Native Soils Comparison with Geology and Landscape Position in the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area.

The Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area encompasses more than 125,000 acres along the border of Tennessee and Kentucky. Highly dissected and steep terrain have made accessibility to much of the park limited, thus little work has been done to investigate the formation of these soils.  Seven native soil profiles were selected for chemical and physical analysis representing Pennsylvanian-aged sandstone geology and landforms.  The objectives of this study included the characterization of selected native profiles by physical and chemical analysis, as well as classification using US Soil Taxonomy. Further, the parent materials and site- specific geology, including the Pennington Formation, were compared to the profiles in order to establish any relationships that might exist.  The methods of chemical analysis included: total carbon analysis, cation exchange capacity, percent base saturation, pH, particle size analysis, KCl total acidity, total elemental analysis, and Mehlich I extraction. Using geologic and topographic maps for comparison, it was concluded that the development of these soils was directly related to the underlying geology and the surrounding topography throughout various landscapes. This information can be used as a guide to aid in predicting the chemical and physical properties of native soils on the Cumberland Plateau.