LOCATION MENDON UT+ID
Established Series
Rev. AJE-JMW-MJD
12/2022
MENDON SERIES
The Mendon series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in light colored tuff, conglomerate, tuffaceous sandstone and limestone. The Memdon soils are on gently sloping lake terraces and moderately steep rolling dissected foothills. Slope ranges from 0 to 20 percent. The mean annual temperature is 47 degrees F., and the mean annual precipitation is about 17 inches.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Calcic Pachic Argixerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Mendon silt loam - cultivated (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.
Ap--0 to 7 inches; dark gray (10YR 4/1) silt loam, black (10YR 2/1) moist; mixed weak medium subangular blocky and weak fine granular structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly plastic; few fine roots; few fine pores; neutral (pH 7.3); abrupt smooth boundary. (6 to 8 inches thick.)
Bt--7 to 24 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) clay loam, very dark gray (10YR 3/1) moist; moderate medium prismatic structure parting to moderate medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, very firm, very sticky, plastic; common fine roots; many fine pores; common thin clay films; neutral (pH 7.1); clear smooth boundary. (8 to 18 inches thick.)
Bk--24 to 28 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) clay loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine granular structure; very hard, friable, sticky, plastic; few fine pores; few thin clay films; strongly calcareous; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); gradual wavy boundary. (4 to 9 inches thick.)
Ck--28 to 34 inches; very pale brown (10YR 8/2) loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; many fine and medium pores; very strongly calcareous; slightly alkaline (pH 7.5); gradual wavy boundary. (6 to 24 inches thick.)
C1--34 to 40 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) loam, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; many fine, medium and large pores; strongly calcareous; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); gradual wavy boundary. (9 to 20 inches thick.)
C2--40 to 60 inches; pale yellow (2.5Y 8/2) loam, light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine and medium pores; strongly calcareous; slightly alkaline (pH 7.7).
TYPE LOCATION: Cache County, Utah; about 2 miles north and 1 mile west of Newton, 700 feet north and 40 feet west of the Southeast corner of the SW1/4 sec. 1, T. 13 N., R. 2 W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The mean annual soil temperature is estimated to range from 47 degrees to 52 degrees F., and the mean summer temperature is about 65 degrees to 68 degrees F. The soil is usually moist, but it is dry for 60 consecutive days in the 4-to 12-inch depth in more than 7 out of 10 years.
The mollic epipedon ranges from 20 to 32 inches in thickness, and commonly includes all of the A and B horizons. Depth to carbonates is 20 to 32 inches. The ratio of cation exchange capacity to clay is 0.7 to 0.9.
The A horizon has hue of lOYR or 2.5Y, value of 3 or 4 dry and 1 through 3 moist, and chroma is between 1 and 1.5. It has weak fine to medium granular or subangular blocky structure. It ranges from neutral to slightly alkaline and is usually noncalcareous, but in some pedons it is slightly calcareous due to recent deposition or rodent activity.
The Bt horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 or 5 dry and 2 or 3 moist, and chroma of 1 or 2. It is clay loam or silty clay loam, and contains less than 35 percent clay and less than 15 percent coarser than very fine sand. It has moderate medium subangular blocky structure or moderate medium prismatic structure. It has thin to moderately thick common to continuous clay films. It is neutral to slightly alkaline.
The layer of calcium carbonate accumulation extends from the lower part of the B horizon into the upper part of the C horizon.
The C horizon has hue of 2.5Y or lOYR, value of 7 or 8 dry and 5 or 6 moist, and chroma is 2 or 3. It is silt loam, silty clay loam, or clay loam. It is slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline, and strongly to very strongly calcareous.
COMPETING SERIES: Related and similar soils are in the
Avon,
Bothwell, and
Parleys series. Avon soils have silty clay argillic horizons. Bothwell soils have chroma of 2 or more in the A horizon and are calcareous in the argillic horizons. Parleys soils have mollic epipedons less than 20 inches thick and chroma of 2 or more in the A horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Mendon soils are on gently sloping lake terraces and moderately steep rolling dissected foothills at elevations of 4,500 to 5,100 feet. Slopes gradients are 0 to 20 percent. The soil formed in light colored tuff, conglomerate, tuffaceous sandstone and limestone. The climate is moist subhumid. The average annual precipitation is 16 to 18 inches, mean annual temperature 45 degrees to 48 degrees F., and mean summer temperature is 65 degrees to 70 degrees F. The freeze-free season is 120 to 150 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing
Avon soils and the
Collinston,
Crookston, and
Wheelon soils. Collinston and Wheelon soils lack argillic horizons. Wheelon soils, in addition, lack mollic epipedons. Crookstown soils have loam argillic horizons that contain more than 15 percent fine and coarser sand.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Runoff is medium to rapid and permeability is moderate to slow.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most of the soil is used for dry cropland; small grains and alfalfa are the main crops. Where irrigation water is available, other crops are grown. The native vegetation is big sagebrush, western wheatgrass, bluebunch wheatgrass, balsamroot, and associated plants.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Utah and southern Idaho. The soil is moderately extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Cache Valley Survey, Utah, 1913.
REMARKS: The superactive cation exchange activity class was added in 03/2003 to the taxonomic classification by the National Soil Survey Center on request of the Reno MLRA office, without review of the soil series property data. The remainder of this document has not been updated.
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.