LOCATION ACKER OREstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Palexerults
TYPICAL PEDON: Acker gravelly loam--forest land. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Oi--4 inches to 0; partially decomposed bark, leaves, needles, roots, and twigs.
A--0 to 8 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) gravelly loam, brown (10YR 5/3) dry; strong very fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and common fine, medium, and coarse roots; many very fine irregular pores; 30 percent gravel and 4 percent cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 8 inches thick)
BA--8 to 17 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly clay loam, brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) dry; strong very fine and fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, stick and plastic; common very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots; many very fine tubular pores; 15 percent gravel; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear wavy boundary. (5 to 17 inches thick)
Bt1--17 to 28 inches; yellowish red (5YR 5/6) gravelly clay loam, strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) dry; strong very fine and fine subangular blocky structure; hard,. firm, sticky and plastic; common very fine, fine, and few medium and coarse roots; many very fine tubular pores; common distinct clay films of faces or peds and in pores; 15 percent gravel; strongly acid (pH 5.2); gradual wavy boundary. (7 to 17 inches thick)
Bt2--28 to 60 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6, 5/8) gravelly clay loam, reddish yellow (7.5YR 6/8) dry; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, sticky and plastic; few very fine and fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; common distinct clay films on faces of peds and in pores; 20 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.2).
TYPE LOCATION: Jackson County, Oregon, 1/2 mile southeast of Waggoner Gap, 900 feet east and 300 feet south of the northwest corner of section 3, T. 33 S., R. 4 W., W.M. (Latitude 42 degrees, 44 minutes, 13 seconds N, Longitude 123 degrees, 9 minutes, 55 seconds W)
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The solum thickness is 40 to over 60 inches. The mean annual soil temperature is 47 to 54 degrees F. The soil is usually moist but is dry within all parts of the moisture control section for 45 to 60 consecutive days following the summer solstice. Depth to a paralithic contact is greater than 60 inches. The particle- size control section averages 27 to 35 percent clay and 0 to 35 percent rock fragments.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 2 to 4 moist, 4 to 7 dry, and chroma of 2 to 4 moist and dry. Rock fragments range from 15 to 35 percent gravel and 0 to 5 percent cobbles. It has 15 to 25 percent clay. It is strongly acid to slightly acid.
The BA or BAt horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 or 5 moist, 6 or 7 dry, and chroma of 3 to 6 moist and dry. It is loam, cobbly loam, gravelly loam or gravelly clay loam with 20 to 30 percent clay, 0 to 25 percent gravel and 0 to 10 percent cobbles. It is strongly acid to slightly acid.
The Bt horizon has hue of 10YR to 5YR, value of 3 to 5 moist, 5 to 7 dry, and chroma of 3 to 8 moist and dry. It is gravelly clay loam or clay loam with 27 to 40 percent clay. Rock fragments range from 0 to 35 percent gravel and 0 to 5 percent cobbles. It is slightly acid to strongly acid.
A BCt or C horizon is present in some horizons and has hue of 10YR to 5YR, value of 4 to 7 moist, 5 to 8 dry, and chroma of 3 to 6 moist and dry. It is very gravelly clay loam, gravelly loam or gravelly clay loam with 25 to 40 percent clay. Rock fragments range from 15 to 40 percent gravel and 0 to 5 percent cobbles. It is very strongly acid to moderately acid.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Acker soils are on hill slopes, broad ridgetops, and mountain side slopes. Elevations are 400 to 4,000 feet. These soils formed in colluvium and residuum derived dominantly from metasedimentary and rhyolitic tuff rocks. Slopes are 0 to 65 percent. The climate is characterized by warm, moist to wet winters and hot, dry summers. The mean annual temperature is 45 to 52 degrees F. The mean annual precipitation is typically 35 to 60 inches but may range to 100 inches in high winter rainfall interior mountains of Curry County, Oregon. The frost free period is 100 to 200 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Atring, Kanid, Norling, Vena, and Zing soils. The Atring, Kanid, and Vena soils are loamy-skeletal. Dumont soils are clayey. Norling and Vena soils are moderately deep. Zing soils are fine and are moderately well to somewhat poorly drained. All of these soils occur on broad ridgetops, side slopes, or foot slopes of mountains.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; moderately slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for timber production, wildlife habitat and watershed. The native vegetation includes Douglas fir, Pacific madrone, and incense cedar with an understory of creambush oceanspray, western swordfern, common snowberry, western princess pine, whipplevine, salal, poison oak, pacific dogwood, golden chinkapin, and cascade Oregongrape. In high rainfall areas of Curry County, Oregon, the vegetation includes sugar pine, tanoak, and canyon live oak.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Klamath Vountain province of southwestern Oregon; MLRA 5. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Jackson County, Oregon, 1988.
REMARKS: This draft (5/94) reflects a change in the series type location. It represents a more central concept for the series. It also reflects a change in classification from Haploxerults to Palexerults.
CEC activity class superactive added 1/2000, competing series not updated at that time.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon
Argillic horizon - the zone from 17 to 60 inches. (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons)
Pale feature - the zone from 0 to 60 inches having no decrease in clay by 20 percent or more.
Particle-size control section - from 17 to 37 inches. (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons)
Base saturation is assumed to be less than 35 percent at 67 inches; assumption is based on data from associated series.