LOCATION FEZ                     NV

Established Series
Rev. ARW/DWW/RLB/JBF
01/2019

FEZ SERIES

The Fez series consists of moderately deep, well drained soils that formed in residuum and colluvium derived from tuffs. The Fez soils are on side slopes of rock piedmont remnants and hills. Slopes are 15 to 50 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 460 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 5 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Ashy, glassy, frigid Vitrandic Haploxerolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Fez ashy loamy sand--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A1--0 to 3 cm; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) ashy loamy sand, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; weak very fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and fine, few medium roots; few very fine tubular pores; 5 percent gravel; neutral (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 8 cm thick)

A2--3 to 10 cm; brown (10YR 4/3) ashy loamy sand, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; weak very fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine, few medium roots; few very fine tubular pores; 5 percent gravel; neutral (pH 7.0); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 13 cm thick)

A3--10 to 36 cm; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) ashy loamy sand, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine, few medium roots; common very fine tubular pores; 5 percent gravel; neutral (pH 7.0); clear smooth boundary. (15 to 30 cm thick)

AC--36 to 58 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) ashy loamy sand, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; common fine faint light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) redox concentrations; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine, few medium roots; common very fine tubular pores; 10 percent tuff gravel; 10 percent fine and medium subangular blocky rock structure; neutral (pH 7.0); gradual smooth boundary. (15 to 50 cm thick)

Cr--58 cm; pale yellow (2.5Y 8/4) soft, consolidated vitric tuff.

TYPE LOCATION: Elko County, Nevada; approximately 15 miles east of Contact at about 990 feet east and 2,640 feet north of the southwest corner, sec. 23, T. 45 N., R. 66 E.; USGS Devils Pass 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 41 degrees 46 minutes 23 seconds N and longitude 114 degrees 28 minutes 12 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 41.7730556 latitude, -114.4700000 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually moist, they are moist in winter through early summer, dry mid-July to October; xeric soil moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature: 6 to 8 degrees C.
Volcanic ash and glass aggregates: 60 to 80 percent.
Mollic epipedon thickness: 25 to 50 cm.
Depth to paralithic contact: 50 to 100 cm.
Effervescence: Normally non-effervescent, although some pedons are slightly effervescent.
Reaction: Neutral or slightly alkaline.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 1 to 15 percent.
Rock fragments: Up to 15 percent, dominantly tuff gravel.

A horizon
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.

AC horizon
Value: 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4.
Structure: Fine or medium subangular blocky.
Texture: Loamy sand and loamy fine sand.

Other features: Redox concentrations are absent in some pedons.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Chiarise, Coalbank and Cottonthomas series.

Chiarise, Coalbank and Cottonthomas soils are deeper than 100 cm.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Fez soils are on side slopes of rock piedmont remnants and hills. These soils formed in residuum derived from tuffs. Slopes are 15 to 50 percent. Elevations are 1,895 to 2,290 meters. The climate is cool, semiarid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 400 to 500 mm; mean annual temperature is 4 to 6 degrees C, and the frost-free season is 70 to 100 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Cotant, Loncan and McIvey series. All these soils lack an ashy mineralogy. Cotant soils also are shallow with clayey particle-size control sections, Loncan soils have a loamy-skeletal particle-size control sections and lack a paralithic contact, and McIvey soils are greater than 100 cm to bedrock and have a clayey-skeletal particle-size control sections.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; slow runoff; saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Rangeland and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly serviceberry, mountain big sagebrush, snowberry, antelope bitterbrush, basin wildrye, bluebunch wheatgrass, Idaho fescue, bluegrass, bottlebrush squirreltail, cheat grass and miscellaneous forbs.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northeastern Nevada. These soils are not extensive. MLRA 25.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Elko County, Nevada, northeast part, 1986.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to about 36 cm (A1, A2 and A3 horizons).
Paralithic contact - The boundary at 58 cm (Cr layer)
Volcanic ash and glass aggregates - 60 to 80 percent.
Particle-size control section - The zone from 25 to 58 cm (AC and part of the AB horizons).

The classification was changed in 1992 from Ashy, frigid Mollic Vitrandept to Ashy, frigid Vitrandic Haploxerolls.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.