LOCATION PAHREAH UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, carbonatic Ustic Calcicryolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Pahreah very gravelly loam--timber (Colors are for air-dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
Oe--1 inch to 0; undecomposed and partly decomposed conifer needles and twigs.
A1--0 to 1/2 inch; brown (7.5YR 5/4) very gravelly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; crushed; weak very fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; common very fine pores; 50 percent fine to medium pebbles, mildly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear smooth boundary. (1/2 to 3 inches thick.)
A2--1/2 to 5 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/2) very gravelly loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist, crushed; weak medium subangular blocky structure parting to weak, very fine granular; soft, friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; common very fine, fine and medium and few coarse roots; few fine pores; few thin clay films in pores; 40 percent fine pebbles; strongly calcareous; mildly alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (3 to 7 inches thick.)
Bw--5 to 9 inches; (7.5YR 4/4) very gravelly loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure parting to weak fine granular; soft, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few coarse roots; few fine pores; few thin clay films in pores; 40 percent fine pebbles; strongly calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear wavy boundary. (3 to 6 inches thick.)
Bk1--9 to 12 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) gravelly loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist, crushed; massive; soft, very friable; nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine roots; common fine pores; 35 percent fine pebbles; mildly alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (3 to 5 inches thick.)
Bk2--12 to 17 inches; pinkish white (7.5YR 8/2) extremely gravelly loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/4) moist; massive; very hard, firm, nonsticky and slightly plastic; few fine and medium roots; few fine and coarse interstitial pores; weakly cemented in some parts; precipitated carbonates on the bottoms of pebbles; 70 percent pebbles; very strongly calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt wavy boundary; (4 to 8 inches thick.)
Bk3--17 to 26 inches; pink (5YR 7/3) and pinkish white (5YR8/2) extremely gravelly loam, light red (2.5YR 6/6) and pink (5YR 7/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, firm, nonsticky and slightly plastic; few fine, medium and coarse roots; few fine tubular pores; very weakly to weakly cemented; precipitated carbonates on the bottoms of pebbles, 60 percent fine and 20 percent medium pebbles; very strongly calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); gradual wavy boundary. (6 to 10 inches thick.)
Bk4--26 to 38 inches; pinkish white (7.5YR 8/2) extremely cobbly loam, pinkish gray (7.5YR 7/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable; few fine and few coarse roots; coarse root channels filled with very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist loam; 70 percent cobbles and 20 percent pebbles; very strongly calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 4 inches thick.)
R--38 inches; fractured limestone.
TYPE LOCATION: Kane County, Utah; Coyote Hollow; northeast 1/4 of sec. 25, T. 38 S., R. 4 1/2 W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The mollic epipedon ranges from 7 to 16 inches thick. The depth to the Bk (calcic) horizon ranges from 9 to 20 inches. The depth to consolidated bedrock ranges from 20 to 40 inches. Rock fragments range from 35 to 90 percent in the particle size control section. The mean annual soil temperature is about 36 to 42 degrees F. and the mean summer soil temperature at a depth of 20 inches is about 54 to 57 degrees F. The A horizon is noncalcareous or slightly calcareous and lime increases with increasing depth to very strongly calcareous in the Bk horizon. Carbonates are estimated to average 40 to 60 percent thoughout the profile.
The A horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist and chroma of 2 to 4.
The Bw horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist and chroma of 2 to 4. It ranges from gravelly, very gravelly, cobbly and very cobbly loam to very gravelly clay loam.
The Bk horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 5YR, value of 5 to 8 dry, 4 to 6 moist and chroma of 2 to 8. It ranges from very gravelly, very cobbly, extremely gravelly and extremely cobbly loam to extremely gravelly and cobbly silt loam.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Hanson, Hardol, Skaggs and Zeale series. Hanson, Hardol and Zeale soils are very deep. Skaggs soils have a paralithic contact.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Pahreah soils are on moderately sloping to very steep long colluvial sideslopes of mesas and mountains at elevations of 7,800 to 9,000 feet. They formed in colluvium and residuum from limestone. Slope gradients are 1 to 65 percent. The average annual precipitation is 18 to 25 inches and the freeze-free period ranges from 55 to 75 days. The mean annual temperature is 36 to 42 degrees F. and the average summer temperature is 54 to 58 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Hatch, Sheege, Sielo, Swapps and Sevier soils. All of these soils but Sheege have a B2t horizon with less than 35 percent coarse fragments. Sheege soils have a lithic contact at depth of 16 to 20 inches.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium to rapid runoff. Permeability is moderate.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used mainly for timber, rangeland, recreation and wildlife habitat. The native vegetation is ponderosa pine, white fir, Douglas-fir, limber pine, manzanita, creeping juniper, Oregon grape and grasses.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: South-central Utah. This series is not extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Paunsaugunt Area, Utah, 1969.
REMARKS: These soils were formerly classified as loamy-skeletal, carbonatic, shallow Typic Cryoborolls, but they do not have a paralithic contactiwithin 20 inches as required for the shallow family. In addition, they have a calcic horizon immediately under the mollic epipedon placing them in the calcic subgroup. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - the zone from the surface to a depth of 9 inches (A1, A2, Bw horizons)
Calcic horizon - the zone from about 9 to 38 inches (Bk1, Bk2, Bk3, Bk4 horizons)