The following is a map unit description from the "Soil Survey of Norfolk and Suffolk Counties, Massachusetts (Peragallo, 1989)"
CcD-Canton fine sandy loam, 15 to 25 percent slopes, extremely bouldery. This is a very deep, moderately steep, well drained soil on the side slopes of upland hills. Areas are long and narrow or irregular in shape and range from 6 to 50 acres. Boulders more than 2 feet in diameter cover 1 to 25 percent of the land surface. In some map units the boulders are in clusters and the rest of these map units do not have boulders.
Typically, the surface layer is dark brown fine sandy loam about 2 inches thick. The subsurface layer is dark gray fine sandy loam about 1 inch thick. The subsoil is about 20 inches thick. It is yellowish brown fine sandy loam in the upper part and light yellowish brown fine sandy loam in the lower part. The substratum is gravelly loamy sand to a depth of 60 inches or more. It is light olive gray in the upper part and olive gray in the lower part. In some areas the subsoil has more gravel.
Included with this soil in mapping are small areas of Charlton soils and extremely stony Montauk soils in similar positions on the landscape. Also included are small isolated areas that do not have boulders on the surface. Included areas make up about 10 percent of the map unit.
Soil properties:Permeability: Moderately rapid in the surface layer and
the subsoil and rapid in the substratum.
Available water capacity: Low or moderate.
Soil reaction: Very strongly acid to moderately acid
throughout.
Depth to bedrock: More than 60 inches.
Depth to the seasonal high water table: More than 6
feet.
Hydrologic group: B.
Most areas of this map unit are wooded. Some areas are used as individual homesites.
This soil is generally not suited to cultivated crops and very poorly suited to pasture and to use as orchards because of slope and stones and boulders on the surface.
Potential productivity for eastern white pine on this soil is high. Management concerns are slope, the erosion hazard, and boulders on the surface. Boulders generally limit the use of harvesting and planting equipment. Constructing access roads and trails with grades between 2 and 10 percent and installing water bars help to control erosion. Minimizing soil disturbance and retaining the sponge-like mulch of leaves help to reduce runoff and to control erosion. Thinning crowded stands to accepted standard stocking levels allows more vigorous growth of preferred trees. In thinning operations it is important to remove diseased, poorly formed, and otherwise undesirable trees. Shelterwood cutting, seed-tree cutting, and clearcutting help to establish natural regeneration or to provide suitable planting sites. Removing or controlling competing vegetation allows best growth of newly established seedlings.
Slope and the boulders on the surface are the main limitations to use of this soil as building sites. Extensive land shaping is generally needed. The large stones and boulders generally limit excavation operations.
Designing buildings and lots to conform to the natural slope of the land helps to overcome the slope limitation and to control erosion in. disturbed areas. Slope and the boulders on the surface are the main limitations to road construction. Large amounts of cut and fill are generally needed, and the boulders generally limit excavation operations.
Slope and rapid permeability are the main limitations to use of the soil as sites for septic tank absorption fields. If the soil is used as sites for septic tank absorption fields, ground water pollution is a hazard. Because of rapid permeability, the soil readily absorbs but does not adequately filter the effluent. Installing distribution lines across the slope helps to prevent the effluent from breaking out on the surface. In some areas additional precautionary measures are needed to prevent ground water pollution. The boulders in the soil generally limit the installation of distribution lines.
This soil is in capability subclass VIIs.
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