horace

Smith, executive sponsor; Jon Gerken,

Ohio, chair; Terry Aho, Information

Technology Center (ITC), Ft. Collins,

Colorado; Jodi Boyce, Colorado;

Wayne Gabriel, Texas; Ken Harward,

ITC, Ft. Collins; Rich Jaros, Utah; Russ

Kelsea, National Soil Survey Center

(NSSC), Lincoln, Nebraska; David

Kriz, Florida; Carmen Ortiz, program

analyst from California; Johnny

Patterson, forester at the NSSC in

Lincoln; Panola Rivers, Pennsylvania;

Kathy Swain, New Hampshire; and

Cleveland Watts, North Dakota. Tom

Calhoun, from Division Headquarters,

and Bill Puckett, from the Southeast

Regional Office, serve as advisors to

the group, and Bill Adams, with the

Resource Inventory Support Branch in

Ft. Worth, serves as a liaison from that

group.

During its first two meetings, the

group developed a list of issues that

were identified by staff around the

country and began the task of selecting

the issues that would be addressed first.

The initial list includes 98 issues. These

were discussed and grouped by topic,

and eight issues were selected as the

ones the group would deal with first.

These eight issues include the

following:

(1) Project office connectivity

(2) Integration of a spatial

perspective into NASIS

(3) Sharing of data across MLRA

office boundaries

(4) Support and maintenance of

NASIS

(5) Tools for technical soil services

(6) Distribution of official data to

various users and applications

(7) Guidance and standards for data

base development

(8) Pedon data conversion

Many people have told the group

members that the functions of SBAAG

should be publicized widely because

of the need to keep soil survey staff

informed about issues that have been

identified for the group to handle,

items that are being dealt with by the

group, and actions that will be taken

in response to these items. The group

is very concerned that information be

made as accessible to the field as

possible. Several avenues are already

being used to address this concern.

We will periodically provide reports

to the states through correspondence.

The states should distribute this

correspondence to all soil survey

staff. We will be providing updates

through presentations at meetings

and though informational articles,

SBAAG continued on page 2

Soil Business Area Analysis Group

Reactivated .................................... 1

Ten Laws of Soil Survey .................... 2

Marbles ............................................... 2

The Soils Explorer Project.................. 3

State Soils ........................................... 4

Icomanth Soils Tour ........................... 5

Poems About Soil Taxonomy............. 6

Correlator’s Lament ....................... 6

First Approximation to the

Seventh Approximation .......... 7

Urban Soils Symposium ..................... 8
2

NCSS Newsletter

such as this one, whenever possible.

Also, we are looking at other avenues

that might be used to keep people

informed and help them deal with

information regarding SBAAG

activities. Terry Aho is leading this

effort. If there are issues that require

attention in dealing with SBAAG

information, Terry would welcome

comments. The group will develop

methods that can be used to provide

the functions needed.

Three additional meetings of

SBAAG have been scheduled to date.

They are for the weeks of April 26-30,

July 12-16, and October 25-29, 1999.

Comments, suggestions, or questions

can be sent to any members of the

group. Any of them would be happy to

discuss new ideas and present them at

our next meeting. 

SBAAG continued from page 1

Ten Laws of Soil Survey

By an old soil correlator who just tried to do

his best to serve the Soils Division. From

“Stories, Tales, and Bald-Faced Lies,” edited by

Henry Mount, Soil Scientist, USDA, Natural

Resources Conservation Service, National Soil

Survey Center, Lincoln, Nebraska.

The ten laws of soil survey(arranged in David Letterman

fashion) that are not mentioned in the

National Soil Survey Handbook are as

follows:

10. The Party Leader will make

every attempt to discredit the previous

soil survey, no matter how good it

was.

9. Ninety percent of the

correlation time will be spent on twenty

percent of the taxonomic unit

descriptions.

8. A “new” soil will be

discovered during the last month of the

survey, then correlated into

nonexistence.

7. Few fine faint mottles will

magically appear in at least one

taxonomic unit description for

classification purposes near the end of

the survey.

6. Support to complete the survey

will be pulled away from the Party

Leader before the last acre is mapped.

5. The soil survey office will

have the oldest computer equipment in

the state.

4. The District Conservationist

will attempt to steal at least one new

vehicle that was supposed to be

delivered to the soil survey staff.

3. All notes, special studies,

transects, photographs, and other

supporting documentation will be lost

within 2 years after the survey is

completed.

2. All taxonomic unit

descriptions will be assembled

longhand and without the use of

computer tools, such as PEDON.

1. The State Office Soils Staff

will rewrite the entire soil survey

manuscript prepared by the Party

Leader, dismantling every instance of

creativity that was in the draft

manuscript. An English editor will then

completely rewrite the rewritten soil

survey manuscript, which will then be

published with the Party Leader’s name

as the author.

Marbles

By Dr. Don Franzmeier, Agronomy

Department, Purdue University. From “Stories,

Tales, and Bald-Faced Lies,” edited by Henry

Mount.

Dr. Bob Ruhe was involved inthe Desert Project during its

early phases. Some of the soils had

much more carbonates than could be

attributed to the parent material in the

area. Brilliant soil scientists during that

period deemed that atmospheric inputs

in the form of dust must be the reason

for these high amounts of carbonates.

Early attempts to trap the dust

descending into the desert resulted in

dismal failures. Dr. Ruhe came up with

the idea that marbles placed in boxes

would be effective in trapping the

atmospheric dust. He was correct, and

more research using marbles was

deemed necessary.

Soon he had to order more marbles

for this research—500 pounds of

compact glass spheres. It was about a

week later when someone from GSA

called him.

“Dr. Ruhe, I got your order, and

I think there must be some mistake.

You have ordered 500 pounds of

marbles.”

“That’s correct,” Bob replied.

“Why do you need that many

marbles?”

“My graduate students lost theirs,

and I have to replace them,” he

deadpanned.
3

NCSS Newsletter

The Soils Explorer Project

By Adrian Smith, GIS Specialist, USDA,

Natural Resources Conservation Service,

National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln,

Nebraska.

The Soils Explorer is a digitalsoils data viewer featuring a

certified Soil Survey Geographic Data

Base (SSURGO), delivered to the

customer on a CD-ROM. The user

can browse through the digital soils

map and accompanying reference

data, selected interpretations, and a

photo gallery with pictures of soil

profiles, landscapes, and block

diagrams.

The Soils Explorer project is

currently in Phase II. The technical and

business requirements for this phase

were determined with input from soil

scientists, data base managers, and

evaluations of the Phase I prototype

(released October 1997) sent in from

field staff and other customers. The

program now features a cleaner look on

screen and utilizes the depth and

richness of the data.

Some new features are:

• Tabbed pages

• Interpretation value tool tip

• Interpretation for dominant condition

• Detailed information box (shows

component table)

• Legend for similar and dissimilar

limitations

• Help pages for all topics

• Location map for extents

• Photo gallery

• Status bar

• WWW hot links

Interpretations for the Soils Explorer

include selections for agriculture,

forestry, range, recreation, soil

properties, urban uses, and wildlife

habitat. To generate yield and

suitability interpretations, states were

asked to identify the crop and/or tree

species commonly grown in chosen

survey areas. This approach will allow

field staff members to evaluate the

program with data well known to

them.

Forty states offered to participate

during the production stage of the

project. They are working with staff at

the National Soil Survey Center to

prepare reference data and files for the

program. In return, the states will

receive five copies of the Soils

Explorer CD-ROM for their selected

surveys.

The Information Technology

Center completed the program for

Phase II in November 1998. Since

then, the production team, located

at the National Geospatial and

Cartography Center, in Fort Worth,

Texas, has created the image

background and Soils Explorer

program for nine survey areas.

This team is completing about one

survey per week. The master CDROM’s are sent to the National

Production Services Staff, where they

are used to make the finished product

for the states.

For more information about the

Soils Explorer, please visit the web site,

located at www.statlab.iastate.edu/

soils/nssc/explorer/soilex.htm. 
4

NCSS Newsletter

State Soils

By Gary Muckel, Soil Scientist, USDA, Natural Resources

Conservation Service, National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln, Nebraska.

Soil scientists at the National Soil Survey Center are coordinating this effort with the help of other soil

scientists from the United States Department of

Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service,

including Chuck Gordon, Montana; Frank Watts, Florida;

Ronnie Taylor, New Jersey; and Dennis Potter, Missouri.

Each selected state soil has a picture of the landscape and a

soil profile. A soil description and laboratory data are

provided. Teachers and students are the intended audience.

The state soil selection process has proceeded through the

state legislature for official designation in several states.

Professional soil science societies or the cooperative soil

survey participants have made designations in other states.

Approval of the state soil has yielded tremendous

marketing results within some states.

Following is a list of the state soils of the United States

and representative soils of Puerto Rico and the Virgin

Islands, as of November 10, 1998:

State soil Established by

legislation

Alabama .......................Bama .................... April 1997

Alaska ..........................Tanana

Arizona ........................Casa Grande

Arkansas ......................Stuttgart ................ March 1997

California .....................San Joaquin .......... July 1997

Colorado ......................Seitz

Connecticut ..................Windsor

Delaware ......................Greenwich

Florida..........................Myakka................. May 1989

Georgia ........................Tifton

Hawaii..........................Hilo

Idaho ............................Rexburg

Illinois ..........................Drummer

Indiana .........................Miami

Iowa .............................Tama

State soil Established by

legislation

Kansas..........................Harney .................. April 1990

Kentucky .....................Crider ................... April 1990

Louisiana .....................Ruston

Maine ...........................Chesuncook

Maryland .....................Sassafras

Massachusetts ..............Paxton................... May 1991

Michigan ......................Kalkaska ............... December 1990

Minnesota ....................Lester

Mississippi ...................Natchez

Missouri .......................Menfro

Montana .......................Scobey

Nebraska ......................Holdrege ............... June 1979

Nevada .........................Orovada

New Hampshire ...........Marlow

New Jersey...................Downer

New Mexico ................Penistaja

New York ....................Honeoye

North Carolina .............Cecil

North Dakota ...............Barnes

Ohio .............................Miamian

Oklahoma ....................Port ....................... April 1987

Oregon .........................Jory

Pennsylvania ................Hazleton

Rhode Island ................Narragansett

South Carolina .............Bohicket

South Dakota ...............Houdek ................. February 1990

Tennessee ....................Dickson

Texas............................Houston Black

Utah .............................Taylorsflat

Vermont .......................Tunbridge ............. March 1985

Virginia ........................Pamunkey

Washington ..................Tokul

West Virginia...............Monongahela........ April 1997

Wisconsin ....................Antigo................... September 1983

Wyoming .....................Forkwood

Representative soil

Puerto Rico ..................Bayamon

Virgin Islands ..............Victory
5

Icomanth Soils Tour

By Henry R. Mount, Soil Scientist for

Classification and Standards, USDA, Natural

Resources Conservation Service, National Soil

Survey Center, Lincoln, Nebraska.

Representatives of theInternational Committee of

Anthropogenic Soils (ICOMANTH)

met in Nevada and California for a

two-week workshop and tour from

September 21 to October 1, 1998. Over

40 scientists from the United States,

Germany, China, Slovakia, and Russia

assembled for a two-week agenda that

began in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ray

Bryant, Professor of Soils at Cornell

University, presided over the meetings.

Horace Smith, Director of the Soil

Survey Division, gave the keynote

address, entitled “Washington, D.C.,

Soil Survey.” Horace informed the

attendees that the Washington, D.C.,

Tour continued on page 8

The ICOMANTH tour started in Las Vagas and finished in San Francisco. The larger dots show

the stops along the way.

survey started in 1974 and was

published in 1976—in time for the

1976 Bicentennial. There were 44,000

acres, or 69 square miles, in this soil

survey area. The area was mapped and

published at 1:12,000. Horace

completed the map finishing. Nearly

150 map units were correlated in the

survey because of the complex geology

and the fact that the survey area

occurred in two MLRA’s. Since the

city of Washington is 200 years old, the

survey turned out to be a research

project. Eighty percent of the soils in

the city are disturbed. Horace informed

the attendees that NHQ leadership in

the 1970’s was not willing to allow

scientists to use series names for

Udorthents. He stressed that it is in the

best interest of science that

administrators not close the door to

positive changes in Soil Taxonomy. Maria Gerasimova from Russia (with microphone) discusses the significance of the San Joaquin

soil, while John Kimble (NRCS, National Soil Survey Center) and Kerry Arroues (NRCS,

California) compare notes.
6

NCSS Newsletter

Poems About Soil Taxonomy

Stanley Anderson, the editor of this newsletter, wasgiven the following poems. Included with the first

poem was a note by A.H. Paschall dated 12/64. The note

reads as follows: “This ‘Correlator’s Lament’ was found

among W.S. Ligon’s effects. It was given to me by Mrs.

Ligon—with permission to pass it on to interested people.”

W.S. Ligon was a soil correlator in the agency now known

as the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Correlator’s Lament1

A man there was, Guy Smith by name,

Inventor of a guessing game

To put all other such to shame.

This game, though based upon the soil,

Consisteth chiefly of turmoil

And is a cause of endless toil.

This brainstorm hardly had begun—

Out popped Approximation 1—

And we thought that the job was done!

But ’ere the ink had time to dry,

Our hero made another try.

His second draft bloomed but to die.

Then came Approximation 3;

Our weary eyes began to see

The 4th would not the last one be.

The 5th Approximation found

Us on the ropes and giving ground

From going round and round and round.

The 6th was just a stepping stone,

To make us swear and sweat and groan—

To make us want to be alone

In padded cells, from which to cry

At every sane man passing by

And sense his sympathetic sigh.

Herr Smith now thought the time was ripe

For high-brow nomenclature tripe,

While we were all too beat to gripe.

Now we engage in hide-and-seek

With Sanskrit, Latin, Smith and Greek;

The future never looked more bleak.

These hellic orthic Argudolls

And those God-damic Haplaquolls

And ruptic, cruddic Natrubolls

But friends, you haven’t heard the half.

Try glossudalfic Fragaqualf

And Albaqualfic Typustalf.

And haplic cryptic Cryudents,

And orthustentic Psammustents

And hyperbolic Haplaquents.

And rhodochruentic Typumbrults

And typumbrultic Rodochrults

And chrodotypic Brultorhults.

We’ve made a lot of Pfalsistarts

And let a lot of Psuephopharts

And spun the wheels upon Ourcarts.

Despite the 7th being bound

We still cannot get off the ground;

The spit and polish keeps us downed.

If one of us is still alive

In 19 hundred 65

There is no doubt that he will strive

To get past sub-group and to see

What he can do with family.

It may be you! It won’t be me!

 (Praise Allah!)

 W.S. Ligon

1 The editor made the following changes in the text of this poem:

1. Added periods at the end of line 3, stanza 1; line 2, stanza 4; and line 1,

stanza 12.

2. Deleted a period at the end of line 3, stanza 7.

3. Changed “Psammustent” to “Psammustents” in line 2, stanza 13.

4. Changed a comma to a period at the end of line 2, stanza 16.
7

NCSS Newsletter

First Approximation to the Seventh

Approximation

I

 once was happy as could be

Until this fellow Smith, Guy D.,

Fouled up soil classification

With his seventh approximation.

I can only sit and ponder

Till my mind begins to wander.

How can mortal mind recall

Cryaqueptic Haplaquall?

Or whose mind would not be rent

By Thapto Mollic Hapludent?

And what strong man has never wept

O’er Quartzopsammentic Haplumbrept?

But I must try to learn you all,

Hapludox and Hapludoll,

And Oxisol, Aridisol,

And it’s enough to make me bawl.

For I had just learned Latosol.

And what became of Pratosol

And Entisol and Vertisol?

Most people think it’s dirt, that’s all.

I must admit that I get weary,

And at times my eyes get bleary,

When I behold Altalf, Altoll,

Aquept, Aquent, Aqualf, Aquoll.

And Altic or Histic Glossaqualf,

Or Aquic, Orthic Glossudalf,

Or Natric or Cumulic Haplaltoll,

And is there no relief at all?

But now I’ve spent my whole vacation

Learning this seventh approximation.

Now I find that I can speak

In terms I’m sure would choke a Greek.

I can say the whole darned list

Without a slip, without a twist.

Just one more thing before I quit,

To learn which soils these names should fit.

Anonymous
8

NCSS Newsletter

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits

discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color,

national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual

orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all

programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for

communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.)

should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD).

To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil

Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW,

Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA

is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Following two full days of

scientific presentations in Las Vegas,

the attendees rode nearly 1,000 miles

by bus throughout Nevada and

California and examined 16 humanaltered soils. Numerous stops

illustrated that many of the soils

of the Great Central Valley in

California have been ripped, slipped,

dipped, and tipped. John Kimble,

Research Soil Scientist, and Robert

Ahrens, National Leader for

Classification and Standards,

coordinated these stops with assistance

from NRCS soil scientists in Nevada

and California and members of the

Professional Soil Scientist Association

of California (PSSAC).

At each site, protocols set up by

the organizers of the ICOMANTH

TOUR were enforced. First, a local

scientist explained the human-altered

influence on the site, and then the

attendees were allowed to take

pictures. Next came a period to

observe the soil, usually in a pit

excavated with a backhoe. Each stop

concluded with discussions of the

significance of the soil and how one

might deal with human-altered soils

either in the present system

described in Soil Taxonomy or in a

system of new taxonomic categories.

Assigned attendees documented all

discussions.

Five working groups met

periodically throughout the tour.

Leaders of these groups presented

their recommendations during the

final day in Burlingame, California.

A collection of papers by the

presenters is being assembled and

will be distributed during 1999. In

the meantime, an Internet address of

the 1998 tour can be viewed by logging

on http://www.scas.cornell.edu/

icomanth/. 

Tour continued from page 5

Urban Soils Symposium

By Joyce Mack Scheyer, Soil Scientist,

USDA, Natural Resources Conservation Service,

National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln, Nebraska.

Soils in urban areas will be the

focus of a symposium to be

held during the 1999 annual meetings

of the American Society of Agronomy,

the Crop Science Society of America,

and the Soil Science Society of

America (ASA-CSSA-SSSA) from

October 31 to November 4. The

symposium is sponsored by Division

S-6 (Soil and Water Management and

Conservation). Urban areas are defined

as population centers and the

surrounding watersheds that support

human communities with food,

drinking water, storm-water outlets,

building materials, waste disposal,

recreation lands, and other natural

resources. We especially welcome

papers reporting research and

monitoring of physical, chemical, or

biological soil processes and heavy

metal toxicity in urban environments.

Participants are encouraged to discuss

procedures in urban soil mapping,

development of soil interpretations,

measurement of use-dependent soil

properties, or implementation of soilbased guidelines for land-use planning.

The oral and poster sessions will

include invited as well as volunteered

papers on the function of soils in

urban areas (both natural and humanaffected soils), at the site, landscape,

and ecosystem scales. Please indicate

interest in the Urban Soils Symposium

on the Title-Summary Forms available

in Crop Science-Soil ScienceAgronomy News. Title-Summary Forms

are due at ASA headquarters by March

26. For more information, contact

Joyce Mack Scheyer, Soil Scientist,

USDA, Natural Resources

Conservation Service, National Soil

Survey Center, Lincoln, Nebraska,

68508-3966; phone, 402-437-5698;

fax, 402-437-5336; e-mail,

jscheyer@nssc.nrcs.usda.gov.