LOCATION WATAH CA NVEstablished Series
The Watah series consists of very deep, very poorly drained soils that formed in organic material over alluvium. The Watah soils are on flood plains. Slopes range from 0 to 2 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 580 millimeters and the mean annual air temperature is about 6 degrees C.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, acid, frigid Histic Humaquepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Watah peat on a 0 percent slope at an elevation of 1906 meters. When described on 07/16/2002 the soil was moist to 100 cm and saturated below that. Colors are for moist soils unless otherwise noted.
Oi--0 to 8 cm; peat, black (10YR 2/1); about, 85 percent rubbed fibers; nonsticky and nonplastic; common fine and medium and many very fine roots throughout; abrupt smooth boundary. (3 to 13 cm thick)
Oe--8 to 20 cm; mucky peat, black (10YR 2/1); about, 25 percent rubbed fibers; nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine through medium roots throughout; 5 percent rounded gravel; abrupt smooth boundary. (8 to 25 cm thick, the combined O horizon thickness is 20 to 40 cm)
A--20 to 38 cm; gravelly mucky coarse sandy loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2); 5 percent clay; structureless massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine through medium roots throughout; many very fine interstitial pores; 25 percent rounded gravel; strongly acid, pH 5.2 by Chlorophenol red; clear smooth boundary. (13 to 38 cm thick)
C--38 to 73 cm; gravelly loamy coarse sand, brown (10YR 4/3); 2 percent clay; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine through medium roots throughout; many very fine interstitial pores; 30 percent rounded gravel; strongly acid, pH 5.2 by Chlorophenol red; clear smooth boundary. (20 to 50 cm thick)
Cg--73 to 160 cm; gravelly coarse sand, white (10YR 8/1) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine interstitial pores; 30 percent rounded gravel; strongly acid, pH 5.2 by Chlorophenol red;
TYPE LOCATION: El Dorado County, California, In the Truckee Marsh between Pope Beach and the Tahoe Keys, 548 feet south and 749 feet east of the northwest corner of Section 5, Township 12N, Range 18E, 38 degrees, 56 minutes, 7 seconds North latitude and 120 degrees, 1 minutes, 14 seconds West longitude, NAD83 - U.S.G.S Quad: Emerald Bay, California.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: The soil is usually moist year round with the water table fluctuating between the surface and 60 inches. The soils have an aquic moisture regime.
Reaction: strongly to slightly acid
Depth to redoximorphic features: The histic epipedon at the surface indicates this soils high water table.
Control section: 25 to 100 cm
Rock fragments: 0 to 35 percent, with 0 to 35 percent gravel, predominantly 2 to 5 millimeter.
Clay content: averages 0 to 8 percent clay
Mineralogy: mixed
A horizon(s):
Hue: 10YR
Value: 2 or 3 moist
Chroma: 1 through 3 moist
Organic matter: 10 to 20 percent
Texture of the fine earth fraction: Coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, fine sandy loam, silt loam, loam
Rock fragments: 0 to 35 percent gravel
Reaction: strongly to moderately acid
C horizons:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 3 through 6 moist
Chroma: 3 through 5 moist
Organic matter: 0 to 1 percent
Texture of the fine earth fraction: Coarse sand, loamy coarse sand, coarse sandy loam
Rock fragments: 0 to 35 percent gravel
Reaction: strongly to moderately acid
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Twig soils. Twig soils have dense glacial till between 40 and 80 inches and have a cambic horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Watah soils are on flood plains. Slopes range from 0 to 2 percent. These soils formed in organic material over alluvium. Elevation is 1890 to 2869 meters. The climate is subhumid with warm dry summers and cold wet winters. The mean annual precipitation is 580 to 1400 millimeters and the mean annual air temperature is 4 to 8 degrees C. The frost free season is 20 to 60 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Tahoe and Marla soils. Neither the Tahoe nor Marla soils have a histic epipedon. Tahoe soils are slightly higher in the floodplain and Marla soils are in and around the edge of the flood plain with lodgepole pine vegetation.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Very poorly drained, rapid permeability, very high runoff. Frequent flooding for long duration beginning during spring snow melt and the less frequent rain on snow event in the winter, frequent ponding for long duration beginning during spring snow melt.
USE AND VEGETATION: This soil is used for wildlife. Vegetation is sedges.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Watah is of minor extent California and Nevada in MLRA 22A -- Sierra Nevada Mountains
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES ESTABLISHED: El Dorado County, (Tahoe Basin area), California.
REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle Size Control Section for this pedon: 25 to 100 cm (the C1 horizon with portions of the A and C2)
Histic Epipedon: 0 to 20 cm (the Oi and Oe horizons)