LOCATION BEALES                  AK

Established Series
Rev. JPM/DLM
02/2022

BEALES SERIES

Depth class: very deep
Drainage class: somewhat excessively drained
Parent material: loess over eolian sand
Landform: sandy hills and sandy plains
Slopes range from 0 to 70 percent
Mean annual temperature: about 26 degrees F., -3.3 C.
Mean annual precipitation: about 15 inches, 381 mm

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy, mixed Typic Haplocryepts

TYPICAL PEDON: Beales very fine sandy loam - under forest vegetation (All colors are for moist soil)

Oi--0 to 4 inches, (0 to 11 cm); black (10YR 2/1); slightly decomposed plant material; many very fine and fine roots throughout and common medium roots throughout and common coarse roots throughout; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear wavy boundary.

Bw--4 to 14 inches, (11 to 36 cm); brown (7.5YR 4/4) very fine sandy loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; common very fine and fine roots throughout and common medium roots throughout and few coarse roots throughout; moderately acid (pH 5.8); gradual wavy boundary.

2BC--14 to 27 inches, (36 to 69 cm); brown (10YR 4/3) loamy sand; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; common very fine and fine roots throughout and few medium roots throughout and few coarse roots throughout; moderately acid (pH 6.0); clear wavy boundary.

2C1--27 to 55 inches, (69 to 140 cm); dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) loamy sand; single grain; loose, nonsticky, nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots throughout and few medium roots throughout and few coarse roots throughout; moderately acid (pH 6.0); clear wavy boundary.

2C2--55 to 63 inches, (140 to 160 cm); light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) sand; single grain; loose, nonsticky, nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots throughout and few medium roots throughout and few coarse roots throughout; slightly acid (pH 6.2); clear wavy boundary.

2C3--63 to 72 inches, (160 to 182 cm); light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3) sand; single grain; loose, nonsticky, nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots throughout and few medium roots throughout and few coarse roots throughout; slightly acid (pH 6.2)

TYPE LOCATION: Greater Delta Area, Alaska; Datum: NAD83, UTM Easting: 589307 meters, UTM Northing: 7085296 meters, UTM Zone: 6

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Thickness of the loess mantle and depth to sand: 2 to 10 inches, 5 to 25 cm
Thickness of the solum: 5 to 18 inches, 13 to 46 cm and extends into the underlying sand
Particle size control section (weighted average): of the control sand with less than 50 percent very fine sand
Reaction class: very strongly to slightly acid in the profile.

O horizon (where present):
Matrix color: hue of 7.5YR or 10YR; value of 2 or 3; chroma of 1 to 4
Texture: slight or moderately decomposed plant material
Reaction class: very strongly acid to slightly acid

A horizon (when present):
Matrix color: hue of 7.5YR or 10YR; value of 3 or 4, chroma of 2 to 4
Texture: silt loam or very fine sandy loam
Reaction class: very strongly acid to slightly acid

Bw horizon:
Matrix color: hue of 7.5YR to 2.5Y; value of 3 to 5; chroma of 4 to 6
Texture: silt loam, very fine sandy loam, or fine sandy loam
Reaction class: very strongly acid to slightly acid

2B horizons:
Matrix color: hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 3 to 6
Texture: loamy fine sand, fine sand, sand, or coarse sand
Reaction class: moderately acid or slightly acid

2C horizon:
Matrix color: hue of 10YR to 5Y; value of 4 to 6; chroma of 4 to 6
Texture: loamy fine sand, fine sand, sand, or coarse sand
Reaction class: moderately acid or slightly acid

COMPETING SERIES: These are Chistochina, and Chistna series in the same family. Chistochina and Chistna soils have coarse fragments in the lower part of the substratum.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: loess over eolian sand
Landform: sandy hills and sandy plains
Slopes range from 0 to 70 percent
Climate: cold continental
Mean annual temperature: 24 to 28 degrees F., -4.4 to 2.2 C.
Mean annual precipitation: 12 to 15 inches, 305 to 381 mm

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These include Nenana and Salchaket soils. Nenana soils have a coarse silty loess mantle over sandy or sandy skeletal substratum and occur on similar landforms. Salchaket soils are stratified and occur on floodplains.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat excessively drained, low to high runoff, saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high to high in the loess mantle and high to very high in the underlying sandy material.

USE AND VEGETATION: Mostly in forest dominated by white spruce, paper birch and quaking aspen. A few small areas are cleared and cultivated for vegetables, grasses and grains.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRA 229 Interior Alaska Lowlands. The series is of moderate extent.

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: WASILLA, ALASKA

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Greater Delta Area, Alaska, 2008.

REMARKS: Diagnostic layers and features recognized in this profile include:
Cambic horizon from 4 to 14 inches, 11 to 36 cm
Particle size control section: sandy from 14 to 44 inches
Temperature regime: cryic
Moisture regime: udic

ADDITIONAL DATA:
Beales was formerly classified as a Sandy, mixed Typic Dystrocryepts. Laboratory data determined that Beales exceeded the base saturated criteria for that classification.

Partial reference samples from pedon 85P0882, samples 85P04712-4721 from Kantishna Area, samples by SSL, Lincoln, NE, August 01, 1985; and and 07N0022, samples 07N00101-0103 samples by SSL, Lincoln, NE, July 12, 2006

The Beales series formerly classified as a Typic Cryopsamment and included soils without a cambic horizon. These non cambic soils are now correlated to the Teklanika series.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.