LOCATION ABELA UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Calcixerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Abela gravelly loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A1--0 to 5 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) gravelly loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak fine and medium granular structure; soft, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine and very fine roots; 30 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); abrupt wavy boundary. (2 to 8 inches thick)
A2--5 to 14 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) gravelly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine and very fine roots; common very fine pores; 30 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
Bw--14 to 28 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine pores; 30 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; secondary carbonates segregated as coats on bottoms of gravel; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); clear wavy boundary. (6 to 16 inches thick)
Bk1--28 to 39 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few fine and very fine roots; 55 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles; violently effervescent; secondary carbonates segregated as coats on bottoms of gravel; strongly alkaline (pH 9.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (7 to 17 inches thick)
Bk2--39 to 49 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) extremely gravelly loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; discontinuous zones of strong cementation; 80 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; violently effervescent; secondary carbonates completely coat rock fragments; very strongly alkaline (pH 9.2); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 21 inches thick)
C--49 to 60 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) extremely gravelly sandy loam; brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; 60 percent gravel and 10 percent cobbles; violently effervescent; very strongly alkaline (pH 9.2).
TYPE LOCATION: Box Elder County, Utah; about 5 miles southwest of Promontory in Promontory Hollow; approximately 700 feet west and 600 feet south of the northeast corner of section 36, T. 10 N., R. 7 W.; USGS Golden Spike Monument 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; 41 degrees 33 minutes 35 seconds north latitude and 112 degrees 35 minutes 16 seconds west longitude, NAD27; UTM zone 12N 367518E, 4602104N, NAD83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - Typically moist in winter and spring, dry in summer and fall; Xeric moisture regime that borders on aridic.
Mean annual soil temperature - 47 to 52 degrees F.
Mean summer soil temperature - 71 to 73 degrees F.
Mollic epipedon thickness - 7 to 18 inches.
Particle-size control section - Clay content: Averages 10 to 27 percent; Rock fragments: 35 to 80 percent, mainly gravel. Lithology of fragments are limestone, sandstone, and quartzite.
A horizons - Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 4 or 5 dry.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Texture: Gravelly loam or stony loam.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Effervescence: Slightly effervescent or strongly effervescent.
Organic matter content: 1 to 4 percent.
Bw horizon - Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 4 through 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Gravelly loam, gravelly fine sandy loam, gravelly sandy loam, very gravelly sandy loam, or very gravelly loam.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Effervescence: Strongly effervescent or violently effervescent.
Identifiable secondary carbonates: Gravel is coated mainly on the bottom surfaces.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 3 to 15 percent.
Other features: Some pedons have minor amounts of secondary carbonates but also display partial removal of carbonates.
Bk horizons - Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 6 through 8 dry, 4 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Very gravelly sandy loam, very cobbly sandy loam, very gravelly loam, extremely gravelly loam, extremely gravelly sandy loam, and less commonly gravelly loam.
Rock fragments: 20 to 80 percent gravel, 0 to 30 percent cobbles.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline to very strongly alkaline.
Identifiable secondary carbonates: Coats are on surfaces of rock fragments; Some pedons have zones of discontinuous cementation by carbonates.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 40 percent.
C horizon - Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 5 through 8 dry, 4 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Very gravelly loam, very gravelly sandy loam, extremely gravelly sandy loam, or extremely cobbly sandy loam.
Rock fragments: 35 to 70 percent gravel, 0 to 40 percent cobbles.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline to very strongly alkaline.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Donnardo, Munk, Stember, and Sterling series.
Donnardo soils are dominated by stones and cobbles in the particle-size control section. Munk and Stember soils are moderately deep to lithic contacts. Sterling soils do not have cambic horizons.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Abela soils are on fan remnants and lake terraces. These soils formed in alluvium or lacustrine deposits derived mainly from limestone, sandstone, some intermediate igneous rocks, and quartzite. Slopes are 2 to 25 percent. Elevations range from 4,400 to 7,200 feet. The climate is dry subhumid. The mean annual precipitation is 12 to 14 inches. The mean annual temperature is 45 to 49 degrees F. The frost-free period is 90 to 160 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: Theses are the Bingham, Birdow, Borvant, and DeJarnet soils and the competing Munk and Sterling soils. Bingham soils have argillic horizons. Birdow soils are fine-loamy, have thick mollic epipedons, and do not have calcic horizons. Borvant soils are shallow to petrocalcic horizons and have carbonatic mineralogy. DeJarnet soils have thick mollic epipedons.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; low or medium surface runoff; moderately rapid permeability (high saturated hydraulic conductivity).
USE AND VEGETATION: Abela soils are used principally as rangeland. The native vegetation is dominantly Wyoming big sagebrush, yellowbrush, bluebunch wheatgrass, cheatgrass, and annual weeds. In Iron County and Tooele County, Utah the native vegetation includes pinyon and Utah juniper.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northwestern and southwestern Utah. These soils are extensive with about 110,000 acres of the series mapped to date. Most acres are in northwestern Utah (Box Elder and Tooele Counties) and are not extensive in southwestern Utah (Iron County). MLRA 28A.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Box Elder County (Box Elder County, Eastern Part), Utah, 1969.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 14 inches (A1 and A2 horizons).
Cambic horizon - The zone from 14 to 28 inches (Bw horizon).
Calcic horizon - The zone from 28 to 49 inches (Bk1 and Bk2 horizons).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 10 to 40 inches (Bw and Bk1 horizons and parts of the A2 and Bk2 horizons).
In February 1995 the classification was changed from Aridic Calcixerolls to Typic Calcixerolls, based on a 12 to 14 inch precipitation and upland range sites.
The superactive cation exchange activity class was added in 03/2003 to the taxonomic classification by the National Soil Survey Center on request of the Reno MLRA office, without review of the soil series property data.