LOCATION LEWHAND IDEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, active, frigid Vitrandic Fragiudalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Lewhand ashy silt loam - in pasture at 3,020 feet elevation. When described on October 7, 1991, the profile was dry to 32 inches and moist below that depth. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A1--0 to 3 inches; very dark brown (10YR 2/2)ashy silty clay loam, black (10YR 2/1) moist; strong very fine subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, slightly sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine and fine, and few medium roots; many very fine and fine, and common medium irregular pores; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear smooth boundary.
A2--3 to 8 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) ashy silty clay loam, black (10YR 2/1) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure parting to strong very fine subangular blocky; very hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine and common fine roots; many very fine and few fine tubular pores and many very fine irregular pores; strongly acid (pH 5.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the A horizons is 6 to 9 inches)
BE--8 to 12 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) silt loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to strong fine and medium subangular blocky; very hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine and common fine roots; many very fine and common fine and medium tubular pores; few fine distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist redox concentrations; common distinct light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) skeletans on faces of peds; strongly acid (pH 5.4); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick)
E--12 to 18 inches; light gray (10YR 7/2) silt loam, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist; moderate medium and coarse prismatic structure; very hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine roots along faces of peds; many very fine and few fine tubular pores, and common very fine irregular pores; common fine and medium prominent strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) moist redox concentrations; strongly acid (pH 5.1); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
Btx--18 to 32 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) silty clay loam, light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3) moist; strong coarse and very coarse prismatic structure; extremely hard, very firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine roots along faces of peds; common very fine tubular and common very fine irregular pores; common fine prominent brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist redox concentrations inside prisms; few fine faint grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist iron depletions on surfaces of peds; many prominent very dark brown (10YR 2/2) clay films on faces of peds; moderately acid (pH 5.8); gradual smooth boundary. (14 to 29 inches thick)
Bt1--32 to 56 inches; light gray (10YR 7/2) stratified silty clay loam to sandy loam, light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3) moist; weak very coarse prismatic structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; many very fine and common fine tubular pores; common fine prominent brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist redox concentrations; few distinct very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) clay films in pores; slightly acid (pH 6.1); clear smooth boundary. (8 to 24 inches thick)
Bt2--56 to 60 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) stratified sandy loam to sand, light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3) moist; weak very coarse prismatic structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; common very fine and few fine tubular pores; common fine and medium prominent strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) redox concentrations and few fine prominent olive gray (5Y 4/2) moist redox depletions; few distinct clay films in pores; moderately acid (pH 5.7).
TYPE LOCATION: Clearwater County, Idaho; about 2 miles south and 2 miles east of Weippe, Idaho; about 2,070 feet south and 250 feet east of the northwest corner of sec. 30, T.35N., R.5E. Latitude - 46 degrees, 20 minutes, 53 seconds North; Longitude - 115 degrees, 53 minutes, 18 seconds West; USGS Weippe South Quadrangle.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to fragipan - 13 to 19 inches
Average annual soil temperature - 39 to 45 degrees F. (Frigid temperature regime)
Soil moisture control section - not dry for 45 consecutive days following the summer solstice. Aquic conditions from November to June. Udic moisture regime.
A horizons
Value - 2 to 6 dry and 2 or 3 moist
Chroma - 2 or 3 dry and 1 to 3 moist
Texture - Ashy-SICL, Ashy-SIL or Ashy-L
Clay content - 16 to 39 percent
Volcanic glass content - 5 to 15 percent
Acid-oxalate extractable Al+1/2Fe - 0.4 to 1.0 percent
Reaction - extremely acid to moderately acid
BE horizon
Value - 5 to 7 dry and 3 to 5 moist
Chroma - 1 to 4 moist
Texture - SIL, SICL or L
Clay content - 16 to 35 percent
Reaction - very strongly acid to moderately acid
E horizon
Hue - 10YR or 2.5Y
Value - 6 to 8 dry, 4 to 6 moist
Chroma - 2 or 3 dry, 2 to 4 moist
Texture - SIL or L
Clay content - 10 to 26 percent
Reaction - very strongly acid to moderately acid
Btx horizon
Hue - 10YR or 2.5Y
Value - 5 to 7 dry and 4 to 6 moist
Chroma - 2 to 4 dry and 1 to 6 moist
Texture - SIL, SICL, CL, or SIC
Clay content - 15 to 40 percent
Reaction - strongly acid to neutral
Bt horizons
Hue - 10YR to 5GY
Value - 5 to 8 dry and 4 to 6 moist
Chroma - 2 to 6 dry and 1 to 6 moist
Texture - stratified SIC to S
Clay content - 8 to 44 percent
Reaction - very strongly acid to neutral
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Lewhand soils are in drainageways and small basins at elevations of 2,900 to 3,400 feet. These soils formed in mixed alluvium with an admixture of volcanic ash. The slope range is 0 to 3 percent. The average annual temperature is 38 to 44 degrees F. The average annual precipitation is 30 to 40 inches and the frost free season is 50 to 110 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Burntcreek, Gramil and Reggear series. Burntcreek soils are in drainageways and small basins, have a mollic epipedon and lack a fragipan. Gramil soils are on lacustrine terraces, and have an abrupt textural change at 20 to 40 inches. Reggear soils are on hills, have a fragipan at 20 to 40 inches and have mixed volcanic ash and loess in the epipedon.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Poorly drained; runoff is slow; permeability is very slow. This soil is subject to frequent flooding for long periods from December to March. A perched water table is present at +9 inches to 4 inches from February to April and 9 to 20 inches from October through July. An apparent water table is also present in this soil. Typically it has a phreatic surface at 7 to 28 inches from February through June and 11 to 56 inches from July through January, but is usually confined below a fragipan.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used mainly for livestock grazing, watershed and some crop production. The main crops are hay and oats. Potential native vegetation is black hawthorn, scattered lodgepole pine, snowberry, sedges and rushes.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: North central Idaho; Lewhand soils are not extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Clearwater County, Idaho, 2003.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and other features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from 0 to 8 inches (A1 and A2 horizons)
Fragipan - The zone from 18 to 32 inches (Btx horizon)
Particle size control section - The zone from 10 inches to 18 inches (the E and part of the B/E horizon)
Aquic feature - Redoximorphic depletions with chroma of 2 or less in the upper 10 iches of the Btx horizon and aquic conditions from November through June.
The ranges in values listed under the A horizons for volcanic glass content and acid-oxalate extractable Al+1/2Fe are estimates only.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Laboratory data is available for this series: S92ID-035-028 (92P 968) and S91ID-035-200 (92P 253) from Clearwater County, Idaho; by NSSL, Lincoln, NE.