LOCATION RUTERSVILLE TXEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, active, thermic Aquic Paleustalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Rutersville loamy fine sand on a 2 percent linear slope. Elevation is 350 feet above sea level. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated)
Ap--0 to 7 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) loamy fine sand, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; loose, very friable; many fine, medium, and coarse roots; few fine and medium pores; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (4 to 12 inches thick)
E--7 to 14 inches; white (10YR 8/2) loamy fine sand, light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) moist; common coarse prominent brown (10YR 4/3) mottles; weak medium subangular blocky structure; loose; very friable; many fine, medium, and coarse roots; few fine and medium pores; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 8 inches thick)
Bt1--14 to 24 inches; light grayish brown (10YR 6/2) clay loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) moist; moderate coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate medium angular blocky; very hard, firm; few fine and medium roots; common fine and medium pores; common thick continuous grayish brown (10YR 5/2) clay films on vertical faces of peds; common grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) vertical streaks; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt2--24 to 34 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) sandy clay loam, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist; few fine distinct yellowish brown mottles; moderate coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate medium angular blocky; very hard, firm; common fine and medium roots; few fine and medium pores; common thick continuous brown (10YR 4/3) clay films on vertical faces of peds; few masses of barite; very strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt3--34 to 46 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) fine sandy loam, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist; common medium distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) mottles; moderate coarse prismatic structure parting to weak fine angular blocky; slightly hard, friable; common fine and medium roots; few fine and medium pores; common thick continuous dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) clay films on vertical faces of peds; about 3 to 5 percent by volume fine masses of barite; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 30 to 50 inches thick)
BC-46 to 54 inches; light gray (2.5Y 7/2) fine sandy loam, light grayish brown (2.5Y 6/2) moist; common medium distinct brownish yellow (10YR 5/8) mottles; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable; common fine roots; few fine and medium pores; common thick grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) clay films on vertical faces of peds; few stains of iron and manganese; few fine masses of barite; medium acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 15 inches thick)
Cr1--54 to 65 inches; weakly cemented and weathered light gray (2.5Y 7/2) sandstone, light gray (2.5Y 7/2) moist; common medium distinct olive yellow (2.5Y 6/6) mottles; few fine roots along fracture planes; common dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) clay films on faces of coarse fragments; 40 to 50 percent of the matrix stained with iron and manganese coatings, thin discontinuous olive yellow (2.5Y 6/6) strata; common masses of barite; few red (2.5YR 5/8) brittle masses; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 15 inches thick)
Cr2--65 to 79 inches; weakly cemented and weathered, yellowish red (5YR 5/6) and light gray (2.5Y 7/2) stratified sandstone; common brownish yellow (10YR 6/8) and few red (2.5YR 4/8) loamy lenses; massive; few fine roots along fractures; few fine pores; distinct bedding planes; few discontinuous ironstone lenses; slightly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Fayette County, Texas; from the intersection of Farm Market Road 154 and Farm Market Road 2237 in Muldoon, 3.75 miles south on Farm Market Road 154 to county road, 0.86 mile east on county road, 200 feet south in pastureland. (Latitude: 29 degrees, 46 minutes, 07 seconds North; Longitude: 97 degrees, 05 minutes, 15 seconds West).
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The solum thickness and depth to weathered bedrock ranges from 40 to 60 inches. Average clay content in the upper 20 inches of the Bt horizon is 20 to 35 percent. Exchangeable sodium in the B horizon ranges from 2 to 15 percent. Reaction ranges from very strongly acid to moderately alkaline.
The A and E horizons have hue of 10YR, value of 4 to 7 and chroma of 2 or 3. texture is loamy fine sand or loamy very fine sand. The A and E horizons are very strongly acid to neutral and combined thickness is 8 to 20 inches.
The Bt horizons have hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 4 to 7 and chroma of 2 or 3. They have common to many, fine or medium, yellowish, brownish, and reddish mottles. The amount of mottling throughout the B horizons decreases in abundance and size with depth.
The Bt1 textures are sandy clay loam, clay loam, sandy clay or clay with clay content of 35 to 45 percent. The Bt2 textures are fine sandy loam, loam, or sandy clay loam with clay content of 20 to 27 percent. Reaction of the Bt1 and Bt2 horizons ranges from very strongly acid to slightly acid.
The Bt3 and BC horizons are fine sandy loam, loam or sandy clay loam, with clay content of 15 to 25 percent. A few small concretions of calcium carbonate and white salts are present in some pedons. Reaction of the Bt3 and BC horizons range from strongly acid to moderately alkaline.
The Cr horizon is weakly to strongly cemented sandstone. Some pedons contain thin lenses and pockets of tuffaceous shale. The cemented sandstone is fractured. The fractures contain masses of roots and organic stains. A few concretions of calcium carbonate and white salts are present in some pedons. Reaction of the Cr horizon ranges from slightly acid to moderately alkaline.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Rader series in this family. Soils in similar families are the Arol, Chazos, Inez, Lufkin, Nada, Rehburg, Shiro and Vaughn series. Rader soils have sola thicker than 60 inches. Arol, Inez and Lufkin soils have fine textured Bt horizons. Chazos soils lack a paralithic contact within 60 inches. Nada and Vaughn soils have siliceous mineralogy and sola thicker than 60 inches. In addition, Nada soils have a hyperthermic soil temperature class. Rehburg soils have sandy A and E horizons 20 to 40 inches thick. Shiro soils have fine textured control sections and have dominating chroma of 4 or more in the Bt1 horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Rutersville soils are on nearly level uplands. Slope gradients range from 0 to 2 percent. These soils formed over weakly to strongly cemented sandstone containing varying amounts of tuffaceous clays and silts on the Catahoula formation and associated Jackson Group. The climate is warm and subhumid. The mean annual precipitation ranges from 32 to 42 inches and the mean annual temperature ranges from 67 to 70 degrees F. Frost free days range from 260 to 280 and elevation ranges from 400 to 600 feet. The Thornthwaite P-E indices range from 42 to 62.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These include Arol and Rehburg soils in similar positions, and the Shiro soils on higher lying ridges and sideslopes. Other associated soils are the Burlewash and Shalba soils that have fine textured Bt horizons and sola less than 40 inches thick. These soils are on higher lying ridgetops and sideslopes.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well drained. Runoff is medium. Permeability is slow.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used mainly as pasture, but a few areas are farmed to small grains and forage sorghums. Native vegetation overstory consists of post oak, blackjack oak, red cedar, and understory of yaupon, *rosinweed, green briar, threeawn, paspalum species, bristlegrass, foxtail, purpletop, panicum species and little bluestem.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southern claypan and southern blackland prairie of Texas. The series is of minor extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Temple, Texas
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Fayette County, Texas 1992. The name is from a small community in Fayette County. Alternate names are (Ruter) and (Strula).
REMARKS: These soils do not have an aquic moisture regime. Classification change from Typic Albaqualfs is the result of interpretation that low chroma matrix is due, in part, to lithochromic influences. Field observations, landscape position and climate indicate the whole soil is typically not saturated throughout. These soils have formerly been included in the Chazos, Straber and a variant of the Falba series.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Aquic feature - Presence of chromas of 2 or less below the Ap.
Ochric epipedon - from surface to 14 inches. (Ap and E horizons)
Abrupt texture change at 14 inches.
Argillic horizon - 14 to 42 inches. (Bt1, Bt2 and Bt3 horizons)
Paralithic contact at 54 inches.
ADDITIONAL DATA: A complete characterization report was provided by the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station Soil Characterization Laboratory from a 1987 pit study in Fayette County. Limited characterization data in a report to LCRA, "Comparison of Physical and Chemical Properties and Production Capacity of Overburden and Land-Surface Soils from Proposed Mine Site, Fayette County, Texas". Texas Tech University.