LOCATION BRAF UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, calcareous, mesic Lithic Torriorthents
TYPICAL PEDON: Braf sandy loam, on southeast facing, gently sloping, 4 percent slope in rangeland at an elevation of 5,280 feet. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) When described on August 11, 1976 the soil was dry from 0 to 8 inches.
A--0 to 3 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) sandy loam, strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) moist; moderate medium platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; many fine vesicular pores; slightly effervescent, (14 percent calcium carbonate equivalent), carbonates are disseminated; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (2 to 5 inches thick)
C--3 to 8 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) sandy loam, strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; slightly effervescent, (16 percent calcium carbonate equivalent), carbonates are disseminated; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (3 to 15 inches thick)
R--8 inches; sandstone bedrock.
TYPE LOCATION: Uintah County, Utah; about 1 mile north of Randlett; located about 1,500 feet east and 1,100 feet south of the northwest corner of sec. 8, T. 3 S., R. 2 E.; USBM; Randlett, Utah USGS quad; lat. 40 degrees 13 minutes 27 seconds N. and long. 109 degrees 47 minutes 47 seconds W., NAD 27
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: The soil moisture control section is affected by precipitation that falls evenly throughout the year with a slight increase in the late summer and fall. Typic aridic moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature: 47 to 51 degrees F.
Depth to lithic contact: 5 to 20 inches to sandstone
Particle-size control section: 5 to 18 percent clay; 0 to 35 percent sandstone gravel, channers and cobbles; 1 to 20 percent calcium carbonate equivalent
A horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6 dry or moist
Rock fragments: 0 to 35 percent total; 0 to 35 percent gravel, 0 to 25 percent channers, 0 to 5 percent cobbles, of sandstone origin
Reaction: slightly to strongly alkaline
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 1 to 20 percent
Gypsum: 0 to 2 percent
C horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 4 to 6 moist
Chroma: 3 to 6 dry or moist
Texture: sandy loam, fine sandy loam, channery loam, very channery fine sandy loam
Rock fragments: 0 to 60 percent total (weighted average for combined C horizons is 0 to 35 percent); 0 to 15 percent gravel, 0 to 45 percent channers, 0 to 5 percent cobbles, of sandstone origin
Reaction: moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 2 to 20 percent
Gypsum: 0 to 2 percent
COMPETING SERIES: These are Casmos, Farb, Juanalo, and Moenkopie series.
Casmos soils have 18 to 35 percent clay in the particle-size control section.
Farb soils have mean annual soil temperature of 52 to 57 degrees F.
Juanalo soils have a cambic horizon and mean annual soil temperature of 54 to 58 degrees F.
Moenkopie soils mean annual soil temperature of 50 to 58 degrees F and have hue of 2.5YR or 5YR throughout.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: eolian deposits, slope alluvium, and residuum derived from sandstone
Landform: mesas and structural benches
Slopes: 2 to 15 percent
Elevation: 4,900 to 6,200 feet
Mean annual air temperature: 45 to 50 degrees F.
Mean annual precipitation: 5 to 9 inches
Frost-free period: 110 to 150 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Shotnick and the Ohtog series.
Shotnick and Ohtog soils occur on alluvial flats and are very deep.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat excessively or excessively drained, low to high runoff, moderately rapid permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are principally used for rangeland, wildlife habitat and recreation. Potential native vegetation consists of black sagebrush, shadscale, galleta, bottlebrush squirreltail and Salina wildrye. This soil has been correlated to the Desert Shallow Loam (Black sagebrush) - 034XY118UT range site at the type location in Utah.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northeastern and central Utah. LRR D, MLRA 34. This series is of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Uintah County, Uintah Area Soil Survey, Utah. 1998. The name is coined.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Series control section: The zone from 0 to 8 inches.
Particle-size control section: The zone from 0 to 8 inches. (A and C horizons)
Ochric epipedon: The zone from 0 to 3 inches. (A horizon)
Lithic contact: The contact with sandstone at 8 inches. (R layer)
Last updated by the state 11/1998.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Calcium carbonate equivalent was determined by field calcimeter. The cation exchange activity class was inferred from laboratory data in the Uintah Area Soil Survey.
Taxonomic version: Tenth Edition, 2006.