LOCATION TELLMAN            CO+WY
Established Series
Rev RHM
02/1999

TELLMAN SERIES


The Tellman series consists of deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium from granite. Tellman soils are on fans, valley side slopes and stream terraces and have slopes of 0 to 50 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 20 inches and the mean annual air temperature is about 30 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy over sandy or sandy-skeletal, mixed, superactive Inceptic Haplocryalfs

TYPICAL PEDON: Tellman sandy loam, woodland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted )

A1--0 to 2 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak very fine granular structure; soft, very friable; few roots; medium acid; abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 3 inches thick)

A2--2 to 8 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) sandy loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; weak, medium platy structure that parts to weak very fine granules; soft, friable; few granite pebbles; few root; very strongly acid; clear irregular boundary. (4 to 10 inches thick)

A&B--8 to 12 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) sandy clay loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; hard; firm; 5 percent angular gravel; few roots; very strongly acid; clear irregular boundary. (3 to 6 inches thick)

B2t--12 to 20 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/4) clay loam, dark brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist moderate medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm; common thin nearly continuous clay films on peds; 5 percent angular fine gravel; very strongly acid; few roots; gradual wavy boundary. (6 to 14 inches thick)

B3--20 to 24 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) sandy clay loam, dark brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure that parts to weak fine granules; hard, firm; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (2 to 7 inches thick)

IIC--24 to 60 inches; yellow (10YR 7/6) coarse sand, yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) moist; single grained; loose, very friable; 10 percent fine and very fine angular granite gravel; medium acid. (Several feet thick)

TYPE LOCATION Gunnison County, Colorado; on a 20 percent slope at an elevation of 9,800 feet in the NW1/4 Sec. 9, T. 15 S., R. 82 W.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of the solum ranges from 15 to 40 inches, and depth to the coarse textured substratum ranges from 20 to 40 inches. Rock fragments range from 0 to 15 percent by volume in the solum, and are mainly fine angular granite pebbles. In many localities the A1 horizon is absent and an organic mat rests directly on the A2 horizon.

The A2 horizon has hue of 2.5Y through 7.5YR, value of 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist, and chroma of 2 through 6. Reaction is very strongly acid or strongly acid. Typically the horizon has weak platy structure that parts to granules, but it has weak subangular blocky structure in some pedons. Dry consistence is soft or slightly hard.

The B2t horizon has hue of 10YR or 7 5YR, value of 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist, and chroma of 3 through 5. It is typically clay loam, but range in clay from 18 to 35 percent, in silt from 15 to 20 percent, and in sand from 20 to 60 percent with a relatively high percentage of medium and coarse angular granite sand. The horizon has less volume change on wetting and drying than is typical for its texture. Dry consistence is extremely hard or very hard, and the horizon has hard-setting semi-cemented properties when dry. Reaction is very strongly acid to strongly acid with some part of the horizon having base saturation less than 60 percent

The IIC horizon ranges from loamy sand to very gravelly sand.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Mathers and Tabernash series. Mathers soils are slightly acid or neutral and have a base saturation of more than 60 percent in the argillic horizon, and contain more than 15 percent fine angular granite gravel in the major part of the solum. Tabernash soils have a base saturation of more than 60 percent in the argillic horizon, have rock fragments consisting mainly of rounded pebbles and cobbles and have only minor amounts of medium and coarse angular granite sand.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Tellman soils are on gently to steeply sloping alluvial fans, valley side slopes, and stream terraces. Slope gradients range from 0 to 50 percent. The soils formed in medium to moderately coarse textured strongly acid parent materials derived from granite overlying beds of coarse granite sand, loamy sand, and gravel within a depth of 40 inches Elevations range from 8,000 to 9,500 feet. At the type location the average annual precipitation is 20 inches with peak periods of precipitation occurring during the spring and summer. The average annual temperature is 30 degrees F, and the average summer temperature is 40 degrees F. The frost-free season is about 50 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Leal and Stecum soils. Leal soils have a coarse-loamy control section and the Stecum soils are moderately deep over bedrock.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; slow runoff; moderate permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for forestry, for rangeland, and for recreational purposes. Principal native vegetation is Engelmann spruce, fir, lodgepole pine and an understory of prostrate juniper, some kinnikinnik and a few other herbaceous plants.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: High mountainous areas of central Color-do. The series is of moderate extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Gunnison County, Colorado, 1975.

REMARKS: OSED scanned by NSSQA and cleaned up by Colorado. Last revised by state on 5/75.


National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.