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PHILLIPS COiTNTY, COLORADO
<br />soil, generally on knabsi or in sags where the soil material
<br />has been reworked considerably and a thin mantle of loess
<br />deposited.
<br />The soils in this complex take in water well and hao'e
<br />moderate to high available water holding capacity, Chisel-
<br />ing can be used to break up plowpans that form if the
<br />soils are tilled when wet. In a few spots, flat fragments of
<br />limestone as much as 3 to 12 inches m diameter cover the
<br />surface, gg
<br />T ly all of the acreagelBS oultivated.iIn d yfarmed fields
<br />winter small grains, sorghums, and similar crofts grow
<br />well. Erosion can be controlled if stubble-mulch trllage is
<br />used and these soils are summer fallotved after crops are
<br />harvested. In some fields ewer§ency tillage is needed for
<br />rednoing soil blowing, In addition to small grains and
<br />sorghums, alfalfia, corn, and sugar beets are suited in
<br />trri~rated areas. In these areas drop residue and manure
<br />should be worked into the soil. Irrigated crops respond if
<br />fertilizer is applied.
<br />On rangeland blue grams, western wheatgrass, little
<br />bluestem, and buffalograss grow well. These native grasses
<br />can be reseeded if the soil is moist and well covered with
<br />litter. Proper range use can be obtained by locating fences,
<br />tt :tier, and salt so that animals graze the entire area. Capa-
<br />bility units IIIs-2 (dryland) and IIe-2 (irrigated);
<br />Loamy Plains range site; windbreak suitability group 1.
<br />Wages-Campus-Weld ]oams, 3 to 5 percent slopes
<br />(WeC) occur mostly in the western part of the county. They
<br />ocrnpy okl, high ]and surfaces that have been covered with
<br />n mdblown sift. 'lhesa areas generally occupy convex
<br />ridges that trend southeastwarcl.Soine areas of tiVages and
<br />C:unpns soils are on side slopes adjacent 20 nearly level
<br />are;ts of Datces loam, but the Weld soil does not occur
<br />in these areas.
<br />1Vages soil makes up about bO percent of the com~tlex;
<br />Camrrits soil, 2f, percent; and Weld soil, Ib percent. I` ages
<br />and Campus soils are on the slopes, and the Weld soil is on
<br />the narrow, convex ridgetops. These soils are so closely
<br />associated that it is not practical to map them separately.
<br />Etch kind of soil has a profile similar to the one described t
<br />far its series.
<br />Included in mapping were small areas of Platner soils
<br />that occupy the toe slopes of the ridges Also included were
<br />a law small spots of Canyon soils near spots where lime-
<br />stone crops out, The limestone is a hazard to farm ntachin-
<br />erp.Also occurring were a fete small areas having slopes of
<br />3 to 0 percent.
<br />These soils take in water moderately well. Their avail- s
<br />able water holding capacity is moderate to high Because ii
<br />slopes are gentle, runoff is considerable dtu•iug peaty c
<br />rates, which causes small rills to form, plowpans tend to n
<br />form in the soils if they are tilled when wet.
<br />Sails in this complex are suitable for limited cnltication
<br />or as rangeland, 1Tearly all the acreage is cultivated. A
<br />suitable practice in dryfarmed Aekls is stnbblo-mulch till- T
<br />age for controlling erosion and maintaining tilth and far- at
<br />tility. Tilth and fertility are also maintained by working sa
<br />crop residue into the soil, emergency tillage, and construct-
<br />in~ terraces on the longer slopes. These practices also con- to
<br />serve maistnre. In the irrigated areas, crops respond to as
<br />applications of fertilizer.
<br />On rangeland grasses grow well if fences, water, and salt de
<br />are properly placed so that livestock graze the entire range. soi
<br />23
<br />Seedlings emerge quickly if the range is reseeded ashen the
<br />should beidefercred unt~otl e yotng plants•aTre1e~e]gtestabb
<br />lisped. Capability units IVe-1 (dryland) and IIIe-~ (ir-
<br />rigated} ;Loamy Plains range site; windbreak suitability
<br />group 1.
<br />Wages-Eckley.Dix complex, 5 to 25 percent slopes
<br />(WeE) occupies areas along intermittent drainageways,
<br />sot ittermingled cthat it t is not practical to emap them
<br />separately.
<br />Included with these soils in mapping were nearly let-e1
<br />to moderately sloping soils on stream terraces and chan-
<br />nel bottoms. The channel bottoms are shown on the soil
<br />map by a symbol for drainage. Also included were small
<br />areas where the soil is shallow over gravel and calcareous
<br />throughout.
<br />About 00 percent of this complex is jVages soils, 13 per-
<br />cent is Eckley soils, and 12 percent is Dix soils. Each kind
<br />of soil has the profile described as typical for its series. The
<br />rest of the complex consists of areas of Platner and :~sca-
<br />lon soils. In hardland or sandy land areas, the Ascalon
<br />soils occur on the south banks of the streams and Plahter
<br />soils are at the upper edges of side slopes,
<br />These soils tako water at a moderate to rapid rate. Where
<br />they are shallow, their capacity to hold water is limited.
<br />If rains are hasty, nmoff is considorabie~and causes rill
<br />erosion. Also, extra rvater froth runort $•e,luently cancen-
<br />trates and floods the Dix soils. Erosion control clams could
<br />be built to control this water.
<br />The complex is not suitable far cultivation, mainly be-
<br />cause it is erodible, shallow, and sloping to steep. The
<br />areas should be seeded with native grasses. Tn the more
<br />accessible areas, overgrazing is prevented by placing water,
<br />fences, and salt so that t-he livestock graze the entire range.
<br />Although reseeding may be dit8cult in some eroded or over-
<br />grazed areas, seeds germinate quickly if the soil is moist
<br />ullt 1 tl eydare 1tve11eestabIislted,aiCap, b lityn~u~it ~%Ice3
<br />(dryland) ;Wages soils are in Loamy Plains rauge site and
<br />Btediks rnngetsitetaln lgvmdb e~ak suitability grout 3; ~aiel
<br />Dix soils are in Gravel Breaks range site and windbreak
<br />suitability group 2,
<br />Weld Series
<br />The Weld series consists of deep, well-drained, loamy
<br />oils that are nearly level to gently sloping. These soils are
<br />i the western and extreme northeastern parts of the
<br />ounty (fig. 9). They formed in loamv eolian, or loessal,
<br />aatertals. In a typical profile t-he surface layer is abort
<br />inches thick, It is gra}~tsh-brown loam in the upper part
<br />nd dark grayish-brown 1 oam in the lower part.
<br />The subsoil is about 10 inches thick and noncalcareous.
<br />he upper part is very hard, dark grnyish-brown clay,
<br />nl the lower part is hard, dark grayish-brown very fine
<br />ndy loam.
<br />The underlying material is very pale brown loamy ma-
<br />riai that contains many fragments of limestone as mach
<br />1 inch in diameter,
<br />Because the surface layer of the Weld soils is a thin
<br />posit of loam overlying a very slowly permeable snb-
<br />I, runoff is rapid on moderately sloping areas. Hard-
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