LOCATION RUSO NDEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, frigid Pachic Haplustolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Ruso sandy loam. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated)
A1--0 to 5 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) sandy loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine and medium roots; neutral; clear wavy boundary.
A2--5 to 10 inches; dark brown (10YR 4/3) sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to weak medium subangular blocky; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine and medium roots; neutral; gradual wavy boundary. (Combined A horizon is 6 to 20 inches thick)
Bw--10 to 21 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to weak medium subangular blocky; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine and medium roots; neutral; clear wavy boundary. (6 to 24 inches thick)
Bk--21 to 26 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) coarse sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; loose, slightly sticky and nonplastic; few fine roots; about 5 percent gravel; few fine masses of carbonates; violent effervescence; moderately alkaline; gradual wavy boundary. (0 to 20 inches thick)
2C--26 to 60 inches; light gray (10YR 7/2) very gravelly sand, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) moist; single grain; loose, nonsticky and nonplastic; about 45 percent gravel; strong effervescence; moderately alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Dunn County, North Dakota; 900 feet south and 830 feet east of the northwest corner, sec. 12, T. 148 N., R. 94 W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to carbonates ranges from 20 to 34 inches. Depth to stratified sand and gravel ranges from 24 to 40 inches. Thickness of the mollic epipedon ranges from 16 to 30 inches.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR, value of 3 to 5 and 2 or 3 moist, and chroma of 2 or 3. It is neutral. It is fine sandy loam, sandy loam or coarse sandy loam and has more than 50 percent fine or coarser sand.
The Bw horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 3 to 5 and 2 to 4 moist, and chroma of 2 or 3. It is coarse sandy loam, fine sandy loam or sandy loam and has more than 50 percent fine or coarser sand. It is neutral or slightly alkaline. Some pedons have a 2Bw horizon.
The Bk horizon has hue of 10YR, 2.5Y or 5Y, value of 5 to 7 and 4 to 6 moist, and chroma of 2 to 4. It is slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline. It is coarse sandy loam, sandy loam or fine sandy loam containing up to 35 percent coarse fragments. Some pedons have a 2Bk or 2BCk horizon. They have properties similar to the Bk horizon, but have textures of loamy coarse sand, loamy sand or coarse sand containing up to 80 percent coarse fragments. Some pedons have a loamy fine sand transition horizon above the 2Bk or 2C horizons.
The 2C horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 to 7 and 3 or 5 moist, and chroma of 2 to 4. It is slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline. It is coarse sand, loamy sand or sand containing up to 80 percent coarse fragments.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Bikeyah, Breece, Chrishall, Dotsero, Hedoes, Jarmillo, Klizhin, Parshall and Tuntsa series. Bikeyah, Chrishall, Dotsero, Hedoes, Klizhin, Parshall and Tuntsa soils do not have stratified sand and gravel above depths of 40 inches. Breece soils do not have carbonates within a depth of 40 inches. Jarmillo soils are noncalcareous throughout.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Ruso soils are on level to moderately sloping outwash plains and stream terraces that dissect till plains. Slopes are plane or slightly concave and gradients typically are less than 3 percent but range to 9 percent. The soils formed in loamy alluvium over stratified sand and gravel. The climate is semiarid. Mean annual air temperature is from 34 to 45 degrees F, and mean annual precipitation is 12 to 17 inches, most of which falls in the spring and summer.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Parshall soils and the Bowdle, Manning, Stady and Wabek soils. All are on nearby outwash plains. Bowdle and Stady soils are fine-loamy over sandy or sandy-skeletal. Manning soils have a mollic epipedon less than 16 inches thick and are coarse-loamy over sandy or sandy-skeletal. Wabek soils are sandy-skeletal.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Slow runoff. Moderately rapid permeability in the upper part and very rapid in the substratum.
USE AND VEGETATION: Primarily cropped to small grains and alfalfa. Some areas are irrigated. Native vegetation consists of needleandthread grass, prairie sandreed, western wheatgrass, blue grama, little bluestem, sedges, forbs and snowberry.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Glaciated areas of central North Dakota and north-central South Dakota, mostly east and north of the Missouri River in MLRA's 53A and 53B. The series is moderately extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Denver, Colorado
SERIES ESTABLISHED: McLean County, North Dakota, 1974.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: mollic epipedon - the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of 21 inches (A1, A2 and Bw horizons).
It is the intent the series be used in association with glacial materials and landforms. Where the soil has been previously correlated in association with residual landforms, it will be recorrelated in the future to the Manning series.
ADDITIONAL DATA: North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station laboratory data SU72ND-28-4.