LOCATION COPPERCREEK CA

Established Series
Rev: JHP/JPS/ET
07/2016

COPPERCREEK SERIES

The Coppercreek series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in colluvium and residuum from schist, sandstone, and mudstone. Coppercreek soils are on mountains and have slopes of 9 to 75 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 2160 millimeters (85 inches) and the mean annual temperature is about 11 degrees C (52 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, semiactive, isomesic Typic Palehumults

TYPICAL PEDON: Coppercreek loam - on a uniform northwest-facing slope of 30 percent under redwood, Douglas-fir, Pacific rhododendron, California huckleberry, and swordfern at 279 meters (850 feet) elevation. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated. When described June 24, 2004, the soil was moist throughout.)

A--0 to 20 centimeters (0 to 8 inches); very dark brown (10YR 2/2) loam, brown (10YR 4/3) dry; weak fine granular and moderate very fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine, fine, medium and coarse roots throughout; common very fine and fine irregular and common fine and medium tubular pores; 2 percent gravel; very strongly acid (pH 5.0); clear wavy boundary. (2 to 40 centimeters thick)

BAt--20 to 37 centimeters (8 to 15 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) clay loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) dry; moderate very fine and fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine, fine, medium and very coarse roots throughout; common very fine and fine irregular and common medium and coarse tubular pores; very few distinct clay films on ped faces and rock fragments; 2 percent gravel; very strongly acid (pH 4.9); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 30 centimeters thick)

Bt1--37 to 52 centimeters (15 to 20 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) clay loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) dry; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few very fine, fine, and medium and common very coarse roots throughout; common very fine and fine irregular and common fine, medium, coarse and very coarse tubular pores; few distinct clay films on ped faces and rock fragments; 2 percent gravel; very strongly acid (pH 4.7); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 36 centimeters thick)

Bt2--52 to 75 centimeters (20 to 30 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) clay loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) dry; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine, fine, medium, coarse and very coarse roots throughout; common very fine and fine irregular and common fine, coarse and very coarse tubular pores; few distinct clay films on ped faces and rock fragments; 3 percent gravel; very strongly acid (pH 4.6); clear smooth boundary.

Bt3--75 to 110 centimeters (30 to 43 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) clay loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) dry; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine, fine, medium, coarse and very coarse roots throughout; common very fine and fine irregular and common fine tubular pores; few distinct clay films on ped faces and rock fragments; 3 percent gravel; very strongly acid (pH 4.6); clear smooth boundary.

Bt4--110 to 140 centimeters (43 to 55 inches); strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) clay loam, brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) dry; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; moderately few fine and common medium roots throughout; common very fine and fine irregular and common fine tubular pores; common distinct clay films on ped faces and rock fragments; 3 percent gravel; very strongly acid (pH 4.5); clear smooth boundary.

Bt5--140 to 165 centimeters (55 to 65 inches); strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) paragravelly clay loam, yellow (10YR 7/6) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; moderately few fine and common coarse roots throughout; moderately few very fine and fine irregular pores; common distinct clay films on ped faces and rock fragments; 5 percent gravel, 1 percent cobbles, and 10 percent paragravel; very strongly acid (pH 4.5); clear smooth boundary. (combined thickness of the Bt horizons is 50 to 175 centimeters)

BCt--165 to 200 centimeters (65 to 79 inches); strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) paragravelly clay loam, yellow (10YR 7/6) dry; weak fine subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; moderately few fine and common medium roots throughout; moderately few very fine irregular pores; common faint clay films on ped faces; 5 percent gravel, 1 percent cobbles, and 12 percent paragravel; very strongly acid (pH 4.5). (0 to 50 centimeters thick)

TYPE LOCATION: Redwood National & State Park, Del Norte County, California; bankcut between PJ Spur Road and Bummer Lake Road; northwest quarter, northwest quarter, section 34, T. 16 N., R. 1 E., WGS84 Decimal degrees 41.7408889 latitude and -124.0536111 longitude; HBLM, USGS Childs Hill Quadrangle; UTM Zone 10 412388mE 4621545mN; NAD83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil moisture: The soil is usually moist in all parts in the soil moisture control section in most years, but becomes nearly dry in the upper part from about September 15 to October 15 in most years. The soils have a udic soil moisture regime.

Soil temperature: The mean annual soil temperature is 10 to 13 degrees C (50 to 55 degrees F). The difference between mean summer and mean winter soil temperature is 2 to 4 degrees C. The soil has an isomesic soil temperature regime.

Organic matter: There are 12 to 20 kg organic carbon per square meter to a depth of one meter.

Reaction is strongly or very strongly acid throughout. Base saturation is 15 to 35 percent at the critical depth.

Particle-Size Control Section (weighted average):

Rock fragments: 0 to 35 gravel and 0 to 10 percent cobbles.
Clay content: 27 to 35 percent.

Some pedons have O horizons.

O horizon

Hue: 10YR.
Value: 2 through 6 dry and moist.
Chroma: 1 through 4 dry and moist.

Texture: slightly decomposed organic material.
Wood fragments: 0 to 35 percent.
Reaction: moderately to very strongly acid.

A horizon

Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR.
Value: 4 through 7 dry, 2 through 4 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4 dry and moist.

Texture of fine earth: silt loam or loam.
Rock fragments: 0 to 45 percent gravel and 0 to 10 percent cobbles.
Clay content: 20 to 27 percent

Bt horizon

Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR, or 2.5Y.
Value: 4 through 7 dry, 2 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 6 dry, 3 through 8 moist.

Texture of fine earth: loam, silty clay loam or clay loam.
Rock fragments: 0 to 55 percent gravel, 0 to 10 percent cobbles, and 0 to 30 percent paragravels.
Clay content: 25 to 35 percent.

Some pedons have a C horizon.

C horizon

Hue: 10YR, 2.5Y, or 5Y.
Value: 6 through 8 dry, 4 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4 dry, 2 through 8 moist.

Texture of fine earth: sandy clay loam, loam, or clay loam.
Rock fragments: 15 to 55 percent gravel, 0 to 10 percent cobbles and 0 to 10 percent stones.
Clay content: 23 to 35 percent.

Some pedons have a Cg horizon below 120 centimeters

Cg horizon

Hue: 5Y, 2.5Y, N, 5GY, or 5B.
Value: 5 through 7 dry, 2 through 6 moist.
Chroma: / through 2 dry, / through 2 moist.

Texture of fine earth: clay or silty clay.
Rock fragments: 3 to 13 percent.
Clay content: 40 to 50 percent.
Reaction: moderately acid to moderately alkaline.

Redoximorphic features:

Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR.
Value: 6 dry, 5 moist.
Chroma: 6 dry, 4 through 6 moist.

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Battery series. The Battery series formed in alluvium and has rounded gravels throughout .

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Coppercreek soils are on mountain slopes and broad ridgetops. Slope gradients are 9 to 75 percent. Elevations are 15 to 874 meters (50 to 2870 feet). These soils formed in colluvium and residuum from schist, sandstone, and mudstone. The climate is humid with cool, foggy summers and cool, rainy winters. Mean annual precipitation is 1780 to 255 millimeters (70 to 100 inches). Mean January temperature is about 9 degrees C; mean July temperature is about 14 degrees C; and the mean annual temperature is 10 to 13 degrees C (50 to 55 degrees F). Frost-free season is about 240 to 300 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Ahpah, Atwell, Devilscreek, Lackscreek, Slidecreek, Tectah, and Trailhead soils. Ahpah and Devilscreek soils lack argillic horizons. Atwell, Tectah, and Trailhead soils have more than 35 percent clay in their control sections. Lackscreek and Slidecreek soils are loamy-skeletal in their control sections. Ahpah and Lackscreek soils are 50 to 102 centimeters (20 to 40 inches) deep to bedrock. The Atwell and Devilscreek soils are in wet hillslope hollows below the Coppercreek soils. The Ahpah and Lackscreek soils are on convex slopes or on spur ridges above the Coppercreek soils. The Slidecreek soils are alongside the Coppercreek soils on very gravelly colluvium. The Tectah and Trailhead soils are above the Coppercreek soils on gentler slopes.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; medium to high runoff; moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: This soil has been used for commercial timber production, recreation, wildlife, and watershed. Natural vegetation includes redwood, Douglas-fir, tanoak, western hemlock, rhododendron, and evergreen huckleberry.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: California Coastal Redwood Belt; MLRA 4B. The series is moderately extensive.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Humboldt County, California, Redwood National Park 2007. The source of the name is from Copper Creek, Redwood National Park, California.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:

1. Ochric epipedon - the zone from 0 to 20 centimeters (A horizon).
2. Argillic horizon - the zone from 38 to 200 centimeters (Bt1, Bt2, Bt3, Bt4, Bt5 & BCt horizons).
3. Palehumult feature - clay maximum is 35 percent in Bt4 and minimum is 30 percent in Bt1.
6. Particle-size control section - the zone from 20 to 70 centimeters, averages 29 percent clay, and 18 percent fine sand or coarser, by weight, and 2 percent rock fragments, by volume. (Bat, Bt1 and Bt2 horizons)

The type location was changed in 2006 to better reflect the series concept.

ADDITIONAL DATA:

Soil classified using the 12th Edition of the Keys to Soil Taxonomy.

NASIS User Pedon ID 04CA605REDW047.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.