LOCATION HUNTLEY OREstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Lithic Hapludolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Huntley gravelly loam, pasture on a 5 percent south-facing slope at 1600 feet elevation. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted. When described on October 3, 1988, the soil was moist to 11 inches and dry below this depth.)
A--0 to 3 inches; very dark gray (10YR 3/1) gravelly loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; weak fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic, weakly smeary; many very fine and fine roots; many fine tubular pores; 15 percent gravel, 20 percent soft rock fragments; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 5 inches thick)
Bw1--3 to 11 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) gravelly clay loam, brown (10YR 5/3) dry; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic, weakly smeary; many very fine and fine roots; many fine tubular pores; 20 percent gravel, 5 percent cobbles and 30 percent soft rock fragments; strongly acid (pH 5.2); gradual wavy boundary.
Bw2--11 to 17 inches; dark brown (10YR 3/3) gravelly clay loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) dry; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine roots; many fine tubular pores; 20 percent gravel, 10 percent cobbles and 35 percent soft gravel, strongly acid (pH 5.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bw horizon ranges from 8 to 15 inches)
R--17 inches; hard, partially weathered and fractured shale.
TYPE LOCATION: Curry County, Oregon; located about 200 feet south and 450 feet west of the northeast corner of section 24,T. 39 S., R. 14 W., W.M. (Latitude 42 degrees 11 minutes, 36 seconds N.; Longitude 124 degrees, 18 minutes, 17 seconds W.)
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The mean annual soil temperature is 47 to 54 degrees F. The soils are usually moist and are dry for less than 45 consecutive days in all parts between depths of 4 and 12 inches in the four months following the summer solstice. The particle size control section averages 27 to 35 percent clay, less than 15 percent fine sand and coarser, and 15 to 30 percent rock fragments. Depth to bedrock and solum thickness is 14 to 20 inches. The mollic epipedon is 10 to 20 inches thick and includes the upper part of the Bw horizon. The soil reaction is slightly acid to strongly acid.
The A horizon has value of 2 or 3 moist, 3 or 4 dry and chroma of 1 or 2 moist and dry. It is gravelly loam with 18 to 25 percent clay. It has 10 to 15 percent gravel, and 0 to 5 percent cobbles and 15 to 25 percent soft rock fragments.
The Bw horizon has value of 3 or 4 moist, 5 or 6 dry and chroma of 2 or 3 moist and dry. It is gravelly clay loam or gravelly silty clay loam with 27 to 35 percent clay. It has 10 to 20 percent gravel, 5 to 10 percent cobbles and 30 to 40 percent soft rock fragments.
COMPETING SERIES: These are Bechyn, Copaston, and Emeline series. Bechyn soils have less than 15 percent rock fragments and have 10 to 27 percent clay in the particle-size control section. Copaston soils have 14 to 30 percent clay and 0 to 20 percent limestone rock fragments in the particle-size control section. Emeline soils have less than 15 percent limestone rock fragments in the particle-size control section and are 4 to 12 inches deep to lithic limestone bedrock.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Huntley soils occur in open grassland areas on metastable broad ridgetops and side slopes of hills and mountains. Slopes are 0 to 60 percent. The soils formed in colluvium and residuum derived from metasedimentary or metavolcanic rock types of the Otter Point Formation. Elevation is 1,000 to 3,000 feet. The climate is characterized by warm wet winters and hot moist summers. The mean annual precipitation is about 90 to 130 inches. The mean annual temperature is 45 to 53 degrees F. The frost-free period is about 120 to 210 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Bravo, Carpenterville, Cassiday, Colepoint, Crutchfield, Fritsland, Grouslous, and Houstenader soils. Bravo, Cassiday and Crutchfield soils occur on broad ridgetops, benches, or side slopes of forested mountains and are 20 to 40 inches deep to bedrock. In addition Bravo and Cassiday soils have an ochric epipedon. Carpenterville soils occur in open grassland areas on broad ridgetops or side slopes of hills and mountains, are 20 to 40 inches deep to bedrock and are clayey-skeletal. Colepoint and Fritsland soils occur on broad ridgetops, benches, or side slopes of forested mountains, and are 40 to 60 inches deep to bedrock. Grouslous soils occur on steep side slopes of forested mountains, and are loamy-skeletal. Houstenader soils occur in open grassland areas on broad ridgetops and side slopes of hills and mountains, are very deep, have an argillic horizon and are somewhat poorly drained.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; moderately slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: The soils are used mainly for pasture and wildlife habitat. The native vegetation is Oregon white oak, Pacific poison oak, western brackenfern, strawberry, and grasses.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Hills and mountains of coastal southwestern Oregon; MLRA 1. The series is not extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Curry County, Oregon, 1995. The source of the name is Huntley Spring west of Collier Butte in eastern Curry County.
REMARKS: Classification of this soil is based on laboratory data from the associated Houstenader series (S86OR-015-001).
Diagnostic horizons and features in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - from the surface to a depth of 11 inches (A, Bw1 horizons)
Cambic horizon - from a depth of 11 to 17 inches (Bw2 horizon)
Lithic subgroup - 17 inches to lithic contact.
Particle-size control section - from 10 to 17 inches (Bw2 horizon)