LOCATION RICKS UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy over sandy or sandy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic Calcic Haploxerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Ricks gravelly loam, cultivated (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
Ap--0 to 4 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) gravelly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; mixed weak medium subangular blocky and weak fine granular structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine roots; few fine pores; noncalcareous; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear smooth boundary, (4 to 7 inches thick)
A--4 to 9 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) gravelly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure that parts to weak medium granular structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine roots; common fine and medium pores; noncalcareous; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear wavy boundary. (3 to 7 inches thick)
Bt--9 to 14 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/3) gravelly loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common fine roots; common fine and medium pores; few thin clay films; noncalcareous; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 10 inches thick)
Bk--14 to 18 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/3) gravelly sandy loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; loose, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; common fine roots; common fine and medium pores; moderately calcareous, moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); gradual wavy boundary. (6 to 20 inches thick)
2Ck1--18 to 24 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very gravelly sand, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; single grained; loose; very strongly calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); gradual wavy boundary. (6 to 20 inches thick)
2Ck2--24 to 58 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very gravelly sand, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; single grained; loose, nonsticky and nonplastic; very strongly calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2).
TYPE LOCATION: Cache County, Utah; 1 mile east and 1,600 feet south of SE corner of Hyrum City rodeo grounds; 700 feet north and 200 feet east of the SW corner of sec. 2, T. 10N., R lE.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The mollic epipedon ranges from 12 to 20 inches thick. Depth to the very gravelly or very cobbly sand (IIC horizon) ranges from 15 to 30 inches. The lower part of the B horizon is usually moderately calcareous, but carbonates are mainly concentrated in the C horizon at depths of 15 to 25 inches. The rock fragments are dominantly rounded gravel size quartzite, sandstone or limestone rocks, ranging from about 20 to 35 percent in the A and B horizons and 60 to 80 percent in the C horizons. The mean annual soil temperature ranges from 48 to 52 F., and the mean summer soil temperature at a depth of 20 inches ranges from 62 to 68 F. The soils are moist for 55 to 65 percent of the time and are dry for 60 to 75 consecutive days or more in all parts of the 8 to 24 inch section in the summer and autumn.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist, and chroma of 2 or 3. It has weak to moderate medium or fine granular or weak subangular blocky structure. This horizon is neutral or mildly alkaline.
The Bt horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 5YR, value of 4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist, and chroma of 3 or 4. It is gravelly loam or gravelly sandy loam and has less than 18 percent clay. This horizon has weak to moderate, fine to medium subangular blocky structure. It has few thin to common thin clay films mainly in pores and bridging between sand grains. It does not meet the clay increase requirement of an argillic horizon.
The C horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 6 or 7 dry, 4 through 6 moist, and chroma of 2 or 3. It ranges from very gravely or very cobbly sand to very gravelly loamy sand.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Bingham, Cheney, Downey, Lakewin, Steed, Sterling, and Stratiord series. Bingham soils have argillic horizons with more than 18 percent clay. Cheney and Downey soils have silt loam B2 horizons with less than 15 percent rock fragments. Lakewin soils have more than 50 percent fine and coarser sand in the upper part of the control section. Steed soils average more than 35 percent rock fragments in the control section and have too few fines to fill the voids larger than 1 mm. Sterling soils have more than 35 percent rock fragments throughout the control section. Stratford soils lack calcic horizons.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Ricks soils are on nearly level to strongly sloping high lake terraces, alluvial fans, and deltas at elevations of 4,500 to 5,100 feet. Gradients range from 0 to 10 percent. The soils formed in mixed alluvium dominantly from limestone, sandstone, and quartzite. The climate is dry subhumid. The average annual precipitation ranges from 15 to 18 inches and the mean annual temperature is 46 to 49 degrees F., the mean summer temperature ranges from 66 to 70 degrees F., and the frost-free period ranges from 130 to 160 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Sterling and Steed soils and the Parleys and Timpanogos soils. Parleys and Timpanogos soils are not gravelly or cobbly in the argillic horizons. Also, Timpanogos soils have loam argillic horizons.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat excessively drained; slow or medium runoff; moderate permeability in the B horizon and very rapid in the C horizon.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used as irrigated and dry cropland of alfalfa and small grains. Small areas are used for orchards and some steeper slopes are idle or used for pasture. The native vegetation is bluebunch wheatgrass, balsamroot, and big sagebrush.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Utah. This series is inextensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Cache County, Utah, 1972.
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.