LOCATION PINENUT                 NV+CA

Established Series
Rev. EWB-TM-JVC-JBF
11/2013

PINENUT SERIES

The Pinenut series consists of shallow, well drained soils that formed in residuum and colluvium derived from volcanic rocks. Pinenut soils are on mountains. Slopes are 15 to 75 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 380 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 7 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, frigid, shallow Aridic Argixerolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Pinenut very gravelly sandy loam--forest land. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered with about 3 cm of pine needle duff, 5 percent stones, 10 percent cobbles, and 50 percent gravel.

A1--0 to 3 cm; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) very gravelly sandy loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine roots; common very fine interstitial pores; 5 percent stones, 5 percent cobbles, and 45 percent gravel; slightly acid (pH 6.2); abrupt wavy boundary. (3 to 8 cm thick)

A2--3 to 15 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) very gravelly sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; many very fine and fine roots; common very fine tubular and interstitial pores; 5 percent stones, 5 percent cobbles, and 45 percent gravel; slightly acid (pH 6.4); clear wavy boundary. (10 to 15 cm thick)

Bt1--15 to 33 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) very gravelly sandy clay loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine, common fine, common medium, and common coarse roots; common very fine tubular and interstitial pores; common faint clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; 5 percent cobbles and 50 percent gravel; slightly acid (pH 6.4); clear wavy boundary. (13 to 20 cm thick)

Bt2--33 to 48 cm; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) very gravelly sandy clay loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few very fine, few fine, few medium, and few coarse roots; common very fine tubular and interstitial pores; common faint clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; 5 percent cobbles and 50 percent gravel; neutral (pH 6.6); clear irregular boundary. (10 to 15 cm thick)

Cr--48 to 64 cm; fractured and weathered rhyolitic tuff; roots and fine-earth soil material in fractures.

R--64 cm; hard rhyolitic tuff.

TYPE LOCATION: Douglas County, Nevada; in the Pine Nut Mountains south of Buffalo Canyon; approximately 900 feet north and 1,200 feet west of the southeast corner of section 35, T. 12 N., R. 22 E.; USGS Double Spring 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 38 degrees 51 minutes 18 seconds N and longitude 119 degrees 35 minutes 28 seconds W; NAD 83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually moist in winter and spring, dry from July through October; aridic moisture regime that borders on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 7 to 8 degrees C.
Mollic epipedon thickness: 25 to 38 cm; includes the Bt1 horizon.
Depth to base of argillic horizon: 36 to 50 cm.
Depth to bedrock: 36 to 50 cm to a paralithic contact. The paralithic materials below the contact are weathered volcanic rocks such as rhyolitic tuff. Hard, unweathered bedrock is usually within 100 cm of the soil surface.
Reaction: Slightly acid or neutral.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 18 to 27 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent, mainly medium and coarse pebbles (5 to 75 millimeters diameter). Lithology of fragments is volcanic rocks such as rhyolitic tuff.

A horizons
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Organic matter content: 1 to 3 percent.

Bt1 horizon
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Texture: Very gravelly sandy loam or very gravelly sandy clay loam.
Clay content: 18 to 27 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent.
Structure: Weak or moderate subangular blocky.
Organic matter content: 1 or 2 percent.

Bt2 horizon
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Very gravelly sandy loam or very gravelly sandy clay loam.
Clay content: 18 to 27 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent.
Structure: Weak or moderate subangular blocky.
Organic matter content: 0.8 to 2 percent.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Deanran, Dotsolot, Garnel, Lyra, and Poisoncreek series.

Deanran, Garnel, Lyra, and Poisoncreek soils have paralithic contacts within 36 cm of the soil surface. Dotsolot soils are dominated by fine pebbles (2 to 5 mm. diameter) of granitic lithology. Epvip soils are intermittently moist during the summer due to convection storms and have 25 to 35 percent clay in the particle-size control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Pinenut soils are on mountains. They typically occur on backslope positions. These soils formed in residuum and colluvium derived from volcanic rocks such as rhyolitic or andesitic tuff. Slopes are 15 to 75 percent. Elevations range from 1,925 to 2,445 meters. The climate is semiarid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 300 to 400 mm, mean annual temperature is 6 to 7 degrees C., and the frost-free period is 65 to 80 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Duco and Vetagrande soils. Duco soils are shallow to lithic contacts and have a mesic temperature regime. Vetagrande soils are very deep and have thick mollic epipedons.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; very high surface runoff; moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Pinenut soils are used for forest land and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly a forest canopy of singleleaf pinyon with an understory of muttongrass, green ephedra, currant, antelope bitterbrush, snowberry, and mountain big sagebrush. This pedon is correlated to F026XY044NV, PIMO-ARTRV woodland.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Western Nevada and eastern California. These soils are not extensive. MLRA 26.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Toiyabe National Forest Area, California, 2006. The series was proposed in Douglas County, Nevada, 1996.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 33 cm (A1, A2, and Bt1 horizons).
Argillic horizon - The zone from 15 to 48 cm (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons).
Paralithic contact - The boundary at 48 cm to underlying weathered bedrock. (Cr layer).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 15 to 48 cm (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons).

ADDITIONAL DATA: User pedon ID 2006NV005009.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.