LOCATION KARTA AK
Established Series
Rev.RWG/WDL/JPM
12/2022
KARTA SERIES
The Karta series consists of moderately deep soils over paralithic compact till. These moderately well and well drained soils formed in glacial till of mixed mineralogy. Karta soils occupy toeslopes and footslopes of valleys, and the lower backslopes and footslopes of mountains and hills. Slopes range from 5 to 100 percent. Mean annual temperature is 46 degrees F., and mean annual precipitation is 110 inches.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive Typic Humicryods
TYPICAL PEDON: Karta silt loam - on a west facing simple slope of 16 percent under hemlock-spruce forest vegetation. (All colors are for moist soil).
0i--10 to 8 inches; undecomposed forest litter. (0 to 4 inches thick)
0e--8 to 3 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 2.5/2) mucky peat; common fine and medium roots; extremely acid (pH 3.6). (0 to 5 inches thick)
0a--3 to 0 inches; black (5YR 2.5/1) muck; common fine and medium, few coarse roots; extremely acid (pH 3.6). (0 to 4 inches thick)
E--0 to 1 inch; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) silt loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable;common fine, medium, and coarse roots; extremely acid (pH 3.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 3 inches thick)
Bh--1 to 2 inches; very dark brown (10YR 2/2) silt loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very friable; common fine, medium, and coarse roots; 5 percent gravel and cobbles; extremely acid (pH 3.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 2 inches thick)
Bs1--2 to 6 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/4) (65 percent) dusky red (2.5YR 3/2) (20 percent), and black (5YR 2.5/1) (15 percent) loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few fine and medium roots; 10 percent gravel; very strongly acid (ph 4.6); clear wavy boundary. (3 to 13 inches thick)
Bs2--6 to 13 inches; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) (60 percent), reddish brown (5YR 4/4) (25 percent), and dark reddish brown (5YR 2.5/2) (15 percent) gravelly loam; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; friable; few fine and medium roots; 20 percent gravel; very strongly acid (pH 4.8); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 8 inches thick)
BC--13 to 17 inches; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) (50 percent), dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) (25 percent), and dark reddish brown (5YR 2.5/2) (25 percent) gravelly loam; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; nonsticky and nonplastic; few fine roots; 30 percent gravel; very strongly acid (pH 4.6); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 4 inches thick)
C1--17 to 24 inches; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) (70 percent) and reddish brown (5YR 5/3) (30 percent) extremely gravelly sandy loam; massive; firm; few fine roots; 60 percent gravel; moderately acid (pH 5.8); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 10 inches thick)
Cd--24 to 60 inches; olive (5Y 5/3) extremely gravelly sandy loam; massive; very firm; 80 percent gravel; moderately acid (pH 6.0).
TYPE LOCATION: 200 yards east from intersection of road 100 and road 200, Hollis, Alaska. In the SW1/4, S33, T73S, R84E, Copper River Meridian.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: MAST ranges from 38 to 42 degrees F. Solum thickness ranges from 15 to 30 inches. The upper 4 inches of the spodic horizon has more than 6 percent organic carbon. Coarse fragment content of the control section ranges from 35 to 70 percent. Depth to the paralithic compact till ranges from 20 to 40 inches.
The E horizon texture is silt loam, loam or very fine sandy loam with up to 20 percent gravel. The E horizon ranges in hue from 5YR to 10YR, value from 4 to 7, and chroma from 1 to 3.
The Bh horizon ranges in hue from 2.5YR to 10YR, value from 0 to 2, and chroma from 0 to 4. A Bhs horizon is present in some pedons.
The Bs horizons range in hue from 2.5YR to 10YR, value from 2.5 to 5, and chroma from 1 to 8. Gravel content range from 0 to 45 percent.
The BC horizon ranges in hue from 5YR to 10YR, value from 2 to 4, and chroma from 2 to 4. Texture of the B horizons is silt loam, loam, or sandy loam. Gravel content ranges from 10 to 60 percent.
The C horizon ranges in hue from 5YR to 5Y, value from 3 to 5, and chroma from 2 to 6. Coarse fragments range from 40 to 80 percent and are primarily gravel size.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Deming (WA),
Passage (AK),
Hinker (WA),
Kupreanof (AK),
Mitkof (AK),
Saar (WA),
Shuksan (WA) and
Thader (OR) series. Deming, Kupreanof and Mitkof soils are deeper than 60 inches. Passage, Hinker and Thader soils have a lithic contact within 20 to 40 inches. Saar and Shuksan soils contain volcanic ash within the control section.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Karta soils occur on lower backslopes and toeslopes of glacial valleywalls, hillsides, and mountainsides. Slopes range from 5 to 100 percent. Mean annual temperature is 8 degrees F., and mean annual precipitation is 110 inches. Elevations range from sea level to 2000 feet.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Tolstoi,
Wadleigh,
Tonowek, and
Tuxekan soils. The Tolstoi soils occur on steep slopes and are shallow to bedrock. The Wadleigh soils occur sites with poorer drainage. Tonowek and Tuxekan soils are formed from alluvium.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well and well drained. Moderate permeability above the compact till layer. The compact till is very slowly permeable. Slow to rapid runoff.
USE AND VEGETATION: Karta soils are used for timber production, watershed protection, wildlife habitat, and recreational purposes. Overstory vegetation is dominantly western hemlock, Sitka spruce and western redcedar. Understory vegetation is blueberry, huckleberry, rusty menziesia, ferns, club moss, and mosses.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southeast Alaska. The series is extensive.
SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: WASILLA, ALASKA
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Hollis Area, Alaska. 1969.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this soil are: an albic horizon from 0 to 1 inch; a spodic horizon from 1 to 6 inches with greater than 6 percent organic carbon in the upper 4 inches of the spodic horizon; weighted average of more than 35 percent coarse fragments from 10 to 24 inches; a cryic temperature regime is assumed.
That part of the spodic horizon that meets amorphous requirements does not extend more than 4 inches into the 10 to 40 inch control section. The particle size of the control section has a significant relation to the physical and chemical properties of the soil.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Laboratory data is available on this soil: University of Idaho pedon number 80-AK-0501.
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.