LOCATION REN KSTentative Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, mixed, active, thermic Udic Argiustolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Ren clay loam-cultivated. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 4 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/3) clay loam, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) moist; weak fine granular structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; slightly acid; abrupt smooth boundary.
A--4 to 8 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/3) clay loam, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/2) moist; weak medium granular structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary. (combined thickness of the A horizon is 6 to 16 inches.)
BA--8 to 11 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/3) silty clay, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, very sticky and very plastics; few very fine roots; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (3 to 9 inches thick.)
Bt--11 to 22 inches; reddish brown (2.5YR 4/4) silty clay, dark reddish brown (2.5YR 3/4) moist; weak medium blocky structure; very hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine roots; few faint discontinuous clay films on ped faces; mildly alkaline; gradual smooth boundary. (6 to 13 inches thick.)
BC--22 to 27 inches; reddish brown (2.5YR 5/4) silty clay, reddish brown (2.5YR 4/4) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, very firm, sticky and plastic; mildly alkaline; gradual smooth boundary. (5 to 9 inches thick.)
Cr--27 inches; shale.
TYPE LOCATION: Reno County, Kansas; about 3 miles west and 7 miles south of Haven; 2,600 feet south and 600 feet west of the northeast corner of sec. 11, T. 26 S., R. 5 W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to shale ranges from 20 to 40 inches. The mollic epipedon ranges from 7 to 20 inches thick.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR to 5YR, value of 4 or 5 and 2 or 3 moist, and chroma of 2 or 3. It is clay loam. It is slightly acid or neutral.
The Bt horizon has hue of 7.5YR to 2.5YR, value of 4 or 5 and 3 or 4 moist and chroma of 2 to 4. It is silty clay or clay averaging 40 to 50 percent clay. It ranges from neutral to moderately alkaline.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Anocon, Frankirk, Lawton, and Scullin series. Anocon, Frankirk, and Lawton soils are deep. Anocon soils have less clay in the control section and are mottled throughout. Frankirk soils have free carbonates in the lower part of the Bt horizon and are drier in the soil moisture control section during May and June. Lawton soils have less than 40 percent clay in the control section. Scullin soils have a lithic contact and contain 5 to 50 percent by volume of cherty or dolomitic limestone in the Bt horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Ren soils are on nearly level to gently sloping broad, smooth convex ridges and side slopes of uplands in the Central Rolling Red Prairies. Slopes are 0 to 3 percent. Average annual precipitation is about 26 to 35 inches, Thornthwaite's P-E Index is about 40 to 50, and the mean annual temperature ranges from 57 to 62 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Masham soils. Masham soils are shallow, and are on lower side slopes or convex knolls and ridges.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Runoff is slow or medium. Permeability is very slow.
USE AND VEGETATION: Nearly all areas are cultivated. Principal crops are wheat and grain sorghum. Native vegetation was tall and mid grasses.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: South central Kansas. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Temple, Texas
SERIES PROPOSED: Reno County, Kansas, 1989. The name is coined from the Renfrow series.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: mollic epipedon - the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of about 11 inches (Ap, A and BA horizons); and argillic horizon - the zone from approximately 11 to 22 inches (Bt horizon). These soils were formerly mapped as Renfrow soils. They differ from Renfrow soils in that they are moderately deep. Alternate names are Darlow and Solvay, place names in Reno County.