LOCATION CHANTIER SDEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Clayey, smectitic, mesic, shallow Vertic Haplustepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Chantier clay - on a north-facing slope of about 4 percent in native grass. When described the soil was moist throughout. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
A--0 to 2 inches; olive gray (5Y 5/2) clay, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine granular; dark olive gray (5Y 3/2) film on faces of peds; extremely hard, very firm, sticky and plastic; slight effervescence; moderately alkaline; abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)
Bw1--2 to 6 inches; olive gray (5Y 5/2) clay, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; weak coarse and medium subangular blocky structure with common slickensides; extremely hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine nests of salts and gypsum; slight effervescence; moderately alkaline; clear wavy boundary.
Bw2--6 to 11 inches; olive gray (5Y 5/2) clay, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; weak coarse and medium subangular blocky structure with common slickensides; extremely hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; few fine and medium nests of salts and gypsum; slight effervescence; moderately alkaline; clear wavy boundary. (Combined Bw horizon is 7 to 14 inches thick.)
Bz--11 to 15 inches; olive gray (5Y 5/2) clay, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; weak coarse subangular blocky structure with common slickensides; extremely hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; many fine and medium nests of salts and gypsum; slight effervescence; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (2 to 10 inches thick)
C--15 to 19 inches; light olive gray (5Y 6/2) clay, olive gray (5Y 5/2) moist; massive with few slicken sides; extremely hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; 40 percent by volume of fragments of soft shale; common fine and medium nests of salts and gypsum; slight effervescence; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary.
Cr--19 to 60 inches; gray (5Y 6/1) soft bedded shale, olive gray (5Y 5/2) moist; common fine and medium distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) iron stains; few fine nests of salts and gypsum in seams; slight effervescence; moderately alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Lyman County, South Dakota; about 4 1/2 miles north and 1 1/2 miles west of Reliance; 2000 feet west and 135 feet north of the southeast corner of sec. 30, T. 106 N., R. 73 W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The depth to shale ranges from about 10 to 20 inches. Typically the soil contains carbonate throughout but some pedons are leached to 3 inches. When the soil is dry, cracks 1/2 to 2 inches wide and several feet long extend downward through the solum. Soil colors are mostly inherited from the parent shale. The control section typically has about 65 percent clay but the surface ranges from 60 to 75 percent. Electrical conductivity within 5 inches of the surface is 4 to 16 mmhos/cm. The soil ranges from slightly alkaline to strongly alkaline throughout.
The A horizon has 2.5Y or 5Y hue, value of 5 or 6 and 4 or 5 moist, and chroma of 1 or 2. Both dry and moist colors on faces of peds in the A horizon ranges from 1/2 to 1 value darker than the crushed peds. A porous surface, crust 1/8 to 1 inch thick, often forms upon drying but parts easily to granules.
The Bw horizon has hue of 2.5Y or 5Y, value of 5 or 6 and 4 or 5 moist, and chroma of 1 or 2. It typically has few nests of gypsum and other salts, but some pedons do not have salts in the upper part.
The Bz horizon has hue of 2.5Y or 5Y, value of 5 or 6 and 4 to 6 moist and chroma of 1 to 3. It has common to many nests of gypsum and other salts.
The C horizon has hue of 5Y or 2.5Y, value of 4 to 7 and 3 to 5 moist, and chroma of 1 to 3. It contains as much as 50 percent by volume of fragments of soft shale. White or olive colored bentonitic shale layers 1 to 6 inches thick are in some pedons.
The Cr horizon is clay shale. Yellowish brown and brownish yellow stains are common along fracture faces of shale fragments.
COMPETING SERIES: This is the Dupree series. Dupree soils have a lower electrical conductivity, contain less visible salts and typically do not have free carbonate.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Chantier soils are on nearly level to strongly sloping uplands. Slope gradients range from 2 to 25 percent. Some landscapes have slight gilagi microrelief. The soil formed in clay residuum weathered from shale. Mean annual temperature ranges from 45 to 50 degrees F, and mean annual precipitation ranges from 13 to 24 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Dupree soils and the Bullcreek, Okaton, Opal, and Sansarc soils. Bullcreek soils are on toe slopes and flats below the Chantier soils and have bedrock at depths greater than 40 inches. Dupree, Opal, and Sansarc soils are on similar landscapes. Opal soils have bedrock at a depth of 20 to 40 inches and have less salts. Okaton soils are on crests, knolls, and ridges above Chantier soils. Okaton soils contain more carbonate and are less dense. Sansarc soils have lower electrical conductivity, contain less visible salts, and are less dense.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Surface runoff is high on the lower slopes and very high on the more sloping areas. Permeability is very slow, except after dry periods when initial intake may be rapid due to cracks in the soil.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used almost entirely as rangeland. Principal vegetation is a sparse stand of western wheatgrass, green needlegrass, forbs, and shrubs.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The series is extensive in central South Dakota.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Denver, Colorado
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Hughes County, South Dakota, 1970.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: ochric epipedon - the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of about 2 inches (A horizon); cambic horizon - the zone from about 2 to 11 inches (Bw1 and Bw2 horizons).