LOCATION SPENARD                 AK

Established Series
Rev. RBH/SR/DLM
02/2022

SPENARD SERIES

Depth class: very deep
Drainage class: very poorly drained
Parent material: ash-influenced loess over glacial till
Landform: depressions on till plains, depressions on moraines, depressions on mountains
Slopes: 0 to 16 percent
Mean annual precipitation: 20 to 30 inches
Mean annual temperature: 30 to 40 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Medial over loamy, amorphic over mixed, superactive Andic Cryaquods

TYPICAL PEDON: Spenard silt loam -- on a 2 percent slope under forest vegetation. When described, the soil was saturated below a depth of 26 inches. (All colors are for moist soil)

Oi--0 to 5 inches; dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) peat; common very fine, fine, and medium roots; extremely acid (pH 4.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (3 to 6 inches thick)

Oe--5 to 9 inches; dark reddish brown (5YR 2/2) mucky peat; many very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots; thin layer of volcanic ash near bottom of horizon; very strongly acid (pH 4.5); abrupt smooth boundary. (2 to 6 inches thick)

E--9 to 14 inches; very dark grayish brown (2.5Y 3/2) silt loam; massive; friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine, fine, medium, and coarse roots; common medium distinct brown (10YR 4/3) redoximorphic concentrations; black streak near center of horizon; very strongly acid (pH 5.0); clear wavy boundary. (1 to 6 inches thick)

Bs1--14 to 19 inches; dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) silt loam; massive; friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots; many very fine pores; streaks and patches of faint dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) redoximorphic features; few fine concretions; very strongly acid (pH 4.7); clear wavy boundary. (3 to 7 inches thick)

Bs2--19 to 25 inches; mixed brown (10YR 4/3) and brown (7.5YR 4/4) silt loam; massive; friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots; many fine pores; few very fine concretions; very strongly acid (pH 4.7); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 8 inches thick)

BC--25 to 35 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) silt loam; weak fine platy structure; friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many coarse faint dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) and distinct dark reddish brown (5YR 3/2) redoximorphic concentrations; very strongly acid (pH 4.9); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 12 inches thick)

2C1--35 to 40 inches; olive (5Y 5/3) silt loam; massive; friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; very strongly acid (pH 5.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (3 to 7 inches thick)

2C2--40 to 60 inches; olive (5Y 5/3) silt loam; massive; firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few soft concretions; common coarse faint dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) redoximorphic concentrations; 10 percent gravel; very strongly acid (pH 5.0).

TYPE LOCATION: Western Kenai Peninsula Area, Alaska; approximately 0.5 mile north of Anchor Point; near the center of section 34, T.4S., R.15W., Seward Meridian.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Histic epipedons: are present in most profiles
Redoximorphic concentrations: present in albic horizon or upper part of spodic horizon
Free iron to carbon ratio: is more than 0.2 in parts of the spodic horizon
Solum: dominated by amorphous material
Solum thickness: 20 to 35 inches over glacial till
Buried solum: present in some pedons

O horizons:
Matrix color: hue of 5YR to 10YR; value of 2 to 4; chroma of 1 to 4
Reaction class: extremely acid or very strongly acid

E horizon:
Matrix color: hue of 5YR to 2.5Y; value of 3 or 4; chroma of 1 or 2
Texture: silt loam, very fine sandy loam
Reaction class: very strongly acid or strongly acid

Bs horizons
Matrix color: hue of 5YR or 7.5YR; value of 3 to 5; chroma of 2 to 4
Texture: silt loam, very fine sandy loam, thin strata of sandy loam are present in some pedons
Reaction class: very strongly acid or strongly acid

BC and C horizons:
Matrix color: hue of 10YR to 5Y; value of 3 to 6; chroma of 1 to 4
Texture is, silt loam, very fine sandy loam
Reaction class: very strongly acid or strongly acid

2C horizon
Matrix color: hue of 2.5Y or 5Y; value of 3 to 6; chroma of 1 to 4
Texture is, silt loam, silty clay loam modified by 5 to 30 total coarse fragments; 5 to 20 percent gravel, 0 to 10 percent cobbles
Consistence: firm
Reaction class: very strongly acid or strongly acid

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Kliskon series. Kliskon soils halve loess mantles less than 20 inches thick and lack redoximorphic features in the albic and spodic horizons.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Drainage class: very poorly drained
Parent material: ash-influenced loess over glacial till
Landform: depressions on till plains, depressions on moraines, depressions on mountains
Slopes: 0 to 16 percent
Mean annual temperature: 30 to 40 degrees F.
Mean annual precipitation: 20 to 30 inches

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Very poorly drained, negligible runoff in ponded areas or else very high runoff. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high to high.

USE AND VEGETATION: The native vegetation is a forest of black spruce, white spruce, paper birch, and alder. A few small areas are used for grasses and small grains.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRA 224 Cook Inlet Lowlands, South-central Alaska. The series is of moderate extent.

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: WASILLA, ALASKA

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Matanuska Valley Area, Alaska. 1966.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon include:
Albic horizon: from 9 to 14 inches
Spodic horizons: from 14 to 25 inches
Redoximorphic features: from 9 to 19 inches
Histic epipedon: from 0 to 9 inches
Amorphous material: from 0 to 26 inches
Temperature regime: cryic
Moisture regime: aquic

The concept of the Spenard series originally was centered on soils with a dark A horizon and a firm gravelly substratum. The soils described here were combined with Spenard in 1966, and became the central concept of the series in 1967.

ADDITIONAL DATA: Laboratory data is available for this soil: NSSL numbers 79P-2144-2151 and 81P-4245-4247.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.