LOCATION BATTLEAX OR
Tentative Series
DCR
01/2017
BATTLEAX SERIES
Landscape--western Cascade Mountains
Landform--mountain slopes and glacial-valley walls, generally south-facing
Slope--60 to 90 percent
Parent material--colluvium derived from hard extrusive igneous rock mixed with volcanic ash throughout
Mean annual precipitation--about 2600 mm
Mean annual air temperature--about 6 degrees C
Depth class--very deep
Drainage class--well drained
Soil moisture regime--udic
Soil temperature regime--cryic
Soil moisture subclass--typic
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Medial-skeletal, amorphic Typic Haplocryands
TYPICAL PEDON: Battleax very gravelly medial loam on a forested, south-facing, 65-percent mountain slope at an elevation of about 1375 m (The soil was dry throughout when observed on July 28, 2015.)
Oi--0 to 5 cm; slightly decomposed plant material; 10 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles; abrupt wavy boundary
Oe--5 to 9 cm; moderately decomposed plant material, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) dry, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine to coarse roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 10 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles; very strongly acid (pH 4.8); abrupt irregular boundary
A--9 to 20 cm; very gravelly medial loam, brown (10YR 5/3) dry, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak very fine granular structure and weak fine subangular blocky; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and common fine to coarse roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 40 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; very strongly acid (pH 4.8); clear wavy boundary
AB--20 to 48 cm; very gravelly medial loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) dry, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak very fine granular structure and weak fine subangular blocky; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few fine and common very fine, medium, and coarse roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 40 percent gravel and 8 percent cobbles; very strongly acid (pH 5.0); clear wavy boundary
Bw1--48 to 90 cm; extremely gravelly medial loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) dry, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak very fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few fine and common very fine, medium, and coarse roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 55 percent gravel and 8 percent cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear wavy boundary
Bw2--90 to 150 cm; extremely gravelly medial loam, brown (10YR 5/3) dry, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak very fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few fine and common very fine and medium roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 70 percent gravel and 8 percent cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.4)
TYPE LOCATION: Marion County, Oregon; approximately 7 km east-southeast of Elkhorn, in Willamette National Forest; about 15 m north and 80 m west of the southeast corner of section 2, T. 9 S., R. 4 E., Willamette Meridian; latitude 44.8139972, longitude -122.2788417, datum WGS 84 (coordinates determined with a GPS)
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean annual soil temperature--4 to 7 degrees C
Dry days--30 to 45 consecutive days following summer solstice
Thickness of umbric epipedon--25 to 50 cm (below mineral soil surface)
Thickness of andic soil properties--greater than 150 cm (below mineral soil surface)
Estimated properties of layers with andic soil properties
*1/3-bar bulk density--less than or equal to 0.9 g/cm3
*Phosphate retention--greater than 85 percent
*Ammonium extractable Al + Fe--2.0 to 4.0 percent
*15-bar water tension--30 to 70 percent (undried samples), greater than 15 percent (dried samples)
*0.02- to 2.0-mm fraction--greater than 30 percent
*Volcanic glass content in 0.02-to 2.0-mm fraction--5 to 30 percent
Particle-size control section
*Clay content--10 to 18 percent
*Total rock fragment content--35 to 70 percent
O horizon
*Thickness--2 to 10 cm
*Fragment content--0 to 15 percent
A and AB horizons
*Hue--10YR, 7.5YR
*Value--2 to 3 moist, 3 to 5 dry
*Chroma--2 or 3 moist, 2 to 4 dry
*Fine-earth texture--medial loam, medial silt loam
*Clay content--10 to 18 percent
*Sand content--30 to 50 percent
*Total fragment content--35 to 60 percent
*Gravel content--25 to 45 percent
*Cobble content--2 to 15 percent
*Stone content--0 to 5 percent
*Reaction--4.5 to 5.5
*Organic carbon content--3 to 6 percent
*Thickness--25 to 50 cm
Bw horizon
*Hue--7.5YR, 10YR
*Value--4 moist, 5 or 6 dry
*Chroma--3 or 4 moist or dry
*Fine-earth texture--medial loam, medial silt loam
*Clay content--10 to 18 percent
*Sand content--30 to 50 percent
*Total fragment content--45 to 80 percent
*Gravel content--30 to 70 percent
*Cobble content--5 to 20 percent
*Stone content--0 to 10 percent
*Reaction--5.0 to 6.0
*Organic carbon content--1 to 3 percent
COMPETING SERIES:
Divers--ochric epipedon
Highcamp--lithic contact at a depth of 100 to 150 cm
Holderman--lithic contact at a depth of 50 to 100 cm
Oatman--ochric epipedon
Ohana--albic horizon; Bs horizon
Otwin--lithic contact at a depth of 50 to 100 cm
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Elevation--1200 to 1800 m
Climate--cool, dry summers; cold, wet winters
Mean annual precipitation--2300 to 2900 mm
Mean annual air temperature--5 to 8 degrees C
Frost-free period--45 to 105 days
Continuous snow cover--December through April
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
Marten--spodic horizon; in convex positions of cirque floors and linear positions of summits
Talapus--10 to 15 percent organic matter in upper part of umbric epipedon; in concave positions of cirque floors
Thader--spodic horizon; on north-facing cirque headwalls and mountain slopes
Zygore--frigid soil temperature regime; on mountain slopes
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class--well drained
Saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat)--high throughout
USE AND VEGETATION:
Use--timber production, wildlife habitat, recreation
Potential natural vegetation--Pacific silver fir, western hemlock, Douglas-fir, dwarf Oregon grape, prince's pine, vine maple, blue huckleberry, baldhip rose, vanilla leaf, twinflower, bunchberry dogwood; commonly support a Pacific silver fir/dwarf Oregon grape (CFS 151) plant association (Field Guide to the Forested Plant Associations of the Westside Central Cascades of Northwest Oregon)
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Olympic Mountains in Washington and Cascade Mountains in Oregon; MLRA 3; small extent
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon
SERIES PROPOSED: Willamette National Forest, Marion County, Oregon; 2015; name from U.S. Geological Survey 7.5-minute quadrangle
REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon
*Particle-size control section--zone from 9 to 109 cm
*Umbric epipedon--zone from 9 to 48 cm
*Andic soil properties--zone from 9 to 150 cm
*Volcanic glass--zone from 9 to 150 cm
*Cambic horizon--zone from 48 to 90 cm
2/2016--Assumed to meet criteria 2 (no ash required) for andic soil properties, in the 12th edition of Keys to Soil Taxonomy. It is also assumed that enough ash is present for the soils to meet criteria 3. Additional lab data is needed to confirm the degree of ash influence.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Typical pedon user ID--2015OR047805
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.