LOCATION FLYVALLEY               OR

Established Series
Rev. AEK/RJO/RWL
01/2017

FLYVALLEY SERIES

The Flyvalley series consists of shallow, well drained soils that formed in ash overlying acidic tuffs. Flyvalley soils are on shoulder positions of mountains. Slopes are 2 to 60 percent. The mean annual precipitation is 30 inches and the mean annual temperature is 41 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Ashy, amorphic, frigid Lithic Udivitrands

TYPICAL PEDON: Flyvalley ashy silt loam - woodland, on a 26 percent convex northeast-facing slope at an elevation of 5,100 feet. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted. Andic soil materials are apparent field textures.)

Oi--0 to 1 inches; slightly decomposed needles, cones and twigs.

A--1 to 5 inches; dark brown (10YR 3/3) ashy silt loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) dry; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and fine roots; many very fine irregular pores; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 6 inches thick.)

Bw--5 to 19 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) ashy loam, very pale brown (10YR 7/3) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine subangular blocky; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and fine and common medium roots; common fine tubular pores; 3 percent gravel and 7 percent cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (7 to 16 inches thick.)

R--19 inches; hard fractured tuffs

TYPE LOCATION: Union County, Oregon, about 2,112 feet north and 1,736 feet west of the southeast corner of Section 13, T. 06 S., R. 35 E.; USGS Flyvalley; (Latitude 45 degrees, 2 minutes, 41 seconds N., Longitude 118 degrees, 26 minutes, 31 seconds W.)

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - usually moist but are dry for 25 to 40 consecutive days
Mean annual soil temperature - 42 to 44 degrees F
Mean summer soil temperature - 50 to 53 degrees F
Particle-size control section - 5 to 15 percent clay (apparent field texture) and 0 to 20 percent rock fragments
Depth to bedrock - 10 to 20 inches
Solum thickness - 10 to 20 inches

Volcanic ash mantle - 10 to 20 inches thick
Particles of 0.02 to 2.0 mm - 45 to 55 percent
Organic matter - 0.5 to 4 percent
Acid-oxalate A1 plus 1/2 Fe - 2 to 3 percent
Phosphate retention - 60 to 85 percent
Volcanic glass content - 10 to 25 percent
15-bar water retention on air-dried sample - 5 to 15 percent

A horizon
hue - 10YR
Value - 3 or 4 moist, 5 or 6 dry
Chroma - 2 or 3 moist or dry
Texture - ashy SIL
Rock fragments - 0 to 5 percent gravel
Clay - 5 to 15 percent
Reaction - 5.1 to 6.0
Bulk density - 0.65 to 0.85 g/cc

Bw horizon
hue - 10YR
Value - 4 or 5 moist, 6 or 7 dry
Chroma - 3 or 4 moist or dry
Texture - ashy SIL, ashy L, ashy VFSL, GR-ashy VFSL
Rock fragments - 0 to 20 percent total with 0 to 15 percent gravel and 0 to 5 percent cobbles
Clay - 5 to 15 percent
Reaction - 5.1 to 6.0
Bulk density - 0.65 to 0.85 g/cc

COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Flyvalley soils are usually on shoulder of mountains. Slopes are 2 to 60 percent. The soil is formed in ash overlying acidic tuffs. Elevations are 4,000 to 6,200 feet. The climate is characterized by cold, wet winters and hot, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 25 to 35 inches. The mean annual temperature is 40 to 44 degrees F. The frost-free period is 30 to 100 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Btree, and Flycreek series. Btree soils have an argillic horizon, 35 to 50 percent clay in the lower part of the particle-size control section, and are 40 to 60 inches to a paralithic contact. Flycreek soils have an argillic horizon and are 20 to 40 inches to acidic tuff bedrock.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; permeability is moderately rapid.

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for timber production, recreation, watershed and wildlife habitat. The native vegetation is grand fir, western larch, Douglas fir, lodgepole pine, ponderosa pine, prince's pine, twinflower, big huckleberry, northwestern sedge, pinegrass, heartleaf arnica, rattlesnake plantain, Scoulars willow, birchleaf spiraea, western meadowrue, roundleaf violet and sidebells pyrola.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Blue Mountains in northeastern Oregon; MLRA 43c. The soils are of small extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Wallowa County, Oregon 1998. The name is derived from Fly Valley.

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

Ochric epipedon - the zone from 0 to 4 inches (A horizon)

Cambic horizon - the zone from 4 to 18 inches (Bw horizon)

Particle-size control section - the zone from 10 to 18 inches

Andic material feature - the zone from 0 to 18 inches

USFS Plant Association - ABGR/LIBO2

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.