LOCATION OAKES WAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Medial-skeletal, amorphic, frigid Vitric Hapludands
TYPICAL PEDON: Oakes very gravelly loam - on a northwest facing concave slope of 40 percent under coniferous canopy of Douglas-fir and western hemlock at 1,900 feet elevation. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted. All textures are apparent field textures.)
0i--2 to 0 inches; undecomposed needles, twigs, and leaves.
A--0 to 5 inches; dark brown (7.5YR 4/4) very gravelly loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/4) dry; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky; nonplastic, weakly smeary; many very fine and fine and common medium roots; many fine irregular pores; 40 percent pebbles, 15 percent cobbles; NaF pH 11.0; moderately acid (pH 6.0); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 6 inches thick)
Bs1--5 to 17 inches; dark brown (7.5YR 4/4) very gravelly loam, pink (7.5YR 7/4) dry; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky, nonplastic, weakly smeary; common very fine, many fine, and few medium roots; many fine irregular pores; 50 percent pebbles and 10 percent cobbles; NaF pH 11.0; moderately acid (pH 6.0); clear wavy boundary. (4 to 20 inches thick)
Bs2--17 to 29 inches; dark brown (7.5YR 4/4) extremely gravelly loam, reddish yellow (7.5YR 6/6) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky, nonplastic; weakly smeary; many fine and medium and common coarse roots; many fine irregular pores; 45 percent pebbles, 15 percent cobbles, and 5 percent stones; NaF pH 11.0; moderately acid (pH 6.0); gradual wavy boundary. (8 to 20 inches thick)
C--29 to 60 inches; olive brown (2.5Y 4/4) extremely cobbly fine sandy loam, pale yellow (2.5Y 7/4) dry; massive; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; common fine, many medium, and common coarse roots; many fine irregular pores; 40 percent pebbles, 25 percent cobbles, and 10 percent stones; NaF pH 10.5; moderately acid (pH 5.6).
TYPE LOCATION: Whatcom County, Washington, about 1 1/2 miles northwest of Glacier; 500 feet north and 2,700 feet west of the southeast corner of sec. 36, T. 40 N., R. 6 E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Mean annual soil temperature is 44 to 47 degrees F. The solum is 20 to 40 inches thick. Depth to bedrock, dense glacial till or dense volcanic mudflow, is 40 to more than 60 inches. The soil moisture control section is dry in all parts for 45 to 60 consecutive days within the four months that follow the summer solstice on 6 or more years out of 10. Volcanic ash influences the upper 24 to 60 inches of the soil. The particle-size control section averages 35 to 70 percent rock fragments and includes pebbles, cobbles, and stones. Less than 15 percent of the rock fragments are phyllite. Reaction is strongly acid or moderately acid.
The A horizon has hue of 5YR through 10YR, value of 2 to 4 moist, 4 through 7 dry, and chroma of 2 through 4 moist and 2 through 6 dry.
The BS horizon has hue of 5YR through 2.5Y, value of 3 to 5 moist, 4 through 7 dry, and chroma of 2 through 6 moist, 4 through 6 dry. The fine earth fraction is loam, silt loam, or sandy loam. Rock fragments average from 35 to 70 percent.
The C horizon has hue of 10YR through 5Y, value of 4 through 6 moist, 6 through 8 dry, and chroma of 2 through 6 moist, 3 through 6 dry. The fine earth fraction is sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or loam. Rock fragments average from 40 to 75 percent. Some pedons have a 2Cr horizon with dense volcanic mudflow below 40 inches.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Cupples, Danforth, Deroux, Littlejohn, Montborne, Natkim, Olomount, Rinker, Roxer, Sorensen, and Winnecook series. Cupples and Montborne soils are moderately deep to a paralithic contact of dense compact glacial till. Danforth soils have a udic moisture regime. Deroux, Littlejohn, Olomount, Rinker, and Winnecook soils are 20 to 40 inches deep to a lithic contact. Natkim and Roxer soils have a 7 to 14 inch thick mantle of volcanic ash. Sorensen soils have more than 35 percent phyllitic pebbles in the particle-size control section.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Oakes soils are on glacially modified colluvial mountain backslopes at elevations of 1,000 to 2,500 feet. Slopes are 5 to 80 percent. The soils formed in volcanic ash and slope alluvium and mixed colluvium from siltstone, sandstone, conglomerate, andesite, argillite, and glacial drift or volcanic mudflow. Oakes soils are in a marine climate with cool, dry summers and cold, wet winters. Snow cover lasts from January through March. Average annual precipitation is 65 to 90 inches. Mean January temperature is about 32 degrees F. and mean July temperature is about 59 degrees F. The mean annual temperature is about 44 degrees F. The frost-free season is 100 to 170 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Barneston, Blethen, Kindy, Potchub, and Revel soils and the competing Montborne and Rinker soils. Barneston soils are sandy-skeletal and are mesic. Blethen soils are mesic. Kindy and Potchub soils are cryic. Revel soils are coarse- loamy and have a paralithic contact at 20 to 40 inches.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; slow to rapid runoff; moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for woodland and wildlife habitat. Native vegetation is western hemlock, Douglas-fir, bigleaf maple, western redcedar and red alder with an understory of salal, western swordfern, western brackenfern, vine maple, Oregon-grape, trailing blackberry, tall blue huckleberry, red huckleberry, bedstraw, and trillium.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northwestern Washington. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Skagit County Area, Washington, 1981.
REMARKS: Classification only changed 4/94 because of recent amendments to Soil Taxonomy. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this soil are an ochric epipedon from the surface to 4 inches, and a cambic horizon from 4 to 29 inches.