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on areas of Penrose soil. The Minnequa soil is mainly on side slopes and gently sloping <br /> areas. Included in this unit is about 10 percent deep Manvel silt loam on the slopes and <br /> swales. Also included is about 5 percent limestone rock outcrop on the tops of ridges <br /> and on breaks. Also included are small areas of moderately deep, clayey Gaynor silty <br /> clay loam in drainageways along the easy base of Skyline Ridge of Canon City. The <br /> Penrose soil is shallow and well drained. It formed in residuum derived dominantly <br /> from limestone. Slope is 2 to 25 percent. Typically, the surface layer is light brownish <br /> gray channery loam about 4 inches think. The substratum is channery loam about 11 <br /> inches thick over limestone at a depth of 15 inches. The soil is moderately alkaline. <br /> Permeability of this Penrose soil is moderate. Available water capacity is very low. <br /> Effective rooting depth is 10 to 20 inches. Runoff is slow to very rapid, and the hazard of <br /> water erosion is slight to very high. The Minnequa soil moderately deep and well <br /> drained. If Formed in residuum derived dominantly from limestone and shale. Slope is <br /> 2 to 15 percent. Typically, the surface layer is light brownish gray silt loam about 2 <br /> inches thick. The subsoil substratum are silt clay loam about 26 inches thick over slightly <br /> hard, fractured limestone at a depth of 28 inches. The soil is moderately alkaline. <br /> Permeability of this Minnequa soil is moderate. Available water capacity is low. <br /> Effective rooting depth is 20 to 40 inches. Runoff is slow to medium, and the hazard of <br /> water erosion is slight to moderate. Most areas of this unit are sed for rangeland. A few <br /> areas are used for irrigated cropland. Cropland is limited mainly to small areas of <br /> Minnequa soil. Hay and pasture are the main irrigated crops. Small grains are also <br /> grown, and small areas are also sed as vineyards and apple orchards. The potential <br /> plant community on the Penrose soil is mainly sideoats grama, blue grama, Scribner <br /> needlegrass, Indian ricegrass, and scattered juniper. The average annual production of <br /> air-dry vegetation is about 600 pounds per acre. If the condition of the range <br /> deteriorates, blue grama, sand dropseed, red threeawn, and undesirable forbs invade or <br /> increase. Range seeding is a suitable practice if the range vegetation is in poor <br /> condition. Some areas of Penrose soil near Rock outcrop have many channery <br /> fragments on the surface and can be difficult to reseed mechanically. The potential <br /> plant community on the Minnequa soil is mainly blue grama, western wheatgrass, and <br /> winterfat. The average annual production of air-dry vegetation is about 800 pounds per <br /> acre. If the condition of the range deteriorates, blue grama, pricklypear, broom <br /> snakeweed, and rod threeawn increase. Penrose soil is generally unsuitable for <br /> production of most crops because of shallow depths to bedrock. The Minnequa soil is <br /> limited by low available water capacity and moderate depths to bedrock. A few areas <br /> where thickness of the soil is greater than about 3 feet are suitable for production of <br /> most crops. The Minnequa soil is suitable for production of grapes and is used <br /> successfully to produce apples. Areas of Penrose soil can also be used for grape <br /> production. Irrigation water can be applied by furrow, corrugations, drip system, <br /> sprinklers, or flooding from contour ditches. Irrigation water needs to be applied at a <br /> rate that ensures optimum production without increasing deep percolation, runoff, and <br />