LOCATION CHEROKEESPRING CAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, thermic Ultic Palexeralfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Cherokeespring gravelly silt loam, on a north facing 12 percent slope under a cover of hardwoods, shrubs and annual grasses at an elevation of 645 feet, (196 m). When described on 6/28/2001 the soil was dry throughout. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted).
A--0 to 3 inches, (0 to 8 cm); brown (7.5YR 4/3) gravelly silt loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) moist; 18 percent clay; moderate fine and medium granular structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, nonplastic; many fine and medium roots; many fine irregular pores; 15 percent basalt gravel; slightly acid, pH 6.5 by Hellige-Truog; clear smooth boundary. (1 to 4 inches, (3 to 10 cm) thick)
Bt1--3 to 7 inches, (8 to 18 cm); brown (7.5YR 4/4) gravelly silt loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) moist; 24 percent clay; moderate medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky, moderately plastic; many fine and medium roots; many fine irregular pores; 40 percent discontinuous prominent clay films on faces of peds; 15 percent basalt gravel; slightly acid, pH 6.2 by Hellige-Truog; abrupt smooth boundary.
Bt2--7 to 16 inches, (18 to 41 cm); brown (7.5YR 4/4) gravelly silty clay loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) moist; 28 percent clay; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky, moderately plastic; common fine and medium roots; common fine and medium tubular pores; 50 percent continuous prominent clay films on faces of peds; 20 percent basalt gravel; moderately acid, pH 6.0 by Hellige-Truog; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt1 and Bt2 horizons is 12 to 34 inches, (30 to 86 cm) thick).
Bt3--16 to 30 inches, (41 to 76 cm); reddish brown (5YR 4/4) gravelly silty clay loam, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) moist; 32 percent clay; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky, moderately plastic; common very fine and fine roots; common fine tubular pores; 60 percent continuous prominent clay films on faces of peds; 25 percent basalt gravel; moderately acid, pH 5.8 by Hellige-Truog; clear smooth boundary.
Bt4--30 to 42 inches, (76 to 107 cm); reddish brown (5YR 4/3) gravelly silty clay loam, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) moist; 35 percent clay; moderate coarse prismatic structure; very hard, firm, very sticky, moderately plastic; common very fine and fine roots; common fine tubular pores; 65 percent continuous prominent clay films on faces of peds; 30 percent basalt gravel; strongly acid, pH 5.5 by Hellige-Truog; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt3 and Bt4 horizons is 18 to 27 inches, (46 to 69 cm) thick).
Bt5--42 to 60 inches, (107 to 152 cm); reddish brown (5YR 4/3) very gravelly silty clay, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) moist; 40 percent clay; moderate coarse prismatic parting to moderate medium angular blocky structure; hard, firm, very sticky, very plastic; few very fine, fine and coarse roots between peds; few fine tubular pores; 90 percent continuous prominent clay films on faces of peds; 35 percent basalt gravel; neutral, pH 7.0 by Hellige-Truog; clear smooth boundary.
Bt6--60 to 68 inches, (152 to 173 cm); reddish brown (5YR 4/3) very gravelly silty clay, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) moist; 42 percent clay; moderate coarse prismatic parting to moderate medium angular blocky structure; hard, firm, very sticky, very plastic; few very fine roots between peds; few very fine tubular pores; 80 percent continuous prominent clay films on faces of peds; 15 percent basalt cobbles and 30 percent basalt gravel; neutral, pH 7.0 by Hellige-Truog; abrupt wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt5 and Bt6 horizons is 14 to 30 inches, (36 to 76 cm) thick).
TYPE LOCATION: Butte County, California, about 5.9 miles northwest of Oroville, approximately 300 feet east and 500 feet south of the northwest corner of Section 13, Township 20 N., Range 3 E., 39 degrees, 35 minutes, 45 seconds North latitude and 121 degrees, 35 minutes, 43 seconds West longitude, NAD83 - U.S.G.S Quad: Oroville, California.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to bedrock is greater than 60 inches, (152 cm). The mean annual soil temperature is 61 to 64 degrees F, (16 to 18 degrees C). The particle-size control section averages 27 to 35 percent clay, less than 15 percent sand, greater than 50 percent silt and 15 to 30 percent rock fragments, mostly gravel. Mineralogy is mixed. Rock fragments on the surface range from 0 to 10 percent gravel and 0 to 5 percent cobbles.
The A horizon dry color is 7.5YR 3/4, 4/3, 10YR 3/4 or 4/4. Moist color is 7.5YR 2/2, 3/2, 3/3, 3/4, 10YR 2/2 or 3/3. Texture is gravelly silt loam or silt loam. Clay content ranges from 15 to 20 percent. Rock fragments range from 5 to 15 percent gravel and 0 to 5 percent cobbles. Reaction is slightly acid.
The upper Bt horizon dry colors are 5YR 4/4, 7.5YR 3/4, 4/3, 4/4, or 10YR 3/4. Moist color is 5YR 3/4, 7.5YR 3/2, 3/3, 3/4 or 10YR 3/2. Texture is gravelly silt loam, silt loam, gravelly silty clay loam, silty clay loam or cobbly silt loam. Clay content ranges from 20 to 30 percent. Rock fragments range from 10 to 25 percent gravel and 0 to 30 percent cobbles. Reaction ranges from moderately acid to neutral.
The middle Bt horizon dry colors are 5YR 4/4, 7.5YR 3/4, 4/4 or 10YR 3/4. Moist color is 5YR 3/3, 7.5YR 3/3, 3/4 or 10YR 3/3. Texture is gravelly silty clay loam, very gravelly silty clay loam, very cobbly silt clay loam or silty clay loam. Clay content ranges from 28 to 35 percent. Rock fragments range from 10 to 30 percent gravel and 0 to 30 percent cobbles. Reaction ranges from slightly acid to strongly acid.
The lower Bt horizon dry colors are 5YR 4/3, 4/4 or 7.5YR 4/4. Moist color is 5YR 3/4 or 7.5YR 3/4. Texture is very gravelly silty clay, very gravelly silty clay loam, very cobbly silty clay loam or cobbly silty clay loam. Clay content ranges from 35 to 42 percent. Rock fragments range from 10 to 40 percent gravel and 0 to 40 percent cobbles. Reaction ranges from strongly acid to neutral.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Dryfield, Wickscorner and Windynip series. Wickscorner soils have less than 50 percent silt throughout.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Cherokeespring soils are on benches on side slopes on basalt plateaus in Sierra Nevada foothills. Slopes range from 2 to 15 percent. These soils formed in alluvium weathered from basalt. Elevation is 460 to 1440 feet, (140 to 439 m). Mean annual precipitation is 27 to 37 inches, (686 to 940 mm). The mean annual temperature is 59 to 61 degrees F, (15 to 16 degrees C). Frost free season is 250 to 260 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Beatsonhollow, Campbellhills, Elsey and Thermalrocks soils. The Beatsonhollow soils are in the swale positions in mound-swale microtopography on basalt plateaus, are loamy-skeletal and shallow to bedrock. Campbellhills soils are in fractures on basalt plateaus, are loamy-skeletal and are deep to bedrock. Elsey soils are on the mound position in mound-swale microtopography on basalt plateaus, are fine-loamy and moderately deep to bedrock. Thermalrocks soils are on convex positions on basalt plateaus, are loamy-skeletal and are very shallow to bedrock.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; low runoff; moderate saturated hydraulic conductivity in the A horizon, moderate to moderately slow in the upper Bt horizon, moderately slow in the middle Bt horizon and moderately slow to slow in the lower Bt horizon.
USE AND VEGETATION: This soil is used for livestock grazing, wildlife habitat, watershed and in the past, olive orchards. Vegetation is interior liveoak, blue oak, whiteleaf manzanita, buckbrush, Pacific poison oak, yellow starthistle, hedgehog dogstail, wild oat, soft chess, ryegrass, ripgut brome, filaree, cowbag clover, and scattered valley oak and foothill pine.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Butte County, California and occur in the (M261Fb) Lower Foothills Metamorphic Belt subsection of the (M261F) Sierra Nevada Foothills section. MLRA: 18 - Sierra Nevada Foothills. The soils are not extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Butte County, California 2005. Source of name is coined.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle-size control section - zone from 3 to 23 in, (8 to 58 cm)
Ochric Epipedon - zone from 0 to 3 in, (0 to 8 cm) (A)
Argillic Horizon - zone from 3 to 68 in, (8 to 173cm) (Bt1, Bt2, Bt3, Bt4, Bt5, Bt6)
The soil moisture control section - zone from 7 to 20 inches, (18 to 51 cm) is dry in all parts from about May to November (about 150 to 200 days).
Base saturation by sum of cations is assumed to be less than 50 percent throughout the argillic horizon.
Dryfield and Windynip series are listed in the SC file as competing series. However, the descriptions are not available on the Official Series Descriptions site.