LOCATION FLEER                   CO

Established Series
Rev. AJC-RKD-KLS
03/2023

FLEER SERIES

The Fleer series consists of very deep, poorly drained soils formed in alluvial sediments that are underlain by beds of sand and gravel. Fleer soils are on flood plains and low terraces. Slopes are 0 to 6 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 250 mm, and the mean annual air temperature is about 3 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, calcareous Cumulic Cryaquolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Fleer loam - grassland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

Oi--0 to 5 cm; undecomposed organic materials, mainly grass roots and remains.

A--5 to 33 cm; gray (10YR 5/1) loam, very dark gray (10YR 3/1) moist; moderate fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2) clear smooth boundary. (15 to 30 cm thick)

Ag--33 to 81 cm; gray (10YR 5/1) fine sandy loam, very dark gray (10YR 3/1) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky; nonplastic; common medium prominent dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) mottles; calcareous, moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); gradual wavy boundary. (23 to 86 cm thick)

2Cg--81 to 157 cm; very gravelly loamy sand or sand, many large prominent mottles, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) moist; calcareous.

TYPE LOCATION: Jackson County, Colorado; about 200 meters north of S 1/4 corner of Sec. 34, T. 9 N., R. 79 W.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean annual soil temperature--6 degrees C
Mean summer soil temperature--11 degrees C
Thickness of mollic epipedon--50 to 100 cm and usually extends to the substratum, although in some pedons mottled Bg horizons of low chroma occur between the mollic epipedon and the 2Cg horizon.
Depth to uniformly calcareous material--0 to 25 cm
Depth to the 2Cg horizon--65 to 100 cm
Depth to lithic contact or paralithic contact--100 to 150 cm or more

Particle-size control section:
Texture--fine sandy loam, sandy loam, or loam
Clay content--5 to 18 percent clay
Sand content--50 to 82 percent sand with more than 35 percent fine or coarse sand
Rock fragment content--0 to 35 percent, but typically less than 15 percent in a major part of the upper part of the control section and are mainly less than 250 mm in diameter

Ag horizon
Reaction--pH 7.4 to 8.4

Bg horizon, if present
Hue--5Y through 10YR
Value--4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma--neutral through 2
Reaction--pH 7.9 to 9.0

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Debrow, Mendenhall, and Tepee series. Debrow soils are noncalcareous throughout. Mendenhall soils are sandy loam or gravelly sandy loam throughout the 25 to 100 cm section. Tepee soils have a fine-loamy control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Landform--flood plains and low terraces
Elevation--2375 to 2750 meters
Slope--0 to 6 percent
Parent material--moderately coarse alluvial sediments that are underlain by beds of sand and gravel
Mean annual precipitation--250 mm with peak periods of precipitation during the spring and early summer
Mean annual air temperature--3 degrees C
Mean summer air temperature--14 degrees C
Frost-free period--30 to 40 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: None listed.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Poorly drained; slow runoff; moderately rapid permeability. These soils have water tables that stand at or near the surface during most of the year.

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used as native pastureland or for native hay meadows. Principal native vegetation is wiregrass, sedges, redtop, and willows.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Fleer soils are of small extent in the high mountain valleys of north-central Colorado; MLRA 48B.

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Jackson County, Colorado, 1973

REMARKS:
Particle-size control section--25 to 100 cm (part of the A, all of the Ag, and part of the 2Cg horizons)

The superactive cation exchange activity class was added in 03/2003 to the taxonomic classification by the National Soil Survey Center on request of the Lakewood MLRA office, without review of the soil series property data.

Converted to metric and O horizons were updated to start at zero. Competing series section was not updated. 01/2023

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.