LOCATION WATERBURY OR

Established Series
Rev. ED/RWL/KMS
12/2012

WATERBURY SERIES

The Waterbury series consists of shallow, well drained soils that formed in material weathered mainly from basalt and tuff. Waterbury soils are on plateaus, benches and shoulders of hills. Slopes are 2 to 80 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 356 milimeters and the mean annual temperature is about 8.3 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Clayey-skeletal, smectitic, mesic Lithic Argixerolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Waterbury extremely cobbly silty loam, rangeland; on a 40 percent slope at 1050 meter elevation. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted.)

A1--0 to 8 centimeters ; dark gray (10YR 4/1) extremely cobbly silt loam, black (10YR 2/1), moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; friable, hard, moderately sticky, moderately plastic; very fine roots; very fine irregular pores; 15 percent gravels, 40 percent cobbles, and 10 percent stones; neutral, (pH 6.6); clear smooth boundary.

A2--8 to 23 centimeters; dark gray (10YR 4/1) very cobbly silt loam, black
(10YR 2/1), moist; moderate very fine subangular blocky structure; friable, hard, moderately
sticky, moderately plastic; very fine roots; very fine tubular pores; 35 percent gravels and 10 percent cobbles; neutral, (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary. (The combined thickness of the A horizons is 8 to 23 centimeters thick)

Bt1--23 to 38 centimeters; dark gray (10YR 4/1) very cobbly clay, black (10YR 2/1), moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm, very hard, moderately sticky, moderately plastic; very fine roots; very fine tubular pores; 30 percent gravels and 10 percent cobbles; neutral, (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary.

Bt2--38 to 43 centimeters; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) very cobbly clay, dark brown (10YR 3/3), moist; moderate medium angular blocky structure; very firm, very hard, very sticky, very plastic; very fine roots; very fine tubular pores; 30 percent gravels15 percent cobbles; neutral, (pH 6.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (The combined thickness of the Bt horizons is 10 to 36 centimeters thick)

2R--43 centimeters; Indurated Basalt .

TYPE LOCATION: Morrow County, Oregon; located in the SE , SW , NE of section 28, T. 3 S., R. 28 E.

Longitude: -119.345779
Latitude: 45.276320
Datum: WGS84

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean annual soil temperature : 6.7 to 11.1 degrees C
Soil moisture: dry 80 to 100 consecutive days following the summer solstice
Soil moisture regime: xeric
Soil temperature regime: mesic
Depth to lithic contact: 30 to 50 centimeters
Particle size control section clay content (weighted average): 50 to 60 percent
Particle size control section rock fragment content (weighted average): 35 to 80 percent
Mollic epipedon thickness: 18 to 40 centimeters and includes all or part of the argillic horizon

A horizons
Value - 2 or 3 moist, 3 to 5 dry
Chroma - 1 to 3, moist or dry
Fine-earth textures- loam, silt loam, silty clay loam, or clay
Gravel content - 5 to 20 percent
Cobble content - 10 to 35 percent
Stone content - 10 to 45 percent
Total rock fragment content - 25 to 85 percent

Bt horizons
Hue - 10YR or 7.5YR
Value - 2 to 4moist, 4 or 5 dry
Chroma - 1 to 4, moist or dry
Gravel content - 5 to 40 percent
Cobble content - 10 to 40 percent
Stone content - 0 to 50 percent
Total rock fragment content - 35 to 85 percent

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Camaspatch, Gwinly, Laufer, Lorella, Pioche, and Radec series. Camaspatch soils are dry for 90 to 105 days and have 35 to 50 percent clay in the particle-size control section. Gwinly soils are dry for 60 to 80 consecutive days. Laufer soils have 35 to 40 percent clay in the particle-size control section. Pioche soils have aridic soil moisture regimes. Lorella soils have 35 to 50 percent clay in the particle-size control section, and dry for 90 to 120 days. Radec soils have 35 to 50 percent clay in the particle-size control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Waterbury soils are on plateaus, benches and shoulders of hills at elevations of 550 to 1400 meters. Slopes range from 2 to 80 percent. At the higher elevations these soils are only on south-facing slopes. The soils formed in mixed colluvium weathered mainly from basic igneous (basalt) or tuff overlying basalt bedrock. The climate is characterized by cool wet winters and hot dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 304 to 406 millimeters. The mean annual temperature is 7.2 to 10 degrees C. The mean July temperature is about 19.4 degrees C., and the mean January temperature is about -1.1 degrees C. The frost-free period is 80 to 140 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Fopiano, Gwin, Prill, Rockly and Ukiah soils. Fopiano soils are on adjacent north-facing slopes and have mean annual soil temperatures lower than 8.3 degrees C. Gwin and Rockly soils have less than 35 percent clay in their control sections and are on adjacent hill summits and south-facing slopes. Ukiah and Prill soils are deeper than 50 centimeters to bedrock and have less than 35 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section and are on broad plateaus.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; very slow to slow permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: This soil is used mainly for livestock grazing. Native vegetation is mainly bluebunch wheatgrass, Idaho fescue, Sandberg bluegrass, low sage, and antelope bitterbrush.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Plateaus of east-central and northeastern Oregon; MLRA 10. The series is of moderate extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Grant County, Oregon, Central Part, 1975.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon:

Mollic epipedon - from 0 to 43 centimters (A and Bt horizons)
Particle-size control section - from 23 to 43 centimeters (Bt horizons)
Lithologic Discontnuity - bedrock at 43 centimeters (2R contact)

12/2012 - Type location moved from Grant Co, Oregon to Morrow Co, Oregon due to similarity between Gwinly and Waterbury. Only Gwinly was mapped in Grant Co during the initial and update mapping. Waterbury is no longer mapped in Grant Co. As a result, the type location of Waterbury has been moved. It is recommended that Waterbury eventually be made inactive and all Waterbury is correlated to Gwinly.
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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.