LOCATION VILLEDRY COEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Ustic Calciargids
TYPICAL PEDON: Villedry silt loam - grassland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted).
A--0 to 4 inches (0 to 10 cm); grayish brown (10YR 5/2) silt loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; weak fine granular and weak fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine and fine roots; slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 6 inches thick)
BA--4 to 7 inches (10 to 18 cm); brown (10YR 5/3) silt loam, brown (10YR 4/3), crushed, moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; violently effervescent(5 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); 2 percent gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 4 inches thick)
Bt--7 to 15 inches (18 to 38 cm); pale brown (10YR 6/3) silty clay loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to moderate fine and medium subangular blocky; hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; few distinct continuous clay films on faces of peds; violently effervescent(9 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); clear smooth boundary. (6 to 10 inches thick)
Btk--15 to 25 inches (38 to 64 cm); pale brown (10YR 6/3) silty clay loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, sticky and plastic; few very fine and fine roots; few distinct continuous clay films on faces of peds; common medium rounded soft masses of lime throughout; violently effervescent(16 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); 1 percent gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); gradual smooth boundary. (6 to 10 inches thick)
Bk1--25 to 33 inches (64 to 84 cm); pale brown (10YR 6/3) clay loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; common fine rounded soft masses of lime throughout; violently effervescent(15 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); 7 percent gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt wavy boundary. (2 to 8 inches thick)
2Bk2--33 to 38 inches (84 to 97 cm); very pale brown (10YR 8/3) gravelly loam, very pale brown (10YR 7/3) moist; massive; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; violently effervescent(35.0 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); 25 percent gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt irregular boundary. (3 to 6 inches thick)
2R--38 inches; hard Dakota sandstone.
TYPE LOCATION: Las Animas County, Colorado; 1,100 feet east and 2,400 south of the northwest corner of section 4, T. 29 S., R. 60 W.; latitude 37 degrees 33 minutes 2 seconds N., longitude 104 degrees 7 minutes 42 seconds W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: moist intermittently in some part April through August. Aridic moisture regime bordering on ustic.
Mean annual soil temperature: 51 to 54 degrees F. (10.5 to 12 degrees C)
Mean summer soil temperature: 70 to 74 degrees F. (21 to 23 degrees C)
Depth to the lithic contact: 20 to 40 inches (51 to 102 cm).
Depth to the base of the argillic horizon: 15 to 30 inches (38 to 76 cm).
Depth to secondary carbonates: 0 to 8 inches (0 to 20 cm).
Particle size control section: (weighted average)
Clay content: 25 to 35 percent
Sand content: 5 to 25 percent with less than 15 percent fine sand or coarser.
Rock fragments: range from 0 to 15 percent in the A and Bt horizons.
A thin layer of soft shale is present in some pedons above the sandstone bedrock.
The A horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 5 or 6, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 1 through 3
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 0 to 5 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline.
The BA horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 5 or 6, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3
Texture: silt loam, loam
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 1 to 10 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline.
The Bt and Btk horizons:
Hue: 7.5YR through 2.5Y
Value: 5 through 7, 4 through 6 moist
Chroma: 2 through 4
Texture: silty clay loam or clay loam.
Clay content is 27 to 35 percent
Silt content: 45 to 70 percent
Sand content: 5 to 25 percent, with less than 15 percent fine sand or coarser. Calcium carbonate equivalent: 1 to 10 percent in the Bt, 10 to 20 percent in the Btk.
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline.
The 2Bk2 horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 7 or 8, 6 or 7 moist
Chroma: 2 through 4
Texture: loam, silt loam, or gravelly loam.
Rock fragment content: 5 to 35 percent.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 49 percent
Reaction: is moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Almagre(CO),
Monogram(CO),
Snapill(NM), Tetilla(NM), and
Witt(NM) series.
Almagre soils: have a lithic contact at depths of 40 to 60 inches.
Monogram soils: are greater than 60 inches to bedrock.
Snapill soils: have a paralithic contact at depths of 40 to 60 inches.
Witt soils: are greater than 60 inches to bedrock.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: loess, and residuum weathered from sandstone.
Landform: Plains and interfluves.
Slopes: 0 to 12 percent.
Elevation: 4,500 to 6,000 feet (1,372 to 1,829 m).
Mean annual precipitation: 11 to 14 inches (280 to 360 mm)
Wettest period: April through August
Driest period: December through February
The mean annual temperature: 50 to 53 degrees F. (10 to 11.7 degrees C)
Frost-free season: 125 to 155 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Almagre, Travessilla, and Wilid series. Almagre soils are 40 to 60 inches deep to lithic contact and are on backslopes. Travessilla soils are less than 20 inches deep to lithic contact and are on summits. Wilid soils are very deep and are on backslopes.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained. Moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for rangeland. Native vegetation is mainly blue grama, galleta, red threeawn, broom snakeweed, and western wheatgrass.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southeastern Colorado. LRR G, MLRA 69. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Denver, Colorado
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Las Animas County, Colorado 1996.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle size control section: the zone from 7 to 25 inches. (Bt and Btk horizons)
Ochric epipedon: the zone from 0 to 7 inches (0 to 18 cm). (A and BA horizons)
Argillic horizon: the zone from 7 to 25 inches (18 to 64 cm). (Bt and Btk horizons)
Calcic horizon: the zone from 25 to 38 inches (64 to 97 cm). (Bk1 and 2Bk2 horizons)
Lithic contact: 38 inches (97 cm). (R horizon)
The name is coined and shortened to represent a dry version of the Villegreen series which has been reclassified as an Aridic Haplustalf. Villedry replaces the Villegreen series in the ustic-aridic moisture regime of mlra 69.
10/2008 LAN WAW updated the format to include metric and updated horizon nomenclature during final correlation of Las Animas County soil survey.
This updates the activity class from active to superactive as supported by lab data. It also changes the BCk horizon to a Bk1 horizon.
The assignment of the cation-exchange activity class is supported by lab sample(s) numbers S99CO-071-007.
Taxonomic Version: Tenth Edition, 2006
ADDITIONAL DATA: Laboratory site number S99CO071-007.