LOCATION WAMEGO KS

Established Series
Rev. CEW, BKN
07/2020

WAMEGO SERIES

The Wamego series consists of moderately deep, well drained, soils that formed in residuum from interbedded sandy and silty shale. Wamego soils are on hillslopes on uplands in the Bluestem Hills, MLRA 76. Slopes range from 3 to 20 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 889 millimeters (35 inches) and the mean annual temperature is about 13 degrees C (55 degrees F), at the type location.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Argiudolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Wamego silt loam - on a northeast facing, linear 8 percent slope in native grassland at an elevation of 352 meters (1155 feet). (Colors are for the moist soil unless otherwise stated.) As described on June 1, 1984.

A--0 to 15 centimeters (0 to 6 inches); very dark gray (10YR 3/1) silt loam, dark gray (10YR 4/1) dry; moderate very fine granular structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly plastic and slightly sticky; many fine roots; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary.

AB--15 to 25 centimeters (6 to 10 inches); very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) silty clay loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; moderate fine granular structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly plastic and slightly sticky; many fine roots; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the A horizons is 13 to 30 centimeters (5 to 12 inches).)

Bt1--25 to 43 centimeters (10 to 17 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) silty clay loam, brown (10YR 5/3) dry; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly plastic and slightly sticky; some faces of peds are very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2); few faint clay films on ped faces; 5 percent gravel, mostly sandstone; common fine roots; slightly acid; gradual smooth boundary.

Bt2--43 to 69 centimeters (17 to 27 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) silty clay loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable slightly plastic and slightly plastic; some faces of peds are brown (10YR 4/3); common fine faint clay films on ped faces; 10 percent gravel, mostly sandstone and shale; few fine roots; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizons is 25 to 71 centimeters (10 to 28 inches).)

Cr--69 to 122 centimeters (27 to 48 inches); pale brown and yellowish-brown shale; neutral.

TYPE LOCATION: Pottawatomie County, Kansas; about 16 kilometers (10 miles) east of Westmoreland; about 335 meters (1,100 feet) east and 122 meters (400 feet) south of the northwest corner of sec. 5, T. 8 S., R. 11 E.; Onaga USGS quadrangle; latitude 39 degrees 23 minutes 24.4 seconds N. and longitude 96 degrees 13 minutes 2.7 seconds W., WGS84.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture regime: udic
Soil temperature regime: mesic
Mollic epipedon thickness: 25 to 49 centimeters (10 to 19 inches)
Depth to the argillic horizon: 23 to 40 centimeters (9 to 16 inches)
Depth to paralithic contact: 50 to 100 centimeters (20 to 40 inches).
Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay content: 35 to 42 percent
Sand content: 3 to 26 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 14 percent shale and sandstone gravels. Fine mica flakes are common throughout many pedons.

A horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 2 or 3 moist, 3 to 5 dry
Chroma: 2 or less moist or dry
Texture: silt loam or silty clay loam
Clay content: 24 to 39 percent
Sand content: 3 to 20 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 14 percent
Reaction: moderately acid or slightly acid

AB horizon (or BA horizon):
Hue: 10YR
Value: 2 or 3 moist, 3 to 5 dry
Chroma: 3 or less moist or dry
Texture: silty clay loam, clay loam, or silty clay
Clay content: 27 to 42
Sand content: 3 to 22 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 14 percent
Reaction: moderately acid or slightly acid

Bt horizon:
Hue: 5YR to 2.5Y
Value: 3 to 5 moist, 4 to 6 dry
Chroma: 2 to 4 moist or dry
Texture: silty clay loam, clay loam, or silty clay
Clay content: 35 to 42 percent
Sand content: 3 to 26 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 14 percent
Reaction: slightly acid

Note: some pedons have a BC horizon with color and texture similar to the Bt horizon. Volume of shale and sandstone gravel in the BC ranges from 0 to 14 percent.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Donerail, Loradale, Montello, Peebles, Schapville, and Woolper soils. Donerail, Loradale, Montello, Peebles, and Woolper soils have a paralithic contact at depths greater than 100 centimeters (40 inches). Schapville soils have a discontinuity within the Bt horizon.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Parent material: residuum derived from interbedded sandy and silty shale
Landform: hillslopes on uplands
Slopes: 3 to 20
Elevation: 300 to 505 meters (980 to 1,660 feet)
Mean annual air temperature: 12 to 14 degrees C (54 to 57 degrees F)
Mean annual precipitation: 810 to 1060 millimeters (32 to 42 inches)
Precipitation pattern: Precipitation is usually evenly distributed throughout the year with the exception of November through February being the driest months and May and June being the wettest months. Summer precipitation occurs during intense summer thunderstorms.
Frost-free period: 160 to 200 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Clime, Elmont, Pawnee, and Sogn soils. Clime soil are calcareous to the surface, do not have an argillic horizon, and occur above the Wamego soils on the landscape. The deep Elmont soils have a paralithic contact greater than 100 centimeters (39 inches) and occur on foot slopes below the Wamego soils on the landscape. The shallow Sogn soils occur on breaks above the Wamego soils. The Pawnee soils have a paralithic contact at depths greater than 152 centimeters (60 inches) and are more clayey than the Wamego soils. The Pawnee soils typically occur on ridge tops and upper side slopes above the Wamego soils.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage: well drained
Runoff: medium to rapid
Saturated hydraulic conductivity: moderately low.

USE AND VEGETATION: Mostly used for native rangeland. Dominant grasses are big and little bluestem, indiangrass, and switchgrass. Some of the less sloping areas are cultivated. Wheat and grain sorghum are the principal crops.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northeast Kansas; Land Resource Region H; Central Great Plains Winter Wheat and Range Region; MLRA 76, Bluestem Hills. The series is moderately extensive, about 40,000 acres.

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Salina, Kansas

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Pottawatomie County, Kansas, 1984.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: Particle-size control section: the zone from 25 to 69 centimeters (10 to 27 inches). (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons)
Mollic epipedon: the zone from 0 to 25 centimeters (0 to 10 inches). (A and AB horizons) Argillic horizon: the zone from about 25 to 69 centimeters (10 to 27 inches). (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons)
Paralithic contact: around 69 centimeters (27 inches). (Cr horizon)
Some pedons have a loess cap.

11/2015 BKN Updated intro to current standards. Added in metric units. Added clay content, sand content, and fragments to RIC. Added RIC for AB horizon. Northeast facing, linear, and elevation of 352 meters was added to the typical pedon. Added quadrangle, latitude, longitude, and datum to type location. Changed geographic setting to tabular and added in elevation, precipitation pattern, and FFD. Updated geographically associated soils by adding Clime, Martin, Olmitz and Sogn and deleting Sibleyville. Changed permeability to Ksat. Added LRR and MLRA to distribution and extent. Added particle-size control section and paralithic contact to remarks. Added lab data to additional data.

07/2020 BKN Added reaction class to Cr horizon.

Keys to Soil Taxonomy: Twelfth Edition, 2014

Additional data: Kansas State University Pedology Laboratory data is available for Pedon IDs 95KS087003s, 04KS103016, 04KS103504, and 04KS103505. Kellogg Soil Survey Laboratory data is available for Pedon IDs 88P0072 and 90P0635.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.