LOCATION RASTER NVEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic Pachic Haploxerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Raster very stony sandy loam, rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered with 10 percent stones, 20 percent cobbles, and 20 percent pebbles.
A1--0 to 4 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) very stony sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and few fine roots; many very fine and fine interstitial and few fine tubular pores; 15 percent pebbles, 10 percent cobbles, 10 percent stones; neutral (pH 7.0); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 6 inches thick)
A2--4 to 12 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) very cobbly sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; many very fine and few fine roots; many very fine and fine, common medium and few coarse tubular pores; 20 percent pebbles, 25 percent cobbles, 5 percent stones; mildly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear wavy boundary. (4 to 10 inches thick)
A3--12 to 27 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) extremely stony sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and common fine roots; many very fine tubular and many very fine and few fine interstitial pores; 25 percent pebbles, 15 percent cobbles, 25 percent stones; mildly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear wavy boundary. (11 to 20 inches thick)
C--27 to 60 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) extremely stony sand, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine roots; many very fine and few fine interstitial pores; 10 percent pebbles, 35 percent cobbles, 25 percent stones; mildly alkaline (pH 7.6).
TYPE LOCATION: Nye County, Nevada; about 100 feet west and 700 feet north of southeast corner of section 17, T. 9 N., R. 51 E.; 38 degrees, 38 minutes, 07 seconds north latitude and 116 degrees, 14 minutes, 25 seconds west longitude.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - Usually moist, moist in winter and early spring, dry summer and fall but intermittently moist due to convection storm; dry in all parts at least 45 consecutive days following the summer solstice..
Soil temperature - 48 to 53 degrees F.
Mollic epipedon thickness - 20 to 30 inches.
Profile reaction - Neutral or mildly alkaline.
Control section - Clay content: 6 to 14 percent.
Rock fragments: 60 to 80 percent; 10 to 30 percent pebbles, 15 to 35 percent cobbles and 15 to 25 percent stones.
A horizon - Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.
C horizon - Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4.
Texture: Loamy sand or sand.
Rock fragments: 60 to 80 percent, with 45 to 70 percent stones and cobbles.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Dehlinger(OR), Demox(CA), Drit(NV), Gamboa(CA), Langrell(OR), Murken(T CA), Packard(T OR), Plumas(CA) and Wrentham(OR) soils. Dehlinger and Packard soils have more than 18 percent clay in the control section. Demox soils are dry for 120 consecutive days and have less than 50 percent rock fragments in the control section. Drit and Langrell soils have cambic horizons. Drit soils are dry for 90 consecutive days and have mostly gravel sized rock fragments and are dominated by coarse sand.. Langrell soils contain less than 60 percent rock fragments in the control section. Gamboa and Plumas soils have mollic epipedons more than 30 inches thick. Gamboa soils have mean annual soil temperatures of 54 to 58 degrees F. and are always above 41 degrees F. Plumas soils have less than 60 percent rock fragments in the control section. Murken and Wrentham soils have bedrock at depths of 20 to 40 inches.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Raster soils are on fan aprons. These soils formed in mixed alluvium dominantly from andesite rocks. Slopes are 8 to 30 percent. Elevations are 5,100 to 7,000 feet. The climate is cool, semiarid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 12 to 14 inches; mean annual temperature is 48 to 52 degrees F., and the frost-free season is 100 to 120 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Mijay, Chuckridge and Veet soils. Mijay and Chuckridge soils have an argillic horizon and a duripan. Veet soils have a cambic horizon.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; slow runoff; moderately rapid permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly basin big sagebrush, desert bitterbrush, singleleaf pinyon, Utah juniper, serviceberry, green ephedra, desert prune, currant and cheatgrass.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: South-central Nevada. MLRA 29. These soils are not extensive.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Reno, Nevada
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Nye County, Northeast Part, Nevada. 1993.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from 0 to 27 inches (Pachic).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 10 to 40 inches.
The superactive cation exchange activity class was added in 03/2003 to the taxonomic classification by the National Soil Survey Center on request of the Reno MLRA office, without review of the soil series property data. The remainder of this document has not been updated.