LOCATION SULSAVAR WAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, isotic, mesic Vitrandic Dystroxerepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Sulsavar gravelly ashy loam, forested. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted. All textures are apparent field textures.)
Oi--0 to 1 inch; leaves, needles, twigs and mosses.
A--1 to 4 inches; dark brown (10YR 3/3) gravelly ashy loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) dry; weak fine granular structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky, slightly plastic; common fine roots; common fine tubular pores; 25 percent waterworn pebbles; moderately acid (pH 5.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (2 to 12 inches thick)
Bs1--4 to 14 inches; dark brown (10YR 4/3) gravelly ashy sandy loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky, nonplastic, weakly smeary; few fine roots; common fine and medium tubular pores; 25 percent waterworn pebbles; micaceous; moderately acid (pH 5.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (4 to 10 inches thick)
Bs2--14 to 19 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) ashy silt loam, very pale brown (10YR 7/3) dry; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic, weakly smeary; few fine roots; common medium tubular and very few coarse tubular pores; 10 percent waterworn pebbles; micaceous; slightly acid (pH 6.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 11 inches thick)
Bs3--19 to 25 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) dry; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few fine tubular pores; 30 percent waterworn pebbles; micaceous; slightly acid (pH 6.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (4 to 8 inches thick)
BC--25 to 34 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) dry; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few fine tubular pores; 30 percent waterworn pebbles, very micaceous; slightly acid (pH 6.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 8 inches thick)
C1--34 to 39 inches; dark brown (10YR 4/3) sandy loam, pale yellow (2.5Y 7/4) dry; massive; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; few fine tubular pores; 10 percent pebbles; micaceous; neutral (pH 6.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 10 inches thick)
C2--39 to 61 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) stratified very gravelly loamy sand and gravelly sandy loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) dry; single grained; loose; 50 percent pebbles in loamy sand strata; 20 percent pebbles in sandy loam strata; neutral (pH 6.6).
TYPE LOCATION: Snohomish County, Washington; 1,500 feet south and 2,700 feet west of NE corner of section 25, T.29N., R.7E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The mean annual soil temperature at a depth of 20 inches ranges from 47 to 50 degrees F. The particle size control section is stratified and averages 15 to 35 percent rock fragments by volume.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 2 through 4 moist, 3 through 6 dry, and chroma of 2 through 5 moist or dry. It is moderately acid or slightly acid.
The Bs horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 or 5 moist, 6 or 7 dry and chroma of 3 through 6 moist or dry. It is stratified with individual layers gravelly loam, gravelly fine sandy loam, gravelly sandy loam, silt loam or gravelly silt loam. It ranges from moderately acid to neutral.
The C horizon has hue of 10YR, 5Y or 2.5Y, value of 4 or 5 moist and chroma of 2 through 5 moist or dry. It is stratified with individual layers ranging from very gravelly loamy sand to loam. It is moderately acid to neutral.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Bullards, Chuckanut, Kickerville, Nati, Sauk, Sehome, and Squalicum series. Bullards soils have an isomesic temperature regime. Chuckanut soils are 15 to 25 percent weathered sandstone in the particle-size control section. Kickerville soils are very gravelly or extremely gravelly, sand or loamy sand in the lower part of the particle-size control section. Nati and Sehome soils are 20 to 40 inches deep to a paralithic contact. Sauk soils have 0 to 10 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section. Squalicum soils are not stratified in the particle-size control section and have a paralithic contact at 40 to 60 inches.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Sulsavar soils are on alluvial fans and terraces. Slopes are 0 to 15 percent. Elevation ranges from 400 to 1,500 feet. The soils formed in gravelly alluvium containing significant amounts of volcanic ash. The average annual precipitation is 45 to 75 inches. The mean January temperature is 33 degrees F.; the mean July temperature is 59 degrees F.; and the mean annual temperature is 46 degrees F. The frost free season is 120 to 180 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Pastik, Tokul, and Winston soils. Pastik soils are silty and are mottled in the C horizon. Tokul soils have dense glacial till at a depth of 20 to 40 inches. Winston soils are coarse-loamy over sandy or sandy-skeletal.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; slow runoff; moderate permeability. This soil is subject to rare flooding.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for woodland. Native vegetation is Douglas- fir, western hemlock, western redcedar, and red alder, with an understory of salal, Oregon-grape, western swordfern, red huckleberry, vine maple, ladyfern, deer fern, western brackenfern, and trailing blackberry.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: West slopes of the Cascade mountains in North Western Washington. This series is of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Snohomish County, Washington, 1979.
REMARKS: Classification updated 3/94 and 1/00 because of recent amendments to Soil Taxonomy. Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are an ochric epipedon from 1 to 4 inches and a cambic horizon from 4 to 25 inches.
Diagnostic horizons and features are measured from the top of the first mineral horizon.
This series needs further investigation as to the soil moisture regime (udic vs. xeric).