LOCATION MYERSCREEK WAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, isotic Haploxerandic Haplocryepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Myerscreek ashy fine sandy loam, forestland on a northwest facing 30 percent slope, at 5,400 feet elevation in a clear cut of a lodgepole pine, Engelman spruce, and subalpine fir forest. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated. All textures are apparent field textures.)
Oe--0 to 2 inches; moderately decomposed needles, leaves and twigs. abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 4 inches thick)
C--2 to 3 inches; white (10YR 8/1) silt loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic and weakly smeary; common very fine and fine roots; common very fine and fine pores; 4 percent gravel; moderately acid (pH 5.6); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 2 inches thick)
2A--3 to 6 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) ashy fine sandy loam; brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine granular; soft, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic and weakly smeary; common very fine and fine roots and common medium and coarse roots; common very fine and fine pores; 4 percent gravel; NaF pH 11.0; moderately acid (pH 6.0); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 4 inches thick)
2Bw--6 to 14 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) ashy fine sandy loam; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; weak medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic and weakly smeary; common very fine and fine roots and few medium and coarse roots; common very fine and fine pores; 5 percent gravel; NaF pH 11.0; slightly acid (pH 6.2); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 10 inches thick)
3CB--14 to 33 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) very gravelly sandy loam; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots and few medium roots; common very fine and fine pores; 35 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; slightly acid (pH 6.4); gradual wavy boundary. (10 to 19 inches thick)
3Cd1--33 to 46 inches; light gray (2.5Y 7/2) very gravelly sandy loam, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; few fine pores; 35 percent gravel, 5 percent cobbles; slightly acid (pH 6.2); gradual wavy boundary. (10 to 25 inches thick)
3Cd2--46 to 62 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) very gravelly sandy loam, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist; massive; hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common thin olive brown (2.5Y 4/3) moist stains; 30 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; slightly acid (pH 6.4).
TYPE LOCATION: Okanogan County, Washington, about 1.5 miles north of Mount Bonaparte; 600 feet west and 400 feet north of the southeast corner of section 1, T. 38N., R. 29E. (Latitude 48 degrees, 48 minutes, 50 seconds N., Longitude 119 degrees, 06 minutes, 02 seconds W.)
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The mean annual soil temperature is 39 to 43 degrees F. Mean summer soil temperature ranges from 42 to 46 degrees F. These soils are usually moist but are dry in all parts of the moisture control section for 45 to 60 consecutive days following the summer solstice. Thickness of the volcanic ash is 7 to 14 inches, and has an estimated moist bulk density of 0.75 to 0.90 g/cc, volcanic glass content of 30 to 60 percent, acid-oxalate extractable aluminum plus one-half of the acid-oxalate extractable iron of 1.0 to 2.0 percent, and 15-bar water retention of 8 to 12 percent for air dried samples. The particle-size control section averages 35 to 60 percent rock fragments and 2 to 6 percent clay. Depth to the 2Cd (densic material) is 20 to 35 inches.
The C horizon is absent in some pedons.
The 2A horizon has value of 5 or 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist and chroma of 3 or 4 dry and moist. It is ashy fine sandy loam, stony ashy fine sandy loam or stony ashy sandy loam. It has 0 to 15 percent gravel, 0 to 5 percent cobbles, and 0 to 15 percent stones. Reaction is moderately acid to slightly acid.
The 2Bw horizon has value of 5 or 6 dry and chroma of 4 or 6 dry and moist. It is ashy fine sandy loam, gravelly ashy fine sandy loam, stony ashy fine sandy loam, gravelly ashy sandy loam or stony ashy sandy loam. It has 5 to 20 percent gravel, 0 to 5 percent cobbles, and 0 to 15 percent stones. Reaction is moderately acid to slightly acid.
The 3CB horizon has hue of 2.5Y or 10YR, value of 6 or 7 dry and chroma of 2 or 3 dry and moist. It is very gravelly sandy loam, very cobbly sandy loam or very stony sandy loam. It averages 35 to 60 percent rock fragments, with 25 to 40 percent gravel, 0 to 25 percent cobbles and 0 to 20 percent stones. Reaction is slightly acid to neutral.
The 3Cd horizons have hue of 2.5Y or 5Y, value of 6 or 7 dry and chroma of 2 or 3 dry and moist. It is very gravelly sandy loam, very cobbly sandy loam or very stony sandy loam. It averages 35 to 60 percent rock fragments, with 25 to 40 percent gravel, 0 to 25 percent cobbles and 0 to 20 percent stones. Reaction is slightly acid to neutral.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Buhrig, Buttoncreek, Devore, Finney, Gatewall, Moses, Prouty, Remmel and Surgh series. Buhrig and Devore soils are 20 to 40 inches to a lithic contact. Buttoncreek and Remmel soils lack Cd horizons. Finney and Surgh soils are 40 to 60 inches to a lithic contact. Gatewall soils have 8 to 15 percent in the particle-size control section. Moses and Prouty soils are 20 to 40 inches to a paralithic contact.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Myerscreek soils are on moraines, backslopes, foot slopes, and toe slopes of glaciated mountains at elevations of 3,400 to 6,800 feet. Slopes are 3 to 65 percent. Theses soil formed in dense glacial till with a mantle of volcanic ash. Precipitation is 25 to 35 inches. The climate is characterized by cool, dry summers and cold, wet winters. The average January temperature ranges from 18 to 22 degrees F., and the average July temperature ranges from 52 to 58 degrees F. Average annual temperature is 35 to 42 degrees F. Frost-free season is 60 to 90 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Manley, Resner, Sitdown and the competing Devore soils. Manley soils have a volcanic ash mantle 14 to 22 inches thick. Resner soils have a volcanic ash mantle 14 to 27 inches thick over very gravelly loamy sand. Sitdown soils are sandy-skeletal.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained, medium to rapid runoff; moderately rapid in the ash mantle and moderate to moderately slow in the glacial till, slow in the densic material.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for timber production, livestock grazing, wildlife habitat, recreation, and watershed. Native vegetation is subalpine fir, western larch, Douglas-fir and Engelmann spruce with an understory of grouse blueberry, black mountain huckleberry, longtube twinflower, sidebells pyrola, and silky lupine.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northcentral Washington. Series is moderate.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Okanogan National Forest, Okanogan County, Washington, 2005.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this soil are a C horizon from the surface to 1 inch (Mt. St. Helens volcanic ash `W' layer 450 years B.P.) a cambic horizon from 6 to 14 inches formed in volcanic ash over dense glacial till from 33 to 62 inches. The particle-size control section is the zone from 12 to 33 inches (part of the 2Bw and 3CB horizons). The zone from 12 to 14 inches is ashy and the zone from 14 to 33 inches is loamy-skeletal. The ashy part is only 2 inches thick, thus the soil does not have a contrasting particle-size class. The thickest part is therefore used which is loamy-skeletal. Andic properties from 3 to 14 inches.
Xeric soil moisture regime.
All depths to diagnostic horizons and features are measured from the top of the first mineral horizon.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Data available from NSSL, pedon numbers S94WA-047-004, S93WA-047-009, S97WA-047-006.