LOCATION KEARNS UT+IDEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Calcic Haploxerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Kearns silt loam--cultivated. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
Ap--0 to 5 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) silt loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak fine and medium granular structure; soft, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine pores; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear smooth boundary. (4 to 9 inches thick)
A--5 to 9 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) silt loam, dark brown (10YR3/3) moist; weak fine and medium granular structure; soft, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; many fine pores; noneffervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 9 inches thick)
Bw--9 to 15 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) silt loam, brown (10YR4/3) moist; weak and moderate fine subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; many fine pores; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); gradual wavy boundary. (3 to 22 inches thick)
Bk1--15 to 20 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) silt loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak and moderate fine subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; many fine pores; violently effervescent; secondary carbonates are laminar and veined; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); gradual wavy boundary. (3 to 22 inches thick)
Bk2--20 to 39 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) silt loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; hard, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; few fine roots; many fine pores; violently effervescent; secondary carbonates are laminar and veined; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); gradual wavy boundary. (0 to 35 inches thick)
2Ckn--39 to 50 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many fine pores; violently effervescent; very strongly alkaline (pH 9.2); diffuse wavy boundary. (0 to 20 inches thick)
3Cn--50 to 76 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) silt loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist massive slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many fine pores; strongly effervescent; very strongly alkaline (pH 9.2).
TYPE LOCATION: Box Elder County, Utah; about 0.5 miles east of the Mariner Monk farm headquarters in Blue Creek Valley; approximately 660 feet west and 660 feet south of the north quarter corner of section 31, T. 12 N., R. 5 W.; USGS Lampo Junction 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; 41 degrees 44 minutes 08 seconds north latitude and 112 degrees 27 minutes 55 seconds west longitude, NAD27; UTM zone 12N 378067E, 4621438N, NAD83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - Usually moist in winter and spring, dry in summer and fall; the soils are dry in all parts of the moisture control section for more than 60 consecutive days in 7 out of 10 years; Xeric moisture regime that borders on aridic.
Mean annual soil temperature - 47 to 54 degrees F.
Mean summer soil temperature - 65 to 75 degrees F.
Mollic epipedon thickness - 7 to 20 inches.
Depth to base of cambic horizon - 13 to 50 inches.
Depth to secondary carbonates - 13 to 45 inches.
Particle-size control section - Clay content: 18 to 35 percent.
A horizons - Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Structure: Moderate thin platy at the surface to weak, fine to coarse granular, subangular blocky or angular blocky.
Effervescence: Noneffervescent or slightly effervescent.
Reaction: Slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline.
Bw horizon - Hue: 7.5YR through 2.5Y.
Value: 5 through 7 dry, 3 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Silt loam or silty clay loam.
Clay content: 18 to 35 percent.
Structure: Weak or moderate, fine and medium, subangular blocky structure.
Effervescence: Noneffervescent to strongly effervescent.
Reaction: Slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline.
Bk horizons - Hue: 7.5YR through 2.5Y.
Value: 5 through 8 dry, 3 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Silt loam or silty clay loam.
Effervescence: Strongly effervescent or violently effervescent.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 4 to 20 percent and lacks a 5 percent decrease.
Reaction: Slightly alkaline through strongly alkaline.
Ckn and Cn horizons - Hue: 7.5YR through 2.5Y.
Value: 5 through 8 dry, 3 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Loam, silt loam, or very fine sandy loam.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 4 to 20 percent and lacks a 5 percent decrease.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline to very strongly alkaline (up to pH 9.6).
Sodicity (SAR): 12 to 20.
Other features: Some pedons have texture of gravelly sandy loam, gravelly loamy fine sand, or very gravelly loamy fine sand at depths below 40 inches.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Rhea, Staley, and Valby series.
Rhea: the A and Bw horizons have neutral reaction and are influenced by volcanic ash.
Staley: formed in loess, have prismatic structure, and are influenced by volcanic ash.
Valby: are moderately deep to lithic contacts (basalt).
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Kearns soils are on slightly convex alluvial fans and intermediate and high lake terraces. These soils formed in alluvium and lacustrine deposits derived from sedimentary rocks such as limestone and sandstone. Slopes are 0 to 20 percent. The mean annual precipitation is 12 to 18 inches. The mean annual temperature is 47 to 54 degrees F. and the mean summer temperature is 65 to 75 degrees F. The frost-free period is 100 to 180 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Bingham, Bluffdale, Hansel, Parleys, Taylorsville, and Timpanogos soils. Bingham, Bluffdale, Hansel, Parleys, and Timpanogos soils have argillic and calcic horizons. Taylorsville soils have ochric epipedons and calcic horizons.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium surface runoff; moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Kearns soils are used for irrigated and nonirrigated cropland. Crops are alfalfa, small grain, corn for silage, sugar beets, tomatoes, and dryland wheat. In Utah this series is correlated with Upland Loam (Basin Big Sagebrush) ecological sites.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Utah and southern Idaho. These soils are moderately extensive. MLRA 28A.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Box Elder County (Eastern Part), Utah, 1969.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 9 inches (Ap and A horizons).
Cambic horizon - The zone from 9 to 15 inches (Bw horizon).
Identifiable secondary carbonates - The zone from 15 to 39 inches (Bk1 and Bk2 horizons).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 10 to 40 inches (Bk1 and Bk2 horizons and parts of the Bw and 2Ckn horizons).
The superactive cation exchange activity class is based on CEC and clay estimates in the NASIS interpretive record along with laboratory data from Utah State University of the representative pedons of Kearns in Box Elder and Salt Lake Counties, UT.
ADDITIONAL DATA: The typical pedon at the series type location has partial characterization data by the Soils Laboratory from Utah State University (USU) Logan, UT and is published on pages 210-211, Table 9 of the Soil Survey of Box Elder County, Utah, Eastern Part.