LOCATION VABEM WY COTentative Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, shallow Ustic Argicryolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Vabem loam - grassland (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted)
A--0 to 4 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; strong fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly plastic, slightly sticky; 10 percent sandstone channery most of which is on the surface; noncalcareous; neutral, pH 6.8 (bromthymol blue); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 6 inches thick)
Bt1--4 to 8 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate subangular blocky structure that parts to fine granular; slightly hard, very friable, slightly plastic, slightly sticky; few thin glossy patches on ped faces and discontinuous glossy coatings on the inside of root channels; noncalcareous; neutral, pH 6.8 (bromthymol blue); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 4 inches thick)
Bt2--8 to 16 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; weak medium prismatic structure that parts to moderate medium subangular blocky; slightly hard, very friable, slightly plastic, slightly sticky; thin wax-like patches on ped faces and wax-like coatings on the inside of pores; wax-like rims around the entrance to some soil pores; noncalcareous; neutral, pH 6.8 (bromthymol blue): clear wavy boundary. (4 to 18 inches thick)
Cr--16 inches; interbedded noncalcareous sandstone and shale.
TYPE LOCATION: Carbon County, Wyoming. SW1/4, NW1/4, Sec. 34, T17N, R88W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: The soil moisture control section is affected by peak periods of precipitation in the spring and early summer; Udic moisture regime bordering on Ustic.
Mean annual soil temperature: about 41 degrees F
Mean summer soil temperature: about 56 degrees F
Depth to paralithic contact: 6 to 20 inches to interbedded sandstone and shale
Depth to argillic horizon: 2 to 6 inches
Thickness of the mollic epipedon: 6 to 10 inches
Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay content: 18 to 35 percent
Sand content: 10 to 70 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent gravel and cobbles
A horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR to 5Y
Value: 4 to 5 dry, 2 to 3 moist
ESP: 0 to 15 percent
Chroma: 1 to 3 dry or moist
Reaction: slightly acid to slightly alkaline
Bt2 horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR to 5Y
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 3 to 6 moist
Chroma: 1 to 6 dry or moist
Texture: loam or clay loam
Clay content: 18 to 35 percent
ESP: 0 to 15 percent
Reaction: neutral to slightly alkaline
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competitors in this family. Similar and related series include the Inchauspie and Kimmons series. The Inchauspie series differs in having bedrock between 20 and 40 inches. The Kimmons series differs in having bedrock between 20 and 40 inches, in being calcareous in the lower solum and C horizons, and in having continuous horizons of secondary carbonate accumulation.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: loamy slope alluvium and residuum derived from sedimentary rocks
Landform: sloping to steep upland hills and ridges
Slopes: 6 to 40 percent
Elevation: 7,800 to 8,600 feet
Mean annual temperature: about 38 degrees F
Mean annual precipitation: about 18 inches at the type location with peak periods of precipitation occurring in the spring and early summer months
Frost-free period: ? to ? days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These include the Inchauspie and Kimmons series. The Inchauspie series differs in having bedrock between 20 and 40 inches. The Kimmons series differs in being calcareous in the lower solum and in having bedrock between 20 and 40 inches.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Runoff is medium to rapid. Permeability is moderate.
USE AND VEGETATION: They are used principally as native pastureland. Native vegetation includes big sage, bluebunch wheatgrass, goldenweed, thickspike wheatgrass.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Present known distribution limited to southern and western Wyoming. Series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES PROPOSED: Sage Creek area, Carbon County, Wyoming, 1972. Series name is a coined name.
REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle-size control section: The zone from 8 to 16 inches. (Bt2 horizon)
Mollic epipedon: The zone from 0 to 8 inches. (A and Bt1 horizons)
Argillic horizon: The zone from 8 to 16 inches. (Bt2 horizon)
Paralithic contact: The contact with interbedded sandstone and shale at 16 inches. (Cr layer)
A paper revision and update of the series was made by MO6 August 2000. The classification was changed from Argic Cryoborolls to Ustic Argicryolls. Format and horizonation designations were updated. It is assumed that the Bt1 does not qualify as an argillic horizon because it does not have the necessary clay increase. The series has not been updated by the state since 1972.
The assignment of the cation-exchange activity class is inferred from lab data from similar soils in the surrounding area.
Taxonomic Version: Second Edition of Soil Taxonomy 1999.
ADDITIONAL DATA: