LOCATION SMACKOUT WAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, frigid Andic Haploxerepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Smackout ashy loam, woodland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
0a & 0e--0 to 1 inch; decomposed mat of needles, leaves, twigs, bark, and cones; abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)
A--1 to 8 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) ashy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, friable, slightly sticky, nonplastic and weakly smeary; many fine and medium, and few coarse roots; many fine pores; 3 percent pebbles; neutral (pH 7.0); clear wavy boundary. (4 to 8 inches thick)
Bw1--8 to 13 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) ashy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, friable, slightly sticky, nonplastic and weakly smeary; many fine and medium, and few coarse roots; many fine pores; 8 percent pebbles; neutral (pH 6.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (4 to 10 inches thick)
2Bw2--13 to 26 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) gravelly loam, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine and medium, and few coarse roots; common fine pores; 15 percent pebbles; neutral (pH 7.0); clear wavy boundary. (8 to 15 inches thick)
2Bw3--26 to 35 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) gravelly silty clay loam, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common fine and medium, and few coarse roots; common fine pores; 20 percent pebbles; neutral (pH 7.2); clear wavy boundary. (8 to 12 inches thick)
2Bw4--35 to 49 inches; gray (5Y 5/1) gravelly sandy clay loam, very dark gray (5Y 3/1) moist; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common fine and medium roots; common fine pores; 25 percent pebbles; neutral (pH 7.2); clear wavy boundary. (8 to 15 inches thick)
2C--49 to 60 inches; gray (5Y 5/1) gravelly loam, very dark gray (5Y 3/1) moist; massive; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few fine, medium and coarse roots; few fine pores; 30 percent pebbles; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4).
TYPE LOCATION: Stevens County, Washington; about 1 mile southwest of Cedar Lake; 1,500 feet north and 1,000 feet east of the SW corner of section 34, T.40N., R.41E., WM.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The soil is usually moist in all horizons during part of the year but is dry in all parts between 4 and 12 inches for 45 to 60 consecutive days following the summer solstice. The mantle of volcanic ash and loess is 7 to 13 inches thick. The mean annual soil temperature is about 44 to 47 degrees F. The control section averages 20 to 30 percent clay and 10 to 35 percent rock fragments. The soil is neutral or slightly alkaline. A thin E horizon is at the surface of some pedons.
The Bw horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 5 to 7 dry, 3 or 4 moist, and chroma of 3 or 4. The pebble content is 1 to 10 percent.
The 2Bw and 2C horizons have hue of 10YR, 2.5Y, or 5Y, value of 5 through 7 dry, 3 or 4 moist, and chroma of 1 or 2. They are loam, sandy clay loam, clay loam, or silty clay loam. The gravel content ranges from 15 to 30 percent and the cobbles from 0 to 5 percent.
COMPETING SERIES: This is the Ahren series. Ahren soils are calcareous below a depth of 10 to 13 inches.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Smackout soils are on glaciated uplands at elevations of 2,000 to 3,500 feet. Slopes are 0 to 65 percent. The soils formed in glacial till from dark colored shaly rock and limestone with a mantle of volcanic ash and loess. The climate is characterized by warm, dry summers and cool, moist winters. The mean annual precipitation is 22 to 32 inches. The average January temperature is 22 degrees F.; the average July temperature is 65 degrees F.; and the mean annual temperature is 43 to 45 degrees F. The frost free season is 90 to 110 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Aits, Belzar, Huckleberry, Leadpoint, Waits, and the competing Ahren soils. Aits and Waits soils are coarse, loamy. Belzar, Huckleberry, and Leadpoint soils are 20 to 40 inches to bedrock.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; slow to very rapid runoff; moderately slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used mainly for woodland, grazed woodland and some areas are used for dryland
cropland. Native vegetation is Douglas fir, western larch, grand fir, lodgepole pine, western red cedar, western hemlock, paper birch, quaking aspen, Oregon grape, redstem ceanothus, willow, Rocky mountain maple, strawberry, thimbleberry, kinnikinnick, wildrose, brachenfern, spirea, pipsissewa, longtube twinflower, and pinegrass.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northeastern Washington. The series is of small extent.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Stevens County, Washington, 1978.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are an ochric epipedon from the mineral surface to 8 inches, a cambic horizon from 8 to 46 inches, and a volcanic ash mantle from the mineral surface to 13 inches with an estimated moist bulk density of less than 1.0 g/cc, volcanic glass content of 30 to 60 percent, acid-oxalate extractable aluminum plus one-half of the acid-oxalate extractable iron of 1.0 to 2.0 percent, and 15-bar water retention of less than 12 percent for air dried samples.