LOCATION KNUTSEN UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Haploxerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Knutsen gravelly coarse sandy loam - cultivated (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
Apl--0 to 1 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) gravelly coarse sandy loam, very dark gray (10YR 3/1) moist; weak very fine granular structure; loose; common fine and few medium roots; 25 percent gravel; neutral (pH 7.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 8 inches thick.)
Ap2--1 to 8 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) gravelly coarse sandy loam; strong fine and very fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky; common fine and a few medium roots; many very fine pores; 25 percent gravel; neutral (pH 7.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (O to 7 inches thick.)
Bwl--8 to 11 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) gravelly coarse sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure that parts to moderate fine granular structure; very hard, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine and few medium roots; many fine pores; 30 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 3 inches thick)
Bw2--11 to 19 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) gravelly coarse sandy loam; brown (10YR 4/3) moist; fine subanglar blocky structure parting to moderate fine granular structure; very hard, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few medium and fine roots; many fine pores; 25 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); diffuse boundary. (6 to 10 inches thick.)
Bw3--19 to 25 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly coarse sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; very weak coarse and medium subangular blocky structure; extremely hard, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few medium roots; 30 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 8 inches thick)
C--25 to 33 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly coarse sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; single grain; loose; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear wavy boundary. (3 to 36 inches thick.)
2C--33 to 70 inches; light gray (5Y 7/2) stratified gravelly sand and sandy gravel, pale olive (5Y 6/3) moist; single grain; loose; 45 to 70 percent gravel; mildly alkaline (pH7.8).
TYPE LOCATION: Salt Lake County, Utah; 2 miles northeast of Draper near the center of sec. 21, T.3 S., R. 1 E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The mean annual soil temperature is 47 to 51 degrees F., and mean summer soil temperature is 65 to 75 degrees F. These soils are usually moist, but they are dry in all parts between 7 and 20 inch depth for more than 60 consecutive days when not irrigated in more than 7 out of 10 years.
The soil is more than 40 inches deep. The solum thickness ranges from 20 to 26 inches, and depth to The 2C horizon ranges from 30 to 60 inches. The 10 to 40 inch control section averages about 20 to 35 percent coarse fragments and more than 25 percent coarse and very coarse sand and less than 15 percent fine and very fine sand. The soil is noncalcareous and neutral to mildly alkaline throughout. The mollic epipedon is less than 20 inches thick and organic matter decreases regularly as depth increases.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value is more than 3.5 through 5 dry and 2 or 3 moist, and chroma 1 through 3. Consistence is soft and loose.
The Bw horizon has hue of 7.5YR, 10YR, or 2.5Y, value of 3 through 5 dry and 2 through 4 moist, and chroma of 2 through 5. It has weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure. The B horizon contains less than 1 percent organic matter.
The C horizon has hue of 7.5YR through 5Y, value of 4 through 7 dry and 3 through 6 moist, and chroma of 2 through 5. It ranges from gravelly coarse sandy loam in the upper part to coarse sand, gravel or sand and gravel below depths of 40 inches. Coarse fragments range from 20 to 80 percent.
COMPETING SERIES: These are The Anders, Bradshaw, Calpine, Cashmere, Chard, Clevelry, Farrell, Ivie, Kilburn, Phoebe, St. Marys, Surprise, Touhey, Wasatch, Wind River, and Winston soils. Anders soils are 17 to 30 inches deep to basalt bedrock. Bradshaw and St. Marys soils have more than 35 percent coarse fragments in The control section, and mean annual soil temperature is less than 47 degrees F. Calpine, Cahmere, Chard, Ferrell, and Phoebe soils contain less than 20 percent coarse fragments, and Calpine soils, in addition, are slightly to medium acid. Cleverly soils have less than 25 percent very coarse and coarse sand and more than 15 percent fine and very fine sand in The control section. Ivie and Surprise soils lack B horizons. Kilburn and Winston soils have more than 35 percent coarse fragments in the series control section. Tougey soils have mollic epipedons more than 20 inches thick. Wasatch soils lack B horizons and have less than 20 percent coarse fragments. Wind River soils are medium acid.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Knutsen soils are on gently sloping to steep lake terraces and outwash fans at the base of the mountains at elevations of 4,700 to 5,200 feet. Slope gradients ranges from 1 to 30 percent with the 10 to 30 percent slopes being along small drainageways that dissect the terraces. The soils formed in deep gravelly alluvium derived from igneous and sedimentary rocks. The climate is moist subhumid. The mean annual temperature is about 50 degrees F., and mean summer temperature is about 72 degrees F. The freeze-free period is 150 to 190 days. Average annual precipitation is 16 to 19 inches.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are The Kidman, Lakewin, Preston, Timpanogos soils and the competing Wasatch soils. Kidman soils contain less than 20 percent coarse fragments and have calcic horizons. Lakewin soils have calcic horizons. Preston soils are sand and loamy sand and contain less than 20 percent coarse fragments. Timpanogos soils have argillic and calcic horizons and contain less than 20 percent coarse fragments.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat excessively drained. Runoff is slow and permeability is rapid.
USE AND VEGETATION: Present use is for meadow hay, pasture, and building sites for houses. Native vegetation includes Indian ricegrass, cheatgrass, rubber rabbitbrush and big sagebrush.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Along The Wasatch front of Utah. The series is moderately extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Salt Lake County, Salt Lake Survey Area, Utah, 1936
REMARKS: 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 Reno MLRA office, without review of the soil series property data. The remainder of this document has not been updated.