LOCATION BELLINGHAM WAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, mixed, superactive, nonacid, mesic Vertic Endoaquepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Bellingham silty clay loam - pasture. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted. All textures are apparent field textures.)
Ap--0 to 5 inches; black (10YR 2/1) silty clay loam, dark gray (10YR 4/1) dry; strong fine granular structure; hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; many fine roots; moderately acid (pH 5.8): abrupt smooth boundary. (4 to 6 inches thick)
Bg1--5 to 8 inches; gray (5Y 5/1) silty clay, light gray (N 7/) dry; few fine distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) redox concentrations; weak medium prismatic structure; very hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; many fine roots; many medium tubular and vesicular pores; moderately acid (pH 6.0); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 13 inches thick)
Bg2--8 to 14 inches; dark gray (5Y 4/1) silty clay, light gray (N 7/) dry; few fine distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) redox concentrations; moderate medium prismatic structure; very hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; common fine roots; many medium tubular and interstitial pores; thin patchy pressure faces on peds and lining pores; slightly acid (pH 6.2); clear smooth boundary. (4 to 18 inches thick)
Bg3--14 to 22 inches; gray (5Y 5/1) clay, light gray (N 7/) dry; many medium distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) redox concentrations; moderate medium prismatic structure; very hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; common fine roots; many medium tubular and interstitial pores; continuous pressure faces on peds; slightly acid (pH 6.4); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
Bg4--22 to 48 inches; dark gray (5Y 4/1) clay, white (5Y 8/1) dry; many medium distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) redox concentrations; moderate medium prismatic structure; very hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; few fine roots; common fine relic grass leaves; few medium tubular and interstitial pores; continuous pressure faces on peds; neutral (pH 6.6); gradual smooth boundary. (0 to 40 inches thick)
Bg5--48 to 60 inches; gray (5Y 5/1) silty clay, white (5Y 8/1) dry; many medium distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) redox concentrations; moderate medium prismatic structure; very hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; common fine roots; many medium tubular and interstitial pores; continuous pressure faces on peds; slightly acid (pH 6.4)
TYPE LOCATION: Thurston County, Washington; 8 miles northwest of Olympia, about 2,100 feet east and 400 feet south of the NW corner sec. 34, T. 19 N., R. 3 W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of the solum is 40 to 60 inches or more. The particle-size control section is 35 to 60 percent clay and 0 to 2 percent rounded pebbles. The mean annual soil temperature is 47 to 52 degrees F. It is assumed the solum to a depth of 40 inches has a linear extensibility of 2 to 3 inches.
The A horizon has value of 2 or 3 moist, 3 through 5 dry, and chroma of 1 through 3. Some pedons have strong brown to dark brown redox concentrations. This horizon has moderate or strong granular or angular blocky structure. It is moderately acid or slightly acid.
The Bg horizon has hue of 10YR, 2.5Y, 5Y, 5BG, or 5GY, value of 3 through 6 moist, 5 through 8 dry, and chroma of 0 through 3. It has few to many fine and medium dark reddish brown, yellowish red, strong brown, yellowish brown, or dark yellowish brown redox concentrations. It is clay loam, silty clay loam, silty clay, or clay. This horizon has weak or moderate prismatic or angular blocky structure. It has weak or distinct pressure faces on some peds. It is moderately acid through moderately alkaline.
The C horizon, where present, has hue of 2.5Y, 5Y, or 5B, value of 3 through 6 moist, 4 through 8 dry, and chroma of 1 or 2 moist and dry. It has yellowish red or strong brown redox concentrations. This horizon is clay loam, silty clay loam, silty clay, or clay with some pedons having thin layers of sandy loam or silt loam. It is moderately acid through moderately alkaline.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Bellingham soils are in depressions at elevations of 20 to 600 feet. Slopes are 0 to 3 percent. These soils formed in loess, alluvium and lacustrine sediments. The climate is characterized by cool, dry summers and cool, moist winters. Average annual precipitation is 25 to 60 inches. Average January temperature is about 39 degrees F; average July temperature is about 64 degrees F; and the mean annual temperature is about 50 degrees F. Frost-free season is 150 to 210 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Alderwood, Clallam, Elwha, Everett, Kitsap, Labounty, McKenna, Sadie, Skipopa, and Whatcom soils. All of these soils lack an aquic moisture regime except Labounty and McKenna soils. Also, Alderwood soils have a cemented layer. Clallam, Elwha, McKenna, and Sadie soils have a densic contact with dense very compact glacial till at depths of 20 to 40 inches. Everett soils are sandy-skeletal. Kitsap soils are fine-silty. Labounty soils are fine-loamy. Skipopa soils have an argillic horizon with a silt loam surface mantle that qualifies as aquandic. Whatcom soils are fine-loamy.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Poorly drained; ponded or very slow runoff; slow permeability. A water table occurs at or near the surface from November through April unless the soil is drained.
USE AND VEGETATION: Bellingham soils are used primarily for cropland and pasture. Grass-legume hay is the principal crop. Native vegetation is predominantly red alder, western redcedar, bigleaf maple, western hemlock and Douglas-fir with an understory of western swordfern, trailing blackberry, western brackenfern, thimbleberry, salmonberry, huckleberry, and Douglas spirea.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: This series is of moderate extent in the Puget Sound Area and on the north end of the Olympic Peninsula; MLRA 2.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Eastern Puget Sound Basin, Washington, 1909.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and other features are: Soil is not considered a vertic intergrade based on similar soil data from lab pedon #81P0515. Characterization data are available; sample numbers S77WA-9-3, S81WA-073-3. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are an ochric epipedon and a gleyed cambic horizon from 5 to 60 inches.
In the past this series has been interpreted as having an apparent or a perched water table. The series is considered to have Endo saturation. For areas mapped with perched water tables and a moist or dry zone is present below the layer perching the water, a new series will need to be proposed.