LOCATION CHEDSEY COEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic Ustollic Haplocryalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Chedsey loam - grassland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
01--1 to 0 inch; undecomposed organic material principally grass and grass roots.
A1--0 to 6 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/2) loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) moist; moderate fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; 5 percent gravel; neutral (pH 7.2); clear smooth boundary. (4 to 9 inches thick)
A2--6 to 13 inches; light brown (7.5YR 6/3) loam, brown (7.5YR 5/3) moist; weak thick platy structure that parts to fine subangular blocks and then to medium granules; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; 10 percent gravel; mildly alkaline (pH 7.4); gradual wavy boundary. (3 to 12 inches thick)
B2t--13 to 30 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/3) heavy clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/3) moist; moderate medium subangular and angular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, sticky, plastic; peds are extremely hard, very firm; continuous wax-like coatings on faces of peds and wax-like coatings and fillings in root channels and pores; 5 percent gravel; mildly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear wavy boundary. (5 to 35 inches thick)
B3ca--30 to 36 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/3) light clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/3) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly plastic, slightly sticky; peds are very hard, firm; discontinuous wax-like coatings on some faces of peds and in some root channels; 5 percent gravel; visible secondary calcium carbonate occurring as concretions and in thin seams and streaks; calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); gradual wavy boundary. (3 to 10 inches thick)
C--36 to 60 inches; soft reddish brown shales and interbedded loamstones; calcareous.
TYPE LOCATION: Jackson County, Colorado; approximately 500 feet west and 1,225 feet north of SE corner of Sec. 6, T. 11 N., R. 81 W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Mean annual soil temperature is about 40 degrees F and mean summer soil temperature is about 51 degrees F. Base saturation ranges from 60 to 100 percent in all subhorizons of the argillic horizon. Depth to the continuous horizons of visible secondary calcium carbonate accumulation ranges from 12 to 36 inches. Depth to the paralithic contact ranges from 20 to 40 inches. Depth to the top of the argillic horizon ranges from 15 to 40 inches. Rock fragments range from 0 to 35 percent in a major part of the solum and any C horizon above the shale and are mainly gravel. These soils are dry in some part of the moisture control section for some period of nearly every year.
The A1 horizon if present has hue of 10YR through 5YR, value of 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist, and chroma of 1 through 3. It is neutral or mildly alkaline.
The A2 horizon has hue of 10YR through 2.5YR, value of 5 through 8 dry, 4 through 6 moist, and chroma of 1 through 4. It is neutral or mildly alkaline.
The B2t horizon has hue of 5YR through 10R, value of 5 through 7 dry, 4 through 6 moist, and chroma of 2 through 6. It is typically heavy clay loam or light clay but averages 35 to 60 percent clay, 5 to 50 percent
silt, and 15 to 55 percent sand with more than 15 percent fine or coarser sand. This horizon is neutral to moderately alkaline.
The B3ca and Cca horizons have hue of 5YR through 10R. Subhorizons yellower than 5YR are present in some pedons. These horizons are moderately or strongly alkaline and have 3 to 14 percent calcium carbonate equivalent of the fine earth fraction ranges from 3 to 14 percent.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Pagosa and Siesta series. Pagosa soils lack a paralithic contact within a depth of 40 inches and have hue of 7.5YR or yellower. Siesta soils lack an A2 horizon and are noncalcareous throughout.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Chedsey soils are on gently to steeply sloping hills, ridges, and mountain side slopes. Slopes typically range from about 2 to 40 percent. The soil formed in moderately thin medium to moderately fine or fine textured calcareous material weathered residually from calcareous red bed shales and loamstones. At the type location the mean annual precipitation is about 15 inches with peak periods of precipitation in the spring and summer. Mean annual temperature is 36 degrees F and mean summer temperature is 52 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Muggins and Owen Creek soils. Muggins soils lack a paralithic contact within a depth of 40 inches. Owen Creek soils lack horizons of Carbonate accumulation and have hue of 7.5YR or yellower.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium to rapid runoff; slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used principally for grazing land and limited timber production. Native vegetation is mainly sage, needlegrass, fescue, and bluegrass with widely spaced lodgepole pine, aspen, and ponderosa pine.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mountainous areas of Colorado. This series is of moderate extent.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Lakewood, Colorado
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Jackson County, Colorado, 1973.
REMARKS: Last updated by the state 10/73.