LOCATION TEX                CO
Established Series
Rev. RFB/RHM
02/1999

TEX SERIES


The Tex series consists of deep, well to somewhat excessively drained soils that formed in glacial till or outwash derived mainly from granite. The soils are on moderately to steeply sloping glacial moraines and till plains. The mean precipitation is about 20 inches and the mean annual air temperature is about 32 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive Lamellic Haplocryalfs

TYPICAL PEDON: Tex gravelly sandy loam, forested. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)

01--2 to 1 inch; undecomposed, undecomposed organic material like that of the horizon above.

02--1 inch to 0; partially decomposed organic material like that of the horizon above.

A1--0 to 2 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) gravelly sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate fine crumb structure; soft, very friable; 15 percent fine angular granite gravel; strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 3 inches thick)

A2--2 to 10 inches, pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak platy structure parting to moderate very fine granules; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary.
(4 to 12 inches thick)

A&B--10 to 14 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly sandy loam containing seams and nodules of coarse sandy clay loam or gritty clay loam (composite texture heavy coarse sandy loam), dark brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard to very hard, very friable; 15 percent fine angular granite gravel; this horizon consists of clayey material like that of the lamellae of the underlying horizon imbedded in a matrix of light colored material like that of the overlying horizon; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (4 to 12 inches thick)

B2t--14 to 45 inches; variable in color, ranging from very pale brown (10YR 7/4) to light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) gravelly sandy loam containing lamellae of coarse sandy clay loam or gritty clay loam 1/2 to 2 inches thick (composite texture is a heavy coarse sandy loam or light coarse sandy clay loam), yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist to brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; very hard and extremely hard, very friable; 20 percent fine angular granite gravel; very strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (7 to 33 inches)
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C--45 to 60 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly loamy sand, light yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; massive; hard, loose; 20 percent fine angular granite gravel; strongly acid. (Several feet thick)

TYPE LOCATION: Gunnison County, Colorado; NW /4 Sec. 14, T. 13 S., R. 83 W.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of the solum ranges from 15 to 60 inches. The soil has hard setting properties when dry and has low volume change on wetting and drying. In some pedons the A1 horizon is absent. Rock fragments range from 15 to 35 percent in a major part of the solum, and are mainly fine angular granite pebbles. The solum is very strongly acid or strongly acid.

The A2 horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist and chroma of 2 through 4. Usually this horizon has weak platy structure, but it has subangular blocky, parting to granular structure in some pedons. It is slightly hard or hard.

The B2t horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 6 through 8 dry, 4 through 6 moist and chroma of 3 through 5. The lamellae in this horizon are generally redder in hue or brighter in chroma that the matrix. The composite texture of the B2t horizon is usually heavy coarse sandy loam or light coarse sandy clay loam, with the lamellae being principally coarse sandy clay loam or gritty clay loam. The lamellae range in clay from 18 to 30 percent. These horizons typically have hard-setting properties when dry and have a low volume change wetting and drying.]

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Pineguest and Sanford series. Pineguest soils have pH of 6.0 to 7.3 and have base saturation of more than 60 percent. Sanford soil have a lithic contact at depth of less than 40 inches.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Tex soils are on moderately to steeply sloping glacial moraines and till plains. Slope gradient ranges from 1 to 50 or more percent. The soils formed in moderately coarse, medium acid glacial till or outwash derived principally from granite. At the type location the average annual precipitation is 20 inches. The average annual temperature is 32 degrees F., and the average summer temperature is 48 degrees F.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Dinnen, Teoculli, Tomichi, and Tine series, all of which have mollic epipedons.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well to somewhat excessively drained; slow to very slow runoff; rapid permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for forestry, as native pastureland, and for recreational purposes. Native vegetation is mainly lodgepole pine, spruce, fir, kinnikinnik, cinquefoil, juniper, and scattered grasses.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mountainous areas of central Colorado. The series is of moderate extent.
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MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Gunnison County, Colorado, 1975.

REMARKS: This series was previously placed in the fine-loamy family. Because of a letter written by J. Melvin Williams, Head, Soil Correlation Staff, SCS, West Technical Service Center, dated April 12, 1974, Subject: "Family particle size classes for soils with argillic horizons that result from lamellae", it has been placed in the coarse-loamy family. OSED scanned by NSSQA and cleaned up by Colorado. Last revised by state on 1/75.


National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.