LOCATION LEEPCREEK               OR

Established Series
Rev. RLW/KMS
11/2018

LEEPCREEK SERIES

Landscape--mountains
Landform--mountain slopes
Slope--15 to 60 percent
Parent material--colluvium derived from limestone and an influence of volcanic ash mixed with loess in the upper part
Mean annual precipitation--about 300 mm
Mean annual air temperature--about 12 degrees C
Depth class--deep to lithic bedrock
Drainage class--well drained
Soil moisture regime--aridic
Soil temperature regime--mesic
Soil moisture subclass--xeric

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic, mesic Vertic Argixerolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Leepcreek ashy silt loam in an area of rangeland, on a 21-percent slope at an elevation of 999 m

A--0 to 23 cm; ashy silt loam, brown (7.5YR 5/4) dry, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine, fine, and medium roots throughout; few very fine, fine, and medium tubular pores and fine interstitial pores; neutral (pH 6.7); clear wavy boundary

AB--23 to 43 cm; ashy clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) dry, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots throughout; few very fine and fine tubular pores; neutral (pH 6.7); gradual smooth boundary

2Bt1--43 to 69 cm; clay loam, yellowish red (5YR 4/6) dry, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few very fine and fine roots throughout; few very fine and fine tubular pores; 75 percent faint clay films on all faces of peds; slightly acid (pH 6.5); gradual smooth boundary

2Bt2--69 to 109 cm; gravelly clay loam, yellowish red (5YR 4/6) dry, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; very hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine roots throughout; very fine tubular pores; 40 percent faint clay films on all faces of peds; 10 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; slightly acid (pH 6.5); gradual smooth boundary

2Bt3--109 to 122 cm; cobbly clay, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) dry, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) moist; moderate fine angular blocky structure; very hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; 65 percent distinct clay films on all faces of peds; 15 percent gravel and 10 percent cobbles; slightly acid (pH 6.5); abrupt irregular boundary

2R--122 cm; limestone

TYPE LOCATION: Wallowa County, Oregon; about 670 m east and 375 m south of the northwest corner of section 19, T. 5 S., R. 49 E., latitude 45.1191636, longitude -116.7711161, datum WGS 84 (coordinates from unknown source)

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean annual soil temperature--8 to 16 degrees C
Soil moisture--usually dry in all parts for one-half to three-fourths of the time when the soil temperature is higher than 5 degrees C
Depth to lithic contact--100 to 150 cm
Thickness of mollic epipedon--25 to 50 cm
Thickness of layers influenced by volcanic ash--18 to 35 cm

Estimated properties of layers influenced by volcanic ash
*Ammonium oxalate extractable Al + 1/2 Fe--0.3 to 0.5 percent
*0.02- to 2.0-mm fraction--more than 30 percent
*Volcanic glass in 0.02- to 2.0-mm fraction--5 to 15 percent

Particle-size control section
*Clay content--35 to 60 percent
*Total rock fragment content--less than 35 percent

A horizon
Fine-earth texture--ashy silt loam
Clay content--10 to 20 percent
Sand content--25 to 35 percent
Organic matter content--2 to 5 percent
Reaction--6.1 to 7.3

AB horizon
Fine-earth texture--ashy clay loam
Clay content--27 to 35 percent
Sand content--30 to 40 percent
Organic matter content--1 to 3 percent
Reaction--6.6 to 7.3

2Bt1 horizon
Fine-earth texture--clay loam
Clay content--27 to 40 percent
Sand content--30 to 40 percent
Organic matter content--0.5 to 1.5 percent
Total rock fragment content--0 to 5 percent
Gravel content--0 to 5 percent
Reaction--6.1 to 6.5

2Bt2 horizon
Fine-earth texture--clay loam, clay
Clay content--35 to 50 percent
Sand content--35 to 45 percent
Organic matter content--0.5 to 1.5 percent
Total rock fragment content--5 to 15 percent
Gravel content--5 to 20 percent
Cobble content--0 to 10 percent
Reaction--6.1 to 6.5

2Bt3 horizon
Fine-earth texture--clay
Clay content--40 to 60 percent
Sand content--35 to 45 percent
Organic matter content--0.5 to 1.5 percent
Total rock fragment content--15 to 35 percent
Gravel content--5 to 25 percent
Cobble content--5 to 15 percent
Reaction--6.1 to 6.5

COMPETING SERIES:
Adaboi, Hann, Montour, Tub--no lithic contact within a depth of 150 cm
Ayette, Forsgren--paralithic contact at a depth of 100 to 150 cm (deep)
Darow, Gimmi, Karney, Kuck, Ukiah--paralithic contact at a depth of 50 to 100 cm (moderately deep)
McDesh--lithic contact at a depth of 50 to 100 cm (moderately deep)

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Elevation--780 to 1040 m
Mean annual precipitation--250 to 450 mm
Mean annual temperature--8 to 14 degrees C
Frost-free season--60 to 150 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: None given

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Saturation during normal years--none
Flooding--none
Ponding--none
Saturated hydraulic conductivity (Kstat)--moderately high over moderately low

USE AND VEGETATION:
Use--livestock grazing, wildlife habitat
Potential natural vegetation--bluebunch wheatgrass-Sandberg bluegrass-shaggy fleabane plant association

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Eastern Oregon; MLRA 9; small extent

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Wallowa-Whitman National Forest, Oregon; 2018

REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and other features recognized in this pedon
*Mollic epipedon--zone from the surface to a depth of 43 cm
*Argillic horizon--zone from 43 to 122 cm
*Volcanic glass--zone from the surface to a depth of 43 cm (meets criteria for vitritorrandic great group)
*Depth to lithologic discontinuity--43 cm
*Particle-size control section--zone from 43 to 93 cm

7/7/2017--Precipitation estimated based on observed vegetative communities. Climate models indicate higher precipitation in mapped areas of the Leepcreek soils. The soils are mapped along the southeast-facing flank of Hells Canyon, in areas where precipitation changes rapidly over a small geographical extent; therefore, the climate models may be incorrect.

A moist phase that has a xeric soil moisture regime was included in Wallowa-Whitman National Forest. It is dominantly on north-facing slopes.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.