LOCATION PINERY TX+NM
Established Series
ALS, AJM, WJG
08/2012
PINERY SERIES
The Pinery series consists of very deep well drained soils that formed in gravelly fan alluvium from limestone parent material. Pinery soils are on moderately sloping to moderately steep alluvial fans. Slopes are 1 to 25 percent. Mean annual temperature is about 16 degrees C (61 degrees F) and mean annual precipitation is about 411 mm (16 in).
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, carbonatic, thermic Pachic Calciustolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Pinery gravelly loam, on an east-facing, 7 percent slope in rangeland at an elevation of 1,380 m (4,527 ft). (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted).
A--0 to 9 cm, (0.0 to 3.5 inches); dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) very gravelly loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2), moist; 45 percent sand; 20 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky parts to moderate coarse granular structure; slightly hard, friable, , slightly sticky, slightly plastic; many very fine roots and common fine roots; common very fine interstitial and common fine interstitial pores; 1 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 600 to 1200 millimeter limestone fragments and 5 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 250 to 600 millimeter limestone fragments and 10 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 75 to 250 millimeter limestone fragments and 25 percent nonflat rounded indurated 2 to 75 millimeter limestone fragments; strong effervescence, by HCl, 1 normal; slightly alkaline, pH 7.6 by pH meter; clear smooth boundary.
Bk1--9 to 37 cm, (3.5 to 14.6 inches); dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) gravelly loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2), moist; 35 percent sand; 22 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky parts to moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, , slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common very fine roots and few medium roots and common fine roots; common very fine interstitial and few fine interstitial pores; 2 percent fine prominent irregular weakly cemented carbonate nodules on bottom of rock fragments and 3 percent fine prominent irregular carbonate masses on faces of peds; 3 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 75 to 250 millimeter limestone fragments and 25 percent nonflat rounded indurated 2 to 75 millimeter limestone fragments of which 15 percent are 2 to 20 millimeters; strong effervescence, by HCl, 1 normal; moderately alkaline, pH 7.9 by pH meter; clear wavy boundary.
Bk2--37 to 59 cm, (14.6 to 23.2 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) extremely cobbly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3), moist; 35 percent sand; 24 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky parts to moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, , moderately sticky, moderately plastic; common very fine roots and few medium roots and few fine roots; many very fine interstitial and common fine interstitial pores; 3 percent fine prominent irregular weakly cemented carbonate nodules on bottom of rock fragments and 5 percent fine prominent irregular carbonate masses throughout; 10 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 250 to 600 millimeter limestone fragments and 25 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 75 to 250 millimeter limestone fragments and 30 percent nonflat rounded indurated 2 to 75 millimeter limestone fragments of which 18 percent are 2 to 20 millimeters; violent effervescence, by HCl, 1 normal; moderately alkaline, pH 7.9 by pH meter; gradual wavy boundary.
Bk3--59 to 200 cm, (23.2 to 78.7 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) extremely stony sandy clay loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4), moist; 65 percent sand; 22 percent clay; weak fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, , slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common very fine roots and few medium roots and few fine roots; common fine interstitial pores; 10 percent fine prominent irregular carbonate masses throughout and 5 percent medium prominent irregular weakly cemented carbonate nodules on bottom of rock fragments; 10 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 250 to 600 millimeter limestone fragments and 25 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 75 to 250 millimeter limestone fragments and 40 percent nonflat rounded indurated 2 to 75 millimeter limestone fragments of which 24 percent are 2 to 20 millimeters; violent effervescence, by HCl, 1 normal; moderately alkaline, pH 7.9 by pH meter;
TYPE LOCATION: Eddy County, New Mexico; from the parking area for Yucca Canyon trailhead in Carlsbad Caverns National Park, 100 yards east, downslope. (Grapevine Draw NM USGS topographic quadrangle: UTM coordinates, NAD 83 datum, 13 N. 539068N 3551272W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Thickness of mollic epipedon: 50 to 85 cm (20 to 33 in)
Depth to calcic horizon: 5 to 19 cm (2 to 7 in)
Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay Content: 14 to 29 percent
Sand Content: 25 to 70 percent
Rock fragment content: 35 to 70 percent total; 20 to 65 percent gravel; 10 to 70 percent cobbles; 0 to 20 percent stones; 0 to 2 percent boulders
A horizon
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 3 to 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Texture of the fine-earth fraction: loam, silt loam, or clay loam
Clay content: 12 to 32 percent
Coarse fragments: 5 to 70 percent total; 5 to 70 percent gravel; 0 to 40 percent cobbles
Effervescence: very slight to violent
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline
Bk horizons
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 3 to 6 dry, 2 to 5 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6 dry or moist
Texture of the fine-earth fraction: sandy clay loam, loam, silt loam, clay loam, or silty clay loam
Clay content: 14 to 29 percent
Coarse fragments: 20 to 70 percent total; 20 to 70 percent gravel; 25 to 70 percent cobbles
Effervescence: strong or violent
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent Material: fan alluvium from limestone sources
Landscape: Piedmont
Landform: alluvial fans
Slope: 5 to 20 percent
Soil Moisture: Aridic Ustic moisture regime
Mean annual soil Temperature: 15 to 20 degrees C (59 to 68 degrees F)
Mean annual air temperature: 14 to 19 degrees C (57 to 66 degrees F)
Mean annual precipitation: 287 to 523 mm (11 to 20 in)
Precipitation pattern: Most precipitation occurs as high intensity rain during afternoon convective thunderstorms from June to September.
Frost-free period: 203 to 255 days
Elevation: 1,370 to 1,995 m (4,495 to 6,545 ft)
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Altuda (TX) and the
Bonespring (TX) and
Choza (TX) soils.
Altuda soils: have a lithic contact and occur on limestone hills and ridges.
Bonespring soils: have a lithic contact and occur on sandstone on hills and ridges.
Choza soils: have a petrocalcic and occur on similar positions.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; Runoff is medium on 5 to 10 percent slopes and high on slopes over 10 percent; moderately rapid permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: This soil is used for livestock grazing, wildlife habitat and recreation. Vegetation is sideoats grama, black grama, blue grama, hairy grama, cane bluestem, curlyleaf muhly, little bluestem, fragrant sumac, redberry juniper, oaks, and pinyon pine.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: LRR G; Western Great Plains Range and Irrigated Region; MLRA 70D-Southern Desert Foothills in West Texas. The soil is not extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Temple, Texas
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Culberson County, Texas; 2010. The name is from a Butterfield Trail stage coach stop that is in the park.
REMARKS:
The series was reclassified with the correlation of the Carlsbad Caverns National Park soil survey. The type location was moved after analysis of the pedon descriptions and control section indicated a Pachic subgroup and carbonatic mineralogy was representative for the series as correlated in the Guadalupe Mountains National Park also .
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon: 0 to 59 cm (0 to 23.2 in) (A horizon)
Calcic horizon: 9 to 200 cm (3.5 to 78.7 in) (Bk horizons)
Carbonatic mineralogy in particle size control section 25 to 100 cm (10 to 40 in) (Bk2 and Bk3 horizons)
The taxonomic version is Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Eleventh Edition, 2010
ADDITIONAL DATA: None
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.