LOCATION WHIPSTEEN OR
Tentative Series
SCW/KLM/MPR
02/2025
WHIPSTEEN SERIES
Landscape--plateaus
Landform--fan remnants
Slope--2 to 15 percent
Parent Material--colluvium and residuum derived from Rattlesnake Formation fanglomerate with a minor influence of volcanic ash in the surface
Mean annual precipitation--380 mm
Mean annual air temperature--8 degrees C
Depth class--shallow
Drainage class--well drained
Soil moisture regime--xeric
Soil temperature regime--mesic
Soil moisture subclass--typic
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Clayey-skeletal, smectitic, mesic, shallow Typic Argixerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Whipsteen cobbly ashy sandy clay loam, rangeland, on a 7 percent slope at an elevation of 1,090 m (When described on September 16, 2015, the soil was dry throughout.)
A--0 to 10 cm; cobbly ashy sandy clay loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) dry, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate fine granular structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and common very fine roots; few fine and very fine irregular pores; 10 percent gravel and 15 percent cobbles; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); abrupt smooth boundary (5 to 15 cm thick)
2Bt1--10 to 33 cm; gravelly clay, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) dry and moist; moderate medium and coarse prismatic structure; very hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; many prominent clay films on ped faces and pore linings; 30 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.5); clear wavy boundary
2Bt2--33 to 45 cm; very gravelly clay, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) dry and moist; moderate medium angular blocky structure; very hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine tubular pores; many prominent clay films on ped faces; 45 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear wavy boundary
2BC--45 to 49 cm; very gravelly clay, brown (7.5YR 5/3) dry, brown (7.5YR 4/3) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; common distinct clay films on ped faces; 55 percent gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear wavy boundary (0 to 8 cm thick)
2Cd--49 cm; dense fanglomerate bedrock that crushes to extremely gravelly loamy sand, brown (7.5YR 5/3) dry, brown (7.5YR 4/3) moist; massive; extremely hard, slightly rigid, nonsticky and nonplastic; 65 percent rounded gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6).
TYPE LOCATION: Grant County, Oregon, about 4.4 km south of the town of Mt. Vernon; about 9 m east and 80 m south of the NW corner of section 10, T. 14 S., R. 30 E.
Latitude-- 44.37693
Longitude-- -119.11377
Datum--WGS84 (coordinates determined with a GPS)
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean annual soil temperature--8 to 11 degrees C
Soil moisture--usually moist, but are dry 70 to 90 consecutive days during the four months following the summer solstice
Depth to densic bedrock--25 to 50 cm
Mollic epipedon--25 to 50 cm thick
Argillic horizon--18 to 45 cm thick
Particle size control section:
Clay content--45 to 55 percent
Total rock fragment content--10 to 30 percent
Rock fragment type--mixed lithologies derived from the Rattlesnake fanglomerate
Volcanic ash surface:
5 to 15 cm thick
Volcanic glass content--20 to 40 percent
Ammonium oxalate Al plus Fe--0.4 to 1.0 percent
A horizon
Value--4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma--2 or 3 dry or moist
Fine earth texture--loam, sandy clay loam
Clay content--15 to 25 percent
Sand content--30 to 60 percent
Organic matter--2 to 5 percent
Total rock fragments--5 to 30 percent
Gravel--0 to 15 percent
Cobbles--0 to 20 percent
Reaction--slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline
2Bt horizons
Hue-- 5YR through 10YR dry or moist
Value--4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma--2 or 3 dry or moist
Fine earth texture-- clay
Clay content--40 to 55 percent
Sand content--15 to 40 percent
Organic matter--1 to 3 percent
Total rock fragments--30 to 60 percent (gravel)
Structure--angular blocky or prismatic
Reaction--slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline
2BC horizon (when present)
Hue--5YR through 10YR dry or moist
Value--4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma--2 to 4 dry or moist
Fine earth texture--silty clay loam, clay loam, clay
Clay content--35 to 60 percent
Sand content--10 to 40 percent
Organic matter--1 to 2 percent
Total rock fragments--35 to 70 percent (gravel)
Reaction--slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline
2Cd horizon
Hue--5YR through 10YR dry or moist
Value--4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma--2 or 3 dry or moist
Fine earth texture--after crushing; loamy sand
Clay content--0 to 10 percent
Sand content--70 to 90 percent
Organic matter--0 percent
Total rock fragments--60 to 90 percent (gravel)
COMPETING SERIES:
Wylie--25 to 50 cm to paralithic contact, lacks volcanic ash influence in surface
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Elevation--850 to 1220 m
Climate--cool, wet winters and hot, dry summers
Mean annual precipitation--305 to 455 mm
Mean annual air temperature--8 to 10 degrees C
Frost-free period--80 to 120 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
Belshaw--occur on benches and adjacent hillslopes; greater than 150 cm to restrictive feature
Grell--occur on very steep south facing slopes; average less than 35% clay and more than 35% rock fragments in the control section
Hack--occur on footslopes and fans; average between 18 and 35% clay in the PSCS
Oliver--occur on benches and fan remnants and are 25 to 50 cm to ultramafic bedrock
Plaiden--occur on fan remnants and are 50 to 100 cm to densic bedrock
Steadison--occur on fan remnants and are 10 to 25 cm to densic bedrock
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage--well drained
Saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat)--moderately high to high in the ash influenced horizons, moderately low in argillic horizons
USE AND VEGETATION:
Use--livestock grazing, wildlife habitat
Vegetation--bluebunch wheatgrass, Idaho fescue, Sandberg bluegrass
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
East-central Oregon; MLRA 9; small extent
SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES PROPOSED:
Grant County, Oregon 2/2016; The name is coined
REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and features in this pedon are:
Particle size control section--10 to 49 cm
Mollic epipedon--0 to 45 cm
Volcanic ash influence--meets glass and chemical requirements for Vitrandic properties but is not thick enough for Vitrandic subgroup
Argillic horizon--10 to 49 cm
Densic contact--49 cm (compacted, fanglomerate gravels and cobbles)
Xeric moisture regime
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.