LOCATION BARKSHANTY         OR
Established Series
Rev. MHF/CDJ/RWL
01/2000

BARKSHANTY SERIES


The Barkshanty series consists of very deep, well drained soils formed in residuum and colluvium derived dominantly from schist or phyllite rock types. Barkshanty soils are on broad ridgetops and stable benches on side slopes of mountains. Slopes are 0 to 40 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 110 inches and the mean annual temperature is about 49 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, active, mesic Typic Palehumults

TYPICAL PEDON: Barkshanty channery loam - woodland, on a 38 percent west-facing slope at an elevation of 2,050 feet. (When described on July 3, 1990 the soil was dry to a depth of 13 inches and moist below this depth. Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted.)

Oi--0 to 1 inch; partially decomposed needles, leaves, twigs and woody materials.

A--1 to 6 inches; dark brown (7.5YR 4/3) channery loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) dry; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots; many fine and very fine tubular pores; 25 percent channers and 5 percent flagstones; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear smooth boundary. (4 to 8 inches thick)

BA--6 to 14 inches; dark brown (7.5YR 4/4) channery clay loam, reddish yellow (7.5YR 6/6) dry; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots; many fine and very fine tubular pores; 20 percent channers and 5 percent flagstones; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear smooth boundary. (6 to 12 inches thick)

Bt1--14 to 21 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) very channery clay loam, reddish yellow (7.5YR 6/6) dry; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and plastic; common fine, medium, and coarse roots; common fine tubular pores; common faint clay films on ped faces and common distinct clay films in pores; 25 percent channers and 10 percent flagstones; strongly acid (pH 5.4); clear smooth boundary.

Bt2--21 to 40 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) very flaggy clay loam, reddish yellow (7.5YR 6/6) dry; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and plastic; few fine and medium roots; common fine tubular pores; common distinct clay films on ped faces and in pores; 25 percent channers and 20 percent flagstones; strongly acid (pH 5.4); clear smooth boundary.

Bt3--40 to 67 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) extremely flaggy clay loam, reddish yellow (7.5YR 7/6) dry; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, sticky and plastic; few fine and medium roots; common fine tubular pores; common distinct clay films on ped faces and in pores; 30 percent channers, 25 percent flagstones, and 5 percent stones; strongly acid (pH 5.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 50 to 60 inches or more)

R--67 inches; schist.

TYPE LOCATION: Curry County, Oregon; located about 2,100 feet south and 1,950 feet west of the northeast corner of section 2, T. 35 S., R. 13 W. (Latitude 42 degrees, 34 minutes, 35 seconds N.; Longitude 124 degrees, 12 minutes, 35 seconds W.)

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The mean annual soil temperature is 47 to 54 degrees F. The soils are usually moist but are dry for less than 45 consecutive days in all parts between depths of 4 and 12 inches in the four months following the summer solstice. The particle size control section averages 30 to 35 percent clay and has 35 to 70 percent total rock fragments. Depth to bedrock and solum thickness is greater than 60 inches. The solum is very strongly acid or strongly acid throughout.

The A horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 3 or 4 moist, 5 or 6 dry and chroma of 3 or 4 moist and dry. It is channery loam with 20 to 25 percent clay. It has 15 to 25 percent channers and 0 to 5 percent flagstones.

The BA horizon has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 or 5 moist, 5 or 6 dry and chroma of 4 through 6 moist and dry. It is channery loam, channery clay loam, or very channery clay loam with 20 to 30 percent clay. It has 15 to 35 percent channers and 0 to 10 percent flagstones.

The Bt horizon has hue of 5YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 or 5 moist, 6 or 7 dry and chroma of 4 through 6 moist and dry. It is very flaggy clay loam, very channery clay loam, or extremely flaggy clay loam with 30 to 35 percent clay. It has 25 to 35 percent channers, 10 to 30 percent flagstones, and 0 to 5 percent stones.

COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Barkshanty soils occur on broad ridgetops and stable benches on side slopes of mountains. Slopes are 0 to 40 percent. The soils formed in residuum and colluvium derived dominantly from schist and phyllite rock types of the Colebrooke Schist Formation. Elevations are 200 to 3,000 feet. The climate is characterized by warm, wet winters and hot, moist summers. The mean annual precipitation is 90 to 130 inches. The mean annual temperature is 45 to 53 degrees F. The frost-free period is 120 to 210 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Deadline, Edson, Irma, and Nailkeg soils. All these soils occur on broad ridgetops, stable benches, or side slopes of mountains. Deadline, Irma, and Nailkeg soils lack argillic horizons. Edson soils are clayey and have less than 35 percent rock fragments in the solum.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; moderately slow permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: Barkshanty soils are used for timber production, pasture, homesites, watershed, recreation, and wildlife habitat. The native vegetation is Douglas fir, western hemlock, Port-Orford cedar, western red cedar, tanoak, Pacific rhododendron, salal, evergreen huckleberry, western swordfern, cascade Oregongrape, common beargrass, western rattlesnake plantain, western brackenfern, western princes pine, trailing blackberry, Oregon oxalis, and baldhip rose.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mountainous areas of southwestern Oregon; MLRA 1. The series is not extensive.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Curry County, Oregon, 1995. The source of the name is Bark Shanty Prairie in central Curry County.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon include:

Ochric epipedon.

Argillic horizon - from a depth of 14 to 67 inches (Bt1, Bt2, Bt3 horizons).

Pale feature - percentage of clay does not decrease from its maximum amount by more than 20 percent or more within a depth of 60 inches from the soil surface.

Particle-size control section - from 14 to 34 inches (Bt1 and part of Bt2 horizon) with weighted average of 42 percent rock fragments.

All diagnostic horizons and features are measured from the top of the first mineral horizon.


National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.