LOCATION GETCHELL                WA

Established Series
Rev. AD/BAL/KMS
08/2014

GETCHELL SERIES

The Getchell series consists of moderately deep, moderately well drained soils formed in volcanic ash mixed with colluvium, over dense glacial till. Getchell soils are on mountain slopes, ridges, and plateaus and have slopes of 3 to 90 percent. The average annual precipitation is about 2159 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 6 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Medial, amorphic Aquic Haplocryands

TYPICAL PEDON: Getchell medial silt loam - forested. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted. All textures are apparent field textures.)

Oi--0 to 5 cm; leaves, needles and twigs.

Oe--5 to 8 cm; decomposed mat of needles, twigs and leaves.

A--8 to 13 cm; black (10YR 2/1) and very dark brown (10YR 2/2) medial silt loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) dry; moderate fine granular structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine, medium and coarse roots; many fine interstitial pores; 10 percent rounded gravel; extremely acid (pH 4.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 5 cm thick)

Bhs--13 to 18 cm; yellowish red (5YR 4/6) medial silt loam, strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) dry; dark reddish brown (5YR 3/2) coatings on faces of peds, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3 and 3/4) dry; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic, weakly smeary; common fine medium and coarse roots; few fine tubular pores; 10 percent gravel, 5 percent iron concretions; very strongly acid (pH 5.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 10 cm thick)

Bs1--18 to 33 cm; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) medial silt loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) dry; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) coatings on faces of peds, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic, weakly smeary; common medium and coarse roots; few fine tubular pores; 10 percent gravel, few cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.2); gradual wavy boundary. (15 or 20 cm thick)

Bs2--33 to 58 cm; strong brown (7.5YR 5/8) medial silt loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) dry; brown (7.5YR 4/4) coatings in cracks, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) dry; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic, weakly smeary; few medium roots; few fine tubular pores; 10 percent gravel, few waterworn cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear wavy boundary. (15 to 25 cm thick)

BC1--58 to 81 cm; light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) medial silt loam, very pale brown (10YR 7/3 and 7/4) dry; many fine and medium distinct dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3), strong brown (7.5YR 5/8), and brown (7.5YR 4/4) coatings in old root channels, strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) and brown (7.5YR 4/4) dry; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic, weakly smeary; few medium roots; common fine tubular pores; 10 percent gravel, few cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear smooth boundary. (10 to 23 cm thick)

BC2--81 to 99 cm dark brown (7.5 YR 3/2 and 3/4) medial silt loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) dry; common fine faint strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) mottles, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) dry; massive; slightly hard and hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few medium roots which are matted on top of 2Cr horizon; few fine tubular pores; 10 percent gravel, few rounded cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 18 cm thick)

2Cd--99 to 150 cm; olive (5Y 5/3) and pale olive (5Y 6/3) compact glacial till that breaks to sandy loam, light gray (5Y 7/2) and light olive gray (5Y 6/2) dry; extremely hard, very firm, few fine tubular pores; 10 percent gravel and few cobbles imbedded in till; few fine tubular pores; strongly acid (pH 5.2).

TYPE LOCATION: Snohomish County, Washington; approximately 11 kilometers northeast of Granite Falls; 381 meters west and 76 meters north of the southeast corner of sec. 15, T. 31 N., R. 7 E.
Latitude: 47.5630
Longitude: -122.6940
Datum: WGS84

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean annual soil temperature: 6 to 7 degrees C
Moisture control section: dry 45 to 60 consecutive days following the summer solstice in most years
Depth to densic horizon: 50 to 100 cm
Depth to redox concentrations: 13 to 100 cm
Reaction: extremely acid to very strongly acid
Particle size control section (weighted average):
>Clay content: 5 to 15 percent
>Rock fragments:
>>Total: 5 to 35 percent
>>Gravels: 5 to 35 percent
>>Paragravels: 0 to 20 percent
>>Cobbles: 0 to 5 percent
Estimated properties of the volcanic ash influenced layers:
>Volcanic glass content in the 0.02 to 2 mm fraction: 5 to 20 percent
>Ammonium oxalate extractable Al+ Fe: 2.0 to 4.0 percent
>Phosphate retention: 85 to 90 percent
>1/3 bar bulk density: 0.6 to 0.9 g/cm3
>1500 kPa water on air dried samples: 15 to 100 percent


A horizon
Value: 2 or 3 dry
Chroma: l or 2, moist or dry
Clay content: 5 to 20 percent
Total fragments: 0 to 15 percent
Gravel content: 0 to 15 percent
Cobble content: 0 to 3 percent



Some pedons have an E horizon with hue of 5YR, 7.5YR, or 10YR, value of 4 or 5 moist, 5 through 7 dry and chroma of 1 or 2 dry and moist.

Some pedons have a 0.5 to 2 inch AB horizon.

Bhs horizon
Hue: 5YR or 7.5YR
Value: 2 to 5 moist, 3 to 6 dry
Chroma: 1 to 6, moist or dry
Fine-earth texture: medial silt loam or medial loam
Clay content: 5 to 15 percent
Total fragments: 5 to 35 percent
Gravel content: 5 to 35 percent
Paragravel content: 0 to 20 percent

Bs horizons
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR, or 10YR
Value: 3 to 6 moist, 4 to 7 dry
Chroma: 2 to 8, moist or dry
Fine-earth texture: medial silt loam or medial loam
Clay content: 5 to 15 percent
Total fragments: 5 to 35 percent
Gravel content: 5 to 35 percent
Paragravel content: 0 to 20 percent
Cobble content: 0 to 5 percent

BC horizons
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR, or 2.5Y
Value: 3 to 6 moist, 5 to 7 dry
Chroma: 2 to 8, moist or dry
Fine-earth texture: medial silt loam or medial loam.

Clay content: 5 to 15 percent
Total fragments: 5 to 35 percent
Gravel content: 5 to 35 percent
Paragravel content: 0 to 20 percent
Cobble content: 0 to 5 percent
The lower part of the BC horizon is usually very high in ash and has pockets of organic matters in old root channels.

2Cd horizon
Hue: 10YR, 2.5Y, or 5Y
Value: 4 to 6 moist, 6 or 7 dry
Chroma: 2 to 4, moist or dry
Fine-earth texture: sandy loam or loam
Clay content: 5 to 15 percent
Total fragments: 5 to 35 percent
Gravel content: 5 to 35 percent
Paragravel content: 0 to 20 percent
Cobble content: 0 to 5 percent
The 2Cd horizon has cementation by iron in the upper part in some pedons.

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Nutmeg series. The Nutmeg series is very deep.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Getchell soils formed in volcanic ash, colluvium and alpine glacial till. The till was derived from a wide variety of rock. The elevation ranges from 549 to 915 meters. Getchell soils are in a cool marine climate with cool, dry summers and cool, wet winters. The mean annual precipitation is 1778 to 2540 mm. The average annual temperature is about 6 degrees F. The frost-free season is 90 to 120 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Olomount Oso Elwell, Hartnit, Potchub, and Verlot soils. Olomount and Oso soils are underlain by a lithic contact at a depth of 50 to 100 inches. Potchub and Verlot soils have more than 6 percent organic carbon in the upper 10 cm of the spodic horizon.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well drained; moderate permeability to the dense glacial till and very slow through it. A perched water table is as high as 46 to 91 cm at times from December through April.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used for woodland and wildlife habitat. Native vegetation is western hemlock, Douglas-fir, Pacific silver fir, and western redcedar, with an understory of western brackenfern, salal, Oregon-grape, trailing blackberry, red huckleberry, devilsclub, lady fern, bunchberry dogwood, blue-leaved huckleberry, salmonberry, longtube twinflower, and western swordfern.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: West slopes of the Cascade Mountains in northwestern Washington. The series is moderately extensive.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Snohomish County, Washington, 1979.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and other features:
Ochric epipedon: 0 to 13 cm
Cambic horizon: 13 to 58 cm
Andic soil properties: 8 to 99 cm
Volcanic glass: from 8 to 99 cm
Redox concentration: 13 to 99 cm
Densic horizon: 99 to 150 cm

07/2013: Updated as part of the SDJR initiative. The units were changed to metric and the format was changed to tabular. Future evaluation needs to be made as to whether or not this soil should be a Spodosol or Andisol. The distribution of soils with and albic horizons needs to be clarified. The nature of cementation in the upper part of the dense glacial till needs to be investigated. Dry days of 45 to 60 added based on OSD's spatially used adjacent to Getchell.

04/1994: Classification only changed because of recent amendments to Soil Taxonomy. Fails criteria for spodic because of lack of an albic horizon. Characterization soil sample number S74WA61-2, 4-306-4-313, 84P3814-3816, and 78P0944-78P0945. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are a cambic horizon from 2 to 20 inches, and a cemented layer at 36 inches.
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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.