Substrate Analysis

Bedrock Geology
Our site had no bedrock outcroppings, and the closest outcropping to our site would not have been a good represention of the bedrock that lies below our site, therefore dip and strike were not measured. Based on a bedrock geology map done several years ago,we can approximate that our site is on a fault between Dunham dolomite and Monkton quartzite. These are both basic rocks, meaning that there should be high nutrient levels in the soils.

Surficial Geology

There are four soil layers where we dug our soil pit. The first layer, the O Layer is made up of organic material from the forest, primarily leaves and pine needles. It is likely that the pine needles have made this area the most acidic, with a pH of 4.5. This layer was dark and about 1.5 inches thick. The next layer, the A layer, was a mix of organic and inorganic material. It was slightly less acidic with a pH of 5.0 and was 2 inches thick. Next was the A layer. This consisted of primarily sandy loam, and may be a result of the land use which occured on the site prior to its function as a state park. This layer was 21 inches thick and had a pH of 6. Finally, the parent material had a pH of 6.5 and consisted of Adams series sand. This is likely due to the area once being the shoreline of the Champlain Sea. We couldn't measure this layer in the given time, but it was at least several inches thick.

It is important to note that these results came after doing a second soil pit. Our first pit was dug near the stream which runs through our site. Digging in this area was made difficult due to the proximity of the stream. The pit consisted of silt and clay, and the hole eventually became too full of water to gather accurate data. Also, this type of soil represents a small portion of our site, and measuring solely the clay would misrepresent our site.

The soils on our site are acidic, which limits the vegetation on the site. This may be due to the number of pines on the site, along with the sandy parent material of the site. The riparian area has a lot of nutrient rich clay, which increases the potential vegetation in this area.