Date of Award:

5-1974

Document Type:

Thesis

Degree Name:

Master of Science (MS)

Department:

Plants, Soils, and Climate

Department name when degree awarded

Soil Science and Biometeorology

Committee Chair(s)

Alvin R. Southard

Committee

Alvin R. Southard

Committee

David W. James

Committee

Duane A. Lammers

Abstract

The study was designed to test the genetic theory of soil development of two soils derived from different geological material, but developed under conditions of similar climate, topography, biological activity, and age. An attempt was made to relate the soils characteristics to their present classification. Parleys and Mendon series which developed from Bonneville and Salt Lake Formation, respectively, were selected for that purpose. Along the east side of Cache valley, two pedons representing each of the studied series were selected to have similar soil formers except for their parent material.

Evidently, these studied soils have been developed from different heterogenous sediments. Mendon soils have been developed from Salt Lake Formation to at least 51 cm depth, whereas, the solum horizons are attributed to the Bonneville Formation. The Parleys soil seems to be mainly developed from Bonneville Formation. But the upper solum horizons are probably interlayered with fine deposits of Holocene age. Those soils which derived from different geological deposits show a high degree of similarity between them. Heterogeneity and the nature of the soil parent material, and similarity of their climatic and developmental conditions are believed to be the major causes to inhibit many genetic variables between them.

In northern Utah, the Hendon soils are classified as Calcic Pachic Argixerolls, at the subgroup level. This study has shown that most of the Mendon pedons do not have a Pachic epipedon. Therefore, these studied soils could be grouped together in one subgroup. The result is Calcic Argixerolls in fine-silty, mixed, mesic family. Re-examining Mendon series in Cache valley and reclassifying them on the basis of Pachic epipedon would be an interesting subject for further study.

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