Natural Resources
Conservation Service
Ecological site R057XY007MN
Steep Upland Prairie
Last updated: 10/03/2023
Accessed: 11/13/2024
General information
Provisional. A provisional ecological site description has undergone quality control and quality assurance review. It contains a working state and transition model and enough information to identify the ecological site.
MLRA notes
Major Land Resource Area (MLRA): 057X–Northern Minnesota Gray Drift
The Northern Minnesota Gray Drift (57) is located within the Northern Lakes Forest and Forage Region. This area is entirely in north-central Minnesota and makes up about 9,785 square miles (Figure 1). The entire area is covered by Wisconsin-age glacial drift. The glacial deposits are from four major ice lobes-Des Moines, Rainy, Superior, and Wadena. The landscape developed through a series of glaciations and the subsequent retreating and wasting of the ice sheets, which resulted in a complex pattern of moraines, outwash plains, drumlins, lake plains and drainages. Lakes, ponds and marshes are common. The thickness of the glacial till ranges from 90 to 185 meters. Some areas of these deposits are overlain by outwash or lacustrine sediments. Some depressional areas have an accumulation of organic matter. The organic deposits are more than 2.5 meters thick in some areas. Elevation ranges from 300 to 500 meters across the area. (USDA-NRCS 2006)
The dominant soil orders in this MLRA are Alfisols, Entisols, and Histisols, with some Mollisols in the westernmost part of the area. The soils in the area have a frigid soil temperature regime; aquic or udic soil moisture regime, and mixed mineralogy. Their natural drainage class is related to landscape position. In general, the Alfisols formed in till on moraines, Entisols formed in outwash on moraines and outwash plains, and Histosols formed in organic material over outwash or till on moraines or outwash plains. (USDA-NRCS 2006)
Classification relationships
Major Land Resource Area (MLRA): Northern Minnesota Gray Drift (57) (USDA Handbook 296, 2006)
USFS Subregions: Northern Minnesota Drift & Lake Plain Section (212N); Chippewa Plains Subsection (212Na), Pine Moraines & Outwash Plains Subsections (212Nc), St. Louis Moraines Subsection (212Nb); Minnesota & NE Iowa Morainal Section (222M); Hardwood Hills Subsection (222Ma); Northern Superior Uplands Section (212L); Nashwauk Uplands Subsection (212Lc); Northern Minnesota & Ontario Peatlands Section (212M); Littlefork-Vermillion Uplands Subsection (212Ma) (Cleland et al. 2007).
US EPA Level IV Ecoregion: Itasca and St. Louis Moraines (50q); Chippewa Plains (50r); Nashwauk/Marcell Moraines and Uplands (50s); Alexandria Moraines and Detroit Lakes Outwash Plain (51j); McGrath Till Plain and Drumlins (51k); Wadena/Todd Drumlins and Osakis Till Plain (51l)(U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2013)
Ecological site concept
Steep Upland Prairie sites are limited in extent in the southern region of MLRA 57, and typically occur on moraines and with slope gradients greater than 12 percent. Soils textures can vary from medium to fine textured and are mollisols with dark organic-enriched upper horizons. Plant communities are graminoid dominated.
Associated sites
R057XY010MN |
Loamy Prairie These sites occur on summit, shoulder and upper backslope hillslope positions on moraines and outwash plains. These sites typically exist on soils with loamy and clayey textures of loam, silt loam, silty clay loam, clay loam, sandy clay loam, very fine sandy loam, clay, silty clay and silty clay loam within a depth of 50 centimeters. |
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Table 1. Dominant plant species
Tree |
Not specified |
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Shrub |
Not specified |
Herbaceous |
(1) Andropogon gerardii |
Click on box and path labels to scroll to the respective text.
T1A | - | Heavy grazing or high levels of ground litter accumulation |
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T1B | - | Lack of fire for more than 5 years. |
T1C | - | Tillage or other agricultural practices. |
T2A | - | Lack of fire for more than 5 years. |
T2B | - | Tillage and farming practices. |
State 1 submodel, plant communities
1.1A | - | Lack of fire greater than five years, drought, and grazing. |
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1.2A | - | Increased fire return interval, less than 5 years. |
State 2 submodel, plant communities
2.1A | - | Lack of disturbance, over grazing, buildup of heavy litter layer. |
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2.2A | - | Timed grazing and fire |
2.2B | - | Lack of disturbance |
2.3B | - | Intensive prescribed burning |
2.3A | - | Intensive prescribed burning |
State 3 submodel, plant communities
State 4 submodel, plant communities
4.1A | - | Seeded grass species sowed. |
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4.2A | - | Tillage and seasonal row crop planting. |