LOCATION LOVING TXTentative Series
The Loving series consists of very shallow and shallow over sandstone bedrock, well drained, moderately rapidly permeable loamy soils that formed in loamy residuum from sandstone bedrock. These soils are on ridges. Slopes are 1 to 12 percent. Mean annual precipitation is 26 to 32 inches. Mean annual temperature is 64 or 65 degrees F.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, siliceous, active, nonacid, thermic, shallow Typic Ustorthents
TYPICAL PEDON: Loving fine sandy loam--Post oak Savannah. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
A--0 to 6 inches; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) very stony fine sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) moist; weak fine granular and subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable; common fine and medium roots; common fine pores; 5 percent sandstone gravel, 1 percent of the surface is covered with stones 10 to 24 inches across, and 1 percent boulders 4 to 5 feet across and 10 feet long; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary. (4 to 10 inches thick)
A2--6 to 16 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) fine sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; weak fine granular and subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable; common fine roots; few fine pores; 5 percent sandstone gravels in the lower part; slightly acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
Cr--16 to 20 inches, reddish yellow (7.5YR 7/6), and yellowish red (5YR 5/6) weakly cemented sandstone bedrock with fractures 4 to 24 inches across; slightly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Loving fine sandy loam, from an area of Exray-Loving complex, 1 to 8 percent slopes, very stony from the intersection of Texas Highway 114 and Texas Highway 16 in Loving; 5.7 miles north on Texas Highway 16, 3.0 miles east, southeast on Stewart Ranch road, 60 feet south of in rangeland.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness and depth to sandstone bedrock ranges from 6 to 20 inches.
The A horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 4 to 8, and chroma of 2 to 4. Texture is fine sandy loam, sandy loam, loam, stony fine sandy loam, or stony loam. Content of coarse fragments ranges from 0 to 20 percent by volume. Coarse fragments less than 3 inches in diameter range from 0 to 5 percent by volume and coarse fragments 3 to 10 inches in diameter range from 0 to 15 percent by volume. Reaction ranges from moderately acid to neutral.
The A2 horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 4 to 8, and chroma of 2 to 6. Texture is fine sandy loam, sandy loam, gravelly loam, or gravelly fine sandy loam. Content of coarse fragments ranges from 0 to 20 percent by volume. Coarse fragments less than 3 inches in diameter range from 0 to 20 percent by volume and coarse fragments 3 to 10 inches in diameter range from 0 to 5 percent by volume. Reaction ranges from moderately acid to neutral.
The Cr horizon is very weakly to moderately cemented sandstone bedrock that can be dug with a spade or auger. The Cr horizon has hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 7, and chroma of 3 to 8. Reaction ranges from moderately acid to neutral. This material is paralithic with a high or very high excavation difficulty. Some strata have an extremely high excavation difficulty, but these areas are small. Fractures are greater than 10 cm apart. This material is dense enough to be root restrictive.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no series in the same family. Soils in similar families are Darnell, Darsil, Lucien, Cottonwood, Eddy and Harmon series. Darnell soils can have redder hues, a cambic horizon, steeper slopes and have a mean annual air temperature less than 64 degree Fairenheight. Darsil soils have a sandy textural control section. Lucien soils have mixed mineralogy and have a mollic epipedon. Cottonwood, Eddy and Harmon soils are calcareous and Eddy and Harmon soils have carbonatic mineralogy
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Loving soils are on very gently sloping to strongly sloping ridgesin the North Central Prarie. Slopes are 1 to 12 percent. These soils formed in residuum from sandstone of Pennsylvanian age. The climate is subhumid. Mean Annual Precipitation: 26 to 32 inches. Mean Annual Air Temperature: 64 to 65 degrees F. Thornthwaite Annual P-E indices: 36 to 50. Elevation is 900 to 1600 feet.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the associated Bonti, Exray, Owens, Shatruce, Truce and Weswind. Bonti and Exray soils are on similar landscapes but have argillic horizons. Owens and Shatruce soils are on steeper slopes and are 20 to 40 inches over claystone Bedrock. Truce and Weswind soils have sola greater than 40 inches and are lower in the landscape.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; runoff is low on 1 to 5 percent slopes, and medium on 5 to 12 percent slopes; moderately rapid permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Mainly used for rangeland. Native vegetation is mainly post oak, blackjack oak, and eastern red cedar with an understory of tall and mid grasses.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Central Great Plains, North Central Praries; LRR H; MLRA80B; moderate extent
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Temple, Texas
SERIES PROPOSED: Young County, Texas; 2002.
REMARKS: These soils were formerly included in the Darnell series. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - from the surface of the soil to a depth of 6 inches (A horizon).
Paralithic contact - top of Cr layer at 16 inches.
Paralithic material - 16 to 60 inches.(Cr layer)