LOCATION COUNCELOR          NM

COUNCELOR SERIES

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, calcareous, mesic Ustic Torriorthents

TYPICAL PEDON: Councelor fine sandy loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A--0 to 2 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine and fine roots; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (2 to 9 inches thick)

C1--2 to 7 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and very fine roots; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (4 to 10 inches thick)

C2--7 to 37 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and very fine roots; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline; gradual smooth boundary. (10 to 35 inches thick)

2C3--37 to 40 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) clay loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; hard, firm, sticky and plastic; few fine and very fine roots; strongly effervescent; calcium carbonate as very few fine irregular soft masses; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick)

3C4--40 to 60 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; soft, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Sandoval County, New Mexico; about 15 miles south of Councelor; 1500 feet north and 1500 feet east of the southwest corner of sec. 6, T. 21 N., R. 6 W.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil Moisture - Dry in all parts of the soil moisture control section most of the time after April 15 to July 1. Moist in some part periodically from July 1 through October. Moist in some part from January to April 15. The driest months are May and June.

Soil Temperature -48 to 55 degrees F.

Calcium Carbonate - Less than 15 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and lacks a horizon with 5 percent (by volume) more soft powdery secondary calcium carbonate than an underlying horizon.

Particle-size Control Section - Weighted average percent clay: 8 to 18 percent.

Rock fragments: 0 to 5 percent, dominantly pebbles.

A horizon -
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist
Chroma: 2 through 4
Texture: fine sandy loam, loam, or sandy loam

C horizon -
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4 dry, 2 to 6 moist
Texture: fine sandy loam, sandy loam, loam, silty clay loam, silt loam or clay loam

Other features: In some pedons the C horizon contains thin strata of loamy sand, loamy fine sand and sandy clay loam.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Cliff, Keeline, Nelson, Oterodry, Turnercrest, Uendal, Yarts, and Zia series. Potential competitors that do not yet have CEA class assigned are the Henrieville, Nelman, Pedrick, and Shedado soils. Cliff soils do not have accumulations of secondary calcium carbonate. Oterodry soils have 2.5Y Hues. Nelman, Nelson, Shedado, Turnercrest, and Uendal soils have a lithic or paralithic contact between depths of 20 to 40 inches. Henrieville soils have more than 15 percent calcium carbonate equivalent in the C horizons. Keeline soils are moist periodically April through June and are dry for 60 consecutive days from July 15 to October 25. Pedrick soils have more than 15 percent calcium carbonate equivalent. Yarts soils lack any weak segregation of calcium carbonates above depths of 40 inches. Zia soils receive less winter precipitation and are dry in all parts periodically from January to April 15.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Councelor soils are on stream terraces on valley floors, alluvial fans and fan terraces on valley sides and low hills. They formed in alluvium, fan alluvium, stream alluvium and eolian material derived from sandstone and shale. Slopes are 0 to 30 percent. Elevation is 6,000 to 7,000 feet. Mean annual temperature is 46 to 53 degrees F. Mean annual precipitation is typically 10 to 13 inches, however in some areas it is as low as 8 or 9 inches, with the peak periods occurring from July through October. The frost-free period is 100 to 140 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Blancot, Escavada, and Mespun soils. Blancot soils have argillic horizons and more that 18 percent clay. Mespun soils are sandy. Escavada soils are less than 20 inches deep to shale.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained and somewhat excessively drained; very slow to medium runoff; moderately slow to moderately rapid permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: The Councelor soil is used for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. Native vegetation is Indian ricegrass, blue grama, dropseed and big sagebrush.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northcentral New Mexico. MLRA 36, LRR-D. This series is of small extent.

MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Lakewood, Colorado

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, 1978.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:

Ochric epipedon - The zone from the surface to a depth of 2 inches. (A horizon)

Entisol feature - Lack of diagnostic horizons. (C1, C2, C3, C4 horizons)

The type location of the Councelor series has been moved from Rio Arriba County to Sandoval County. Classification has been changed from coarse-loamy, mixed, nonacid, mesic Typic Torrifluvents. Present classification represents both soils in both counties.

Classified according to Soil Taxonomy Second Edition, 1999.