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Land Capability Classification—Kiowa County,Colorado <br /> Land Capability Classification <br /> The land capability classification of map units in the survey area is shown in this <br /> table. This classification shows, in a general way, the suitability of soils for most <br /> kinds of field crops (United States Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation <br /> Service, 1961). Crops that require special management are excluded. The soils <br /> are grouped according to their limitations for field crops, the risk of damage if <br /> they are used for crops, and the way they respond to management. The criteria <br /> used in grouping the soils do not include major and generally expensive <br /> landforming that would change slope, depth, or other characteristics of the soils, <br /> nor do they include possible but unlikely major reclamation projects. Capability <br /> classification is not a substitute for interpretations designed to show suitability <br /> and limitations of groups of soils for rangeland, for forestland, or for engineering <br /> purposes. <br /> In the capability system, soils are generally grouped at three levels: capability <br /> class, subclass, and unit. <br /> Capability classes, the broadest groups, are designated by the numbers 1 <br /> through 8. The numbers indicate progressively greater limitations and narrower <br /> choices for practical use. The classes are defined as follows: <br /> - Class 1 soils have slight limitations that restrict their use. <br /> - Class 2 soils have moderate limitations that restrict the choice of plants or <br /> that require moderate conservation practices. <br /> - Class 3 soils have severe limitations that restrict the choice of plants or that <br /> require special conservation practices, or both. <br /> - Class 4 soils have very severe limitations that restrict the choice of plants or <br /> that require very careful management, or both. <br /> - Class 5 soils are subject to little or no erosion but have other limitations, <br /> impractical to remove, that restrict their use mainly to pasture, rangeland, <br /> forestland, or wildlife habitat. <br /> - Class 6 soils have severe limitations that make them generally unsuitable for <br /> cultivation and that restrict their use mainly to pasture, rangeland, forestland, <br /> or wildlife habitat. <br /> - Class 7 soils have very severe limitations that make them unsuitable for <br /> cultivation and that restrict their use mainly to grazing, forestland, or wildlife <br /> habitat. <br /> - Class 8 soils and miscellaneous areas have limitations that preclude <br /> commercial plant production and that restrict their use to recreational <br /> purposes, wildlife habitat, watershed, or esthetic purposes. <br /> Capability subclasses are soil groups within one class. They are designated by <br /> adding a small letter, e, w, s, or c, to the class numeral, for example, 2e. The <br /> letter a shows that the main hazard is the risk of erosion unless close-growing <br /> plant cover is maintained; w shows that water in or on the soil interferes with <br /> plant growth or cultivation (in some soils the wetness can be partly corrected by <br /> artificial drainage); s shows that the soil is limited mainly because it is shallow, <br /> droughty, or stony; and c, used in only some parts of the United States, shows <br /> that the chief limitation is climate that is very cold or very dry. <br /> usDA Natural Resources Web Soil Survey 12/26/2019 <br /> Conservation Service National Cooperative Soil Survey Page 1 of 2 <br />