LOCATION SATURDAY IDEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, frigid Vitrandic Argixerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Saturday stony loam -- on a northeast-facing slope of 17 percent, in native rangeland under mountain- mahogany at 6,250 feet elevation. The surface has about 2 percent stone cover. (When described on August 20, 1980, the soil was dry to 24 inches and slightly moist below. Colors are for air dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
Oi--1 to 0 inches; undecomposed leaves and twigs. (0 to 2 inches thick)
A1--0 to 2 inches; very dark brown (10YR 2/2) stony loam, black (10YR 2/1) moist; moderate fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and fine roots; many very fine and fine vesicular pores; 10 percent gravel, 5 percent cobbles, 5 percent stones; slightly acid (pH 6.4); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 7 inches thick)
A2--2 to 9 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) gravelly loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and fine, few medium and coarse roots; few very fine and fine tubular and irregular pores; 15 percent gravel, 5 percent cobbles; slightly acid (pH 6.3); abrupt smooth boundary. (4 to 18 inches thick)
Bt--9 to 24 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very gravelly loam, dark brown (10YR 4/3) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine, fine and medium roots; common very fine and fine, and few medium tubular pores; many faint clay films on faces of peds, in pores, and on rock fragments; 35 percent gravel, 15 percent cobbles; slightly acid (pH 6.3); clear wavy boundary. (6 to 24 inches thick)
C--24 to 56 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/3) extremely cobbly sandy loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine, and few medium roots; 50 percent gravel, 20 percent cobbles, 15 percent stones; slightly acid (pH 6.4); gradual irregular boundary. (4 to 36 inches thick)
R--56 inches; highly weathered welded rhyolitic tuff.
TYPE LOCATION: Owyhee County, Idaho; about 27 miles east of Cliffs; 100 feet north and 1,250 feet west of the southeast corner of section 33, T. 8 S., R. 1 W.
RANGE OF CHARACTERISTICS:
Mollic epipedon thickness - 7 to 20 inches
Depth to base of argillic - 20 to 36 inches
Depth to bedrock - 40 to 60 inches
Volcanic glass content (very fine sand fraction) - 5 to 30 percent Base saturation in some part above 30 inches - 50 to 75 percent Reaction (pH) - moderately or slightly acid
Average annual soil temperature - 41 to 45 degrees F.
Average summer soil temperature - 61 to 65 degrees F.
A horizon
Hue - 10YR or 7.5YR
Value - 2 to 4 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma - 1 or 2 dry or moist
Rock fragments - 10 to 35 percent
Acid oxalate extractable Al plus 1/2 Fe - 0.40 to 0.60
Bt horizon
Hue - 10YR or 7.5YR
Value - 5 or 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma - 3 or 4 dry or moist
Textures - GRV-CL or GRV-L
Clay content - 22 to 35 percent
Rock fragments - 35 to 60 percent
C horizon
Hue - 10YR to 5YR
Value - 4 to 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma - 2 to 6 dry or moist
Textures - CBX-L, CBX-SL or GRV-L
Clay content - 12 to 25 percent
Rock fragments - 50 to 90 percent
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Larabee (T), Millerflat, Roundbarn (T), Stemilt, and Wilt series. Larabee and Wilt soils are moderately deep. Millerflat soils are very deep and have a 2Bt horizon below a cambic horizon. Roundbarn soils have a mollic epipedon 30 to 50 inches thick and a depth to the base of the argillic horizon of 40 to 60 inches. Stemilt soils have average annual soil temperature of 45 to 47 degrees F. and the base of the argillic is 40 to 60 inches.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Saturday soils are on gently to strongly sloping ridges and sideslopes of mountains and foothills at elevations of 5,700 to 6,800 feet. Slopes range from 5 to 25 percent. The soils formed in residuum and colluvium from vitric and welded rhyolitic tuffs. The climate is cool and moist in the winter and warm and dry in summer. Average annual precipitation ranges from 16 to 20 inches, and average annual temperature is 39 to 43 degrees F. The frost-free period is 60 to 80 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Cleavage, Monasterio and Mulshoe soils. Cleavage soils are less than 20 inches deep to bedrock and on more exposed landscape positions. Monasterio and Mulshoe soils are 20 to 40 inches deep and on lower sideslopes.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; slow to medium runoff; moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Saturday soils are used mainly for grazeable woodland and wildlife habitat. The dominant natural vegetation is curlleaf mountain-mahogany, mountain snowberry, Idaho fescue, and mountain brome.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southwestern Idaho. This series is moderately extensive.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Reno, Nevada
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Owyhee County Area, Idaho, 1992.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and other features recognized in this pedon:
Mollic epipedon - zone 0 to 9 inches (A1 and A2 horizons)
Argillic horizon and particle-size control section - zone 9 to 24 inches (Bt horizon)
Vitrandic properties - 28 percent volcanic glass & acid-oxalate-extractable Al+1/2Fe = .58 (mixed A1 & A2 horizons)
The superactive cation exchange activity class was added in 03/2003 to the taxonomic classification by the National Soil Survey Center on request of the Reno MLRA office, without review of the soil series property data. The remainder of this document has not been updated.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Reference sample - NSSL pedon no. 90P-913.
The superactive cation exchange activity class was added in 03/2003 to the taxonomic classification by the National Soil Survey Center on request of the Reno MLRA office, without review of the soil series property data. The remainder of this document has not been updated.