LOCATION FONTREEN UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, carbonatic, frigid Typic Calcixerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Fontreen cobbly loam, rangeland. (Colors are for air-dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A--0 to 10 cm; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) cobbly loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, friable, slightly sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine and fine roots; 15 percent cobbles and stones; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 7.9); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 10 cm thick)
Ak1--10 to 18 cm; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) very gravelly loam; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak thick platy structure parting to weak fine granular; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine and fine roots; few fine pores; 45 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; carbonates are disseminated and some accretion carbonates on the bottom of rock fragments; moderately alkaline (pH 7.9); gradual wavy boundary. (8 to 15 cm thick)
Ak2--18 to 38 cm; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) very gravelly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine and common fine roots; few fine pores; 60 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; carbonates are disseminated and segregated on bottom of rock fragments; moderately alkaline (pH 7.9); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 23 cm thick)
Bk1--38 to 53 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) extremely gravelly loam; brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine roots; few very fine pores; 60 percent gravel, violently effervescent; carbonates are disseminated segregated on rock fragments and in soft flakes and veins; moderately alkaline (pH 8.1); gradual wavy boundary. (10 to 15 cm thick)
Bk2--53 to 74 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) extremely gravelly loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; massive; hard, friable, slightly sticky and moderately plastic; few very fine and few fine roots; few fine pores; 60 percent gravel; violently effervescent; carbonates are disseminated, segregated on rock fragments, and in flakes and veins; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear wavy boundary. (20 to 30 cm thick)
Bk3--74 to 112 cm; pinkish gray (7.5YR 7/2) extremely gravelly loam, pinkish gray (7.5YR 6/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; few fine pores; 65 percent gravel; violently effervescent; carbonates are disseminated, and segregated on rock fragments; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); gradual wavy boundary. (30 to 50 cm thick)
Bk4--112 to 147 cm; pink (7.5YR 7/3) extremely gravelly loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine and fine roots; few very fine pores; 70 percent gravel; violently effervescent; carbonates are disseminated, and segregated on the rock fragments; strongly alkaline (pH 8.5); gradual wavy boundary. (0 to 35 cm thick)
C--147 to 168 cm; pink (7.5YR 7/3) extremely gravelly loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine and very fine roots; 85 percent gravel; violently effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6).
TYPE LOCATION: Sanpete County, Utah; about 3 miles east of Sterling, in Funk's Canyon; about 1,600 feet west and 2,800 feet south of the NE corner of sec. 2, T. 19 S., R. 2 E.; USGS Sterling 7.5 minute quadrangle; lat. 39 degrees 11 minutes 25 seconds N. and long. 111 degrees 39 minutes 16 second W., NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Moist in winter and spring and continuously dry in all parts for significant periods in summer and fall. (Xeric soil moisture regime bordering aridic.)
Mean annual soil temperature: 3 to 8 degrees C
Mean summer soil temperature: 15.5 to 18.5 degrees C
Thickness of the mollic epipedon: 18 to 48 cm
Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay content: 18 to 27 percent
Rock fragments: 35 to 75 percent; lithology of fragments is limestone, sandstone, chert and shale.
A horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 40 percent
Reaction: Slightly alkaline to strongly alkaline
Bk horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR
Value: 5 through 8 dry, 4 through 7 moist
Chroma: 2 through 4
Texture: Loam or sandy loam.
Rock fragments: 35 to 70 percent; texture modifers are very gravelly, extremely gravelly or very cobbly.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 40 to 70 percent
Reaction: Moderately alkaline to very strongly alkaline
C horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR through 2.5Y
Value: 6 through 8 dry, 4 through 6 moist
Chroma: 2 through 4
Reaction: Moderately alkaline to very strongly alkaline
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Canyonfork (NV), Cavehill (NV), Cedarcabin (NV), Granzan (NV), Highup T(NV), Lizdale T(ID), Lizzant (UT), Lonjon (UT), and Sylvaniam (NV) series. Canyonfork soils have 27 to 35 percent clay in the particle-size control section. Cavehill, Cedarcabin, Highup, Lonjon, and Sylvaniam soils have bedrock at 50 to 100 cm in depth. Granzan soils have bedrock at 100 to 150 cm in depth. Lizdale soils are somewhat excessively drained, have 10 to 18 percent clay in the particle-size control section and extremely gravelly loamy sand C horizons. Lizzant soils have cambic horizons.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Fontreen soils are on moderately sloping to steep alluvial fans and fan remnants and on steep to very steep hillslopes and mountain slopes at elevations of 1,585 to 2,500 m. Slopes are 2 to 70 percent. They formed in slope alluvium, colluvium and residuum from limestone, sandstone, chert and shale. The climate is dry subhumid and the average annual precipitation ranges from 300 to 400 mm. Mean annual temperature ranges from 2 to 7 degrees C. Freeze-free period is commonly 70 to 110 days, but higher elevations have shorter freeze-free periods.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Amtoft, Atepic, Borvant, Clegg, Deer Creek, Lodar, Lundy, Mower, Sanpete and Wales soils. Amtoft, Atepic, Lodar and Lundy soils have a lithic or paralithic contact within 50 cm. Borvant soils have a petrocalcic horizon within 50 cm. Clegg and Deer Creek soils have argillic horizons. Mower soils have less than 35 percent coarse fragments in the particle-size control section. Sanpete and Wales soils lack mollic epipedons.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderately or moderately rapid permeability; Ksat class is moderately high or high.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used as rangeland. Potential vegetation is juniper, pinion, Mormon-tea, birchleaf mountain mahogany, bluebunch wheatgrass and Indian ricegrass. These soils are correlated to Upland ecological sites in Utah.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Central and western Utah. MLRA 28A, 34A. The series is moderately extensive, with 54,350 acres mapped to date.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Reno, Nevada
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Sanpete Area, Utah, 1971.
REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle-size control section: The zone from 25 to 100 cm.
Mollic epipedon: The zone from 0 to 38 cm. (A, Ak1, Ak2 horizons)
Calcic horizon: The zone from 38 to 145 cm. (Bk1, Bk2, Bk3, Bk4 horizons)
Carbonatic feature: The fine earth fraction averages more than 40 percent calcium carbonate equivalent.
This series was reclassified in 9/94 from an Aridic Calcixerolls to a Typic Calcixerolls to better represent the 12 to 16 inch precipitation and upland range sites.