LOCATION YELLOWHILLS             NV

Established Series
Rev. DLJ-JBF-TM-JVC
01/2020

YELLOWHILLS SERIES

The Yellowhills series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from rocks high in volcanic ash. Yellowhills soils are on inset fans. Slopes are 0 to 2 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 280 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 7 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Ashy, glassy, mesic Vitritorrandic Haploxerolls

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

A1--0 to 5 cm; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) ashy sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate thin platy structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine roots; many very fine tubular and vesicular pores; neutral (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 10 cm thick)

A2--5 to 43 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) ashy sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; massive; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; neutral (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary. (15 to 40 cm thick)

Bw--43 to 94 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) ashy sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; neutral (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary. (46 to 90 cm thick)

Bq--94 to 152 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) ashy sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine and fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; 10 percent weakly cemented durinodes; neutral (pH 7.0).

TYPE LOCATION: Humboldt County, Nevada; on the Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge about 10 miles northwest of Summit Lake; in nonsectionized township T. 43 N., R. 24 E.; approximately 5,660 feet north and 450 feet east of the northwest corner of section 11, T. 42 N., R. 24 E.; USGS Bear Buttes 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 41 degrees 36 minutes 20.2 seconds N and longitude 119 degrees 14 minutes 38.7 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 41.6056111 latitude, -119.2440833 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist in winter and spring; dry from late June through October; aridic soil moisture regime that borders on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 11 degrees C.
Mollic epipedon thickness: 25 to 50 cm.
Depth to Bq horizon: 64 to 100 cm.
Reaction: Neutral or slightly alkaline.
Volcanic glass content: 60 to 80 percent in coarse silt through very fine sand fractions.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 8 to 15 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent.

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

Bw horizon
Value: 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Ashy sandy loam or ashy fine sandy loam.
Clay content: 8 to 15 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent.

Bq horizon
Value: 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Ashy Sandy loam or ashy fine sandy loam.
Clay content: 8 to 15 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent
Consistence: Soft or slightly hard, very friable or friable.
Durinodes: 5 to 15 percent weakly cemented durinodes or has few thin strata of discontinuous weak cementation.
Other features: Some pedons have identifiable secondary carbonates.

COMPETING SERIES: There are the Bitner, Brays, Chelan, Deskamp, Dryhollow, Emagert, Kester, Surprise, Weezweed, Winblow, Yotes, and Zark series.

Bitner and Zark soils are moderately deep to paralithic contacts. Brays, Deskamp, Kester, and Winblow soils are moderately deep to lithic contacts. Chelan soils are deep to duripans. Dryhollow soils have 5 to 15 percent pumice paragravel and 5 to 15 percent medium to very coarse sand-sized pumiceous grains. Emagert soils have mollic epipedons greater than 61 cm thick. Surprise soils average 15 to 35 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section and do not have horizons with durinodes. Yotes soils average 15 to 35 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section. Weezweed soils average 18 to 27 percent clay in the particle-size control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Yellowhills soils are on inset fans. These soils formed in alluvium derived from rocks high in volcanic ash. Slopes are 0 to 2 percent. Elevations range from 1600 to 1900 meters. The climate is semiarid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 250 to 300 mm, the mean annual temperature is 6 to 7 degrees C, and the frost-free period is 80 to 100 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Saraph and Tuffo soils. Saraph soils are shallow, have argillic horizons and ochric epipedons. Tuffo soils are shallow and have ochric epipedons.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: Yellowhills soils are used for rangeland and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly Idaho fescue, Thurber's needlegrass, and basin big sagebrush.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northwestern Nevada. These soils are not extensive with about 3,500 acres of the series mapped to date. MLRA 23.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Humboldt County, Nevada (West Part), 1991.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 43 cm (A1 and A2 horizons).
Cambic horizon - The zone from 43 to 94 cm (Bw horizon).
Vitrandic intergrade feature - The zone from the soil surface to 76 cm (A1 and A2 horizons and part of the Bw horizon).
Durinodes - The zone from 94 to 152 cm (Bq horizon).
Particle-size control section and ashy substitute class with glassy mineralogy - The zone from 25 to 100 cm (Bw, parts of the A2 and Bq horizons).

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.