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• SOIL SURYEY <br />filter the leachate. Sewage lagoons require sealing. <br />Lawns, shrubs, and trees grow well Capability subclass <br />ILs irrigated. <br />2-Altvan loam, 1 to 3 percent elopes. This is a deep, <br />weII drained soil on terraces at elevations of 4,600 to 4,900 <br />feet It formed in old alluvium deposited by the major <br />rivers. Included in mapping are small areas of soils that <br />show evidence of poor drainage. Also included are small, <br />long and narrow areas of sand and gravel deposits <br />Typically the surface layer of this Altvan soil is grayish <br />brown loam about 10 inches thick The subsoil is brown <br />and light yellowish brown clay loam and sandy clay loam <br />about 14 inches thick. The substratum is calcareous loamy <br />sand about b inches thick over gravelly sand- <br />Permeability and available water capacity are <br />moderate. The effective rooting depth is 20 to 40 inches <br />Surface runoff is medium, and the erosion hazard ie low. <br />This soil is seed almost entirely for irrigated crops It <br />is suited to all crops commonly grown in the area, includ- <br />ing corn, sugar beets, beans, alfalfa, small grain, potatoes, <br />and onions. An example of a suitable cropping system is 3 <br />to .4 years of alfalfa followed by corn, corn for silage, <br />sugar beets, small grain, or beans. Land leveling, ditch <br />lining, and installing pipelines may be needed for proper <br />water application. <br />All methods of irrigation are suitable, but furrow ir- <br />rigation is the most rnmmon. Barnyard manure and cem- <br />mercial fer~tilirzr are needed for top yields. <br />Windbreaks and environmental pLmtins of trees and <br />shrubs commonly grown in the area are generally well <br />suited to this soil Cultivation to control competing <br />vegetation should be continued for as malty years as <br />possible following planting. Trees that are best suited and <br />have good survival are Rocky Mountain juniper, eastern <br />r+edcedaz, ponderosa pine, Siberian elm, Russian-olive, and <br />hackberry. The shrubs best suited are skunkbush sumac, <br />lilaq Siberian peashrub, and American plum. <br />This soil can produce habitat elements that are highly <br />suitable for openland wildlife including pheasant, cotton- <br />tail, and mourning dove. Such crops as wheat, corn, and <br />alfalfa provide suitable habitat for openland wildlife, <br />espevlally pheasant Tree and shrub plantings and <br />undisturbed nesting cover would enhance openland wil- <br />dlife populations. <br />This Altvan soil has Fair to good potential for urban <br />and recreational development The chief limiting soil fea- <br />tures for urban development are the shrink-swell poten- <br />tial of the subsoil as it wets and dries and the rapid <br />permeability of the sand and gravel substratum. Septic <br />tank absorption fields function properly, but in places the <br />substratum does not contain enough fines to properly <br />filter the leachate. Sewage Lagoons require sealing. <br />Laws, shrubs, and trees grow well Capability subclass <br />IIe imgated. <br />3-Aquolls and Aquents, gravelly substratum. This <br />nearly level map unit is on bottom lands and flood plains <br />of all the major streams in the survey area. Aquolls, <br />which have a dark colored surface layer, make up about <br />li0 percent of the unit Aquents, which have a lighter <br />colored surface L;yer, make up about 35 percent About b <br />percent is Aquepta and Bankard sandy loam. <br />These are deep. poorly drained sobs that formed in <br />recent alluvium No one pedon is typical Commonly the <br />soils have a mottled, madly alkaline to moderately al- <br />kaline loamy or clayey surface layer and underlying <br />material and are underlain by sand or sand and gravel <br />within 48 inches La pLrcea they have a gleyed layer in the <br />underlying material <br />Most of the acreage is subject to flooding. The water <br />table is at or near the surface early in spring and recedes <br />to as deep as 48 inrhes late in fall in some years <br />These soils are used for rangeland and wildlife habitat <br />Some small auras have been reclaimed by major drainage <br />and leveling and are used for irrigated crops <br />The potential native vegetation is dominated by alkali <br />eacaWn, awitchgrass, and western wheatgrasv. Saltgrass, <br />sedge, rush, and alkali bluegrass are also prominent <br />Potential production ranges from 3,000 pounds per sue in <br />favarahk: years W 2,000 pounds in unfavorable years Aa <br />range rnndition deteriorates, the awitchgrass, alkali <br />sacaWn, and western wheatgrass decrease and ealtgrass, <br />sedge, and rush increase. <br />Management of vegetation should be based on taking <br />half and leaving half of the total annual production Seed- <br />ing is difScult and costly because numerous tillage prac- <br />tices are required to eliminate the saltgrass sod. <br />Switchgrass, western wheatgrass, alkali eacaton, tall <br />wheatgrsss, and tall fescue are suitable for seeding. They <br />can be seeded into a clean, four seedbed. Seedbed <br />preparation usually requires more than 1 year to <br />eliminate the ealtgrass cod. A grass drill should be used. <br />Seeding early in spring has proven most successful <br />Wetland wildlife, especially waterfowl, utilize this unit <br />The wetland plants provide nesting and protective cover, <br />as well as some food. The nearby irrigated cropland, <br />where wildlife obtain much of their food and fmd protec- <br />tive cover, makes this unit valuable to both wetland and <br />openland wildlife. <br />Openland wildlife, especially pheasant, use this unit for <br />cover and nesting. Deer fmd excellent cover in some <br />areas <br />These valuable wildlife areas should be protected from <br />foe and fenced to prevent encroachment and overuse by <br />livestock. They should not be drained. <br />These soils have goad potential as a source of sand and <br />gravel Capability subclass VIw; Salt Meadow range site. <br />4-Aquolls and Aquepta, flooded. This nearly level <br />map unit is in depressions in smooth plains and along the <br />bottoms of natural drainageways throughout the survey <br />area Aquolls, which have a dark colored surface layer, <br />make up about 55 percent of the unit. Aquepts, which <br />have a lighter colored surface layer, make up about 25 <br />percent. About 20 percent is soiLS that are well drained <br />and soils that have sandstone or shale within 48 inches of <br />the surface. <br />