LOCATION TALAG MTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic, frigid Aridic Glossic Natrustalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Talag silty clay loam - native grass. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted)
E--0 to 3 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate thin platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine roots; few fine and medium and common very fine tubular pores; plates coated with unstained silt and fine sand; clear smooth boundary. (2 to 3 inches thick)
B/E--3 to 5 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) silty clay loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; coated with light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) uncoated silt and sand; moderate medium prismatic structure parting to strong medium platy; hard, friable, sticky and plastic; common very fine roots; few fine and medium and common very fine tubular pores; faint discontinuous clay films on peds; clear wavy boundary. (4 to 6 inches thick)
Btn1--5 to 13 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) clay, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; strong medium prismatic structure parting to strong medium subangular blocky; very hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; continuous faint clay films having dry or moist value of 2 on faces of peds; clear wavy boundary.
Btn2--13 to 18 inches; light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3) clay, olive brown (2.5Y 4/3) moist; moderate coarse prismatic structure parting to strong medium subangular blocky; very hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine roots; few fine and common very fine tubular pores; discontinuous clay films on peds; clear wavy boundary. (Combined Bt horizons 5 to 15 inches thick)
Btkn--18 to 22 inches; light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3) clay, olive brown (2.5Y 4/3) moist; moderate coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate medium subangular blocky; very hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine roots; few fine and common very fine tubular pores; faint discontinuous clay films on peds; few lime threads; strong effervescence; gradual wavy boundary. (5 to 10 inches thick)
Bk--22 to 31 inches; grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) clay loam, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; medium blocky structure; very hard, firm, sticky and plastic; few very fine roots; few fine and common very fine tubular pores; violent effervescence; common threads and masses of lime; gradual wavy boundary. (5 to 12 inches thick)
C--31 to 49 inches; grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) stratified clay loam and silty clay loam containing few hard shale and sandstone fragments, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; massive; hard, firm, sticky and plastic; few roots; common very fine tubular pores; violent effervescence; lime coatings on shale and sandstone fragments.
TYPE LOCATION: Big Horn County, Montana; 600 feet south and 1,000 feet east of W1/4 corner of sec. 24, T.4S., R.28E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean Annual Soil Temperature: 47 to 53 degrees F.
Notes: Some pedons have an E/B horizon. It is silty clay loam or clay loam.
E Horizon:
Hue: 2.5Y or 10YR
Value: 2 or 3 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3.
B/E Horizon:
Texture: silty clay loam or clay loam
Btn Horizon:
Hue: 2.5Y or 10YR
Value: 4 or 5 (crushed)
Chroma: 2 or 3 (crushed)
Percent Clay: 50 to 60 percent
CEC: 50 to 60 millequivalents per 100 grams of clay
Structure: moderate to strong prismatic structure that parts to blocky
ESP: 5 to 10 in the upper part and 10 to 20 percent in the lower part
Notes: The ratio of exchangeable Ca to Mg is less than 1
C Horizon:
Texture: silty clay loam, clay loam, silt loam or loam
ESP: more than 15 in some part above a depth of 40 inches.
Notes: It is stratified with fine sandy loam in some pedons
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Hydro series. Hydro soils have less than 45 percent clay in the Btn horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Talag soils are on level to sloping terraces and foot slopes. They formed in very deep transported calcareous and saline clay loam materials of mixed rock origin. The climate is cool semiarid with mean annual temperature of 45 to 48 degrees F. Mean summer air temperature of 65 to 70 degrees F., frost-free period is 95 to 150 days, and mean annual precipitation of 10 to 15 inches with 8 to 10 inches of warm season precipitation.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Hydro series and the Allentine, Arvada, Bone and Thurlow soils. Allentine and Arvada soils do not have a B/E horizon. Bone soils are less than 10 inches to the base of the Bt horizon. In addition, Arvada and Bone have an ESP of more than 15 throughout the Bt horizon and Bone soils have strongly saline C horizons. Thurlow soils do not have natric horizons.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well-drained; very slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used mostly for range. Native vegetation is western wheatgrass, prairie junegrass, blue grama, silver sagebrush and forbs.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southeastern Montana. The series is widely distributed but is inextensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Denver, Colorado
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Big Horn County (Big Horn Area), Montana, 1970.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: ochric epipedon - the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of 3 inches (E horizon); glossic horizon - the zone from 3 to 5 inches (B/E horizon); natric horizon - the zone from 5 to 22 inches (Btn1, Btn2 and Btk horizons).