LOCATION ASHER OKEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, superactive, thermic Fluventic Haplustolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Asher silty clay loam--cultivated. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 10 inches; dark gray (10YR 4/1) silty clay loam, black (10YR 2/1) moist; weak fine granular structure; hard, firm; many roots, many pores; slightly alkaline; abrupt smooth boundary. (7 to 20 inches thick)
Bw--10 to 21 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/3) silty clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/3) moist; weak fine blocky structure; very hard, firm; secondary carbonates below 14 inches; dark gray (10YR 4/1) coatings on faces of some peds; calcareous, moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (10 to 24 inches thick)
2C--21 to 65 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) silt loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable; common thin strata of brown very fine sandy loam, fine sandy loam and silty clay loam; calcareous; moderately alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma; about 1 mile north of McLoud, Oklahoma; about 1,200 feet north and 50 feet east of the southwest corner of sec. 3, T. 11 N., R. 2 E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness ranges from 20 to 38 inches. Depth to secondary carbonates ranges from 11 to 45 inches and depth to coarse-silty texture ranges from 20 to 38 inches. Some pedons have buried soils below a depth of 50 inches.
The A horizon has hue of 5YR to 10YR, value of 3 to 5, and chroma of 1 to 3. Texture is silty loam or silty clay loam and clay content ranges from 18 to 40 percent. Reaction ranges from slightly acid to moderately alkaline.
The Bw horizon has hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 2 to 6. Texture is silty clay loam and clay content ranges from 27 to 40 percent. The average clay content of the 10- to 40-inch control section is less than 35 percent. Reaction ranges from neutral to moderately alkaline.
The 2C horizon has hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 7, and chroma of 2 to 8. Texture is stratified silt loam, silty clay loam, loam, very fine sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or loamy very fine sand. The strata range from 1/8 inch to 6 inches thick but are mostly less than 3 inches thick. The weighted average clay content ranges from 5 to 18 percent. Reaction ranges from neutral to moderately alkaline in the upper part and moderately alkaline and calcareous in the lower part.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Ashport and Lamkin series in the same family. Soils in similar families are Dale, Elandco, Keokuk, Lugert, Nashville, Pocasset, Port, Pursley, and Spur series. Ashport and Lamkin soils lack coarse-silty textures in the lower part of the control section. In addition, Lamkin soils lack Bw horizons and hue of 5YR in the control section. Dale, Port, and Elandco soils have a mollic epipedon more than 20 inches thick. Keokuk and Lugert soils have a coarse-silty control section. Nashville soils have sandstone bedrock within 20 to 40 inches of the soils surface. Pocasset soils have a coarse-loamy control section. Pursley and Spur soils have a fine-loamy control section.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Asher soils are on nearly level to slightly convex high flood plains of the larger streams in the Central Rolling Red Prairies. Slopes are 0 to 1 percent. They formed in calcareous loamy alluvium. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 28 to 38 inches. Mean annual temperature ranges from 57 to 63 degrees F. Thornthwaite annual P-E indices ranges from 44 to 64.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the similar Keokuk series and Lela and Miller series. Keokuk soils occur on the same flood plains but are nearer the stream channel. Lela and Miller soils have more than 35 percent clay in the control section. Lela and Miller soils occur on the same flood plain, but are farther from the stream channel on slightly concave areas.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well drained; low runoff; slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used mainly for alfalfa, grain sorghum, soybeans, tame pasture, and small grain. Native vegetation is tall grasses with scattered bottomland hardwood trees.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Central Rolling Red Prairies (MLRA 80A) of Oklahoma. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Temple, Texas
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma; 1974.
REMARKS: Asher soils were formerly included in the Dale series.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - the zone from the soil surface to a depth of 10 inches (the Ap horizon).
Cambic horizon - the zone from 10 inches to a depth of 21 inches (the Bw horizon).
Moisture regime - Udic-Ustic.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Oklahoma State University organic matter data from the series location dated 6-20-73.