LOCATION AMALIA                  NM+CO

Established Series
Rev. LWH/AJS/SJJ
04/2021

AMALIA SERIES

The Amalia series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium and outwash from mixed rocks, and granite, gneiss, and mica schist. Amalia soils are on fan piedmonts and hills and have slopes of 3 to 50 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 13 inches and the mean annual air temperature is about 41 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, frigid Calcidic Haplustalfs

TYPICAL PEDON: Amalia very gravelly loam, rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A--0 to 3 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/2) very gravelly loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine roots; 45 percent fine and medium gravel; neutral (pH 7.2); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 4 inches thick)

Bt1--3 to 6 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/2) very gravelly clay loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; thin patchy clay films on faces of peds and on gravel; many fine roots; 50 percent fine and medium gravel; neutral (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 5 inches thick)

Bt2--6 to 9 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) very gravelly clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/3) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; thin continuous clay films on faces of peds and on gravel; many medium and fine roots; 55 percent fine and medium gravel; neutral (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 8 inches thick)

Bt3--9 to 17 inches; yellowish red (5YR 5/6) very gravelly clay loam; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; thin patchy clay films on faces of peds and on gravel; few fine roots; 55 percent fine and medium gravel; neutral (pH 7.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (6 to 14 inches thick)

2Bk--17 to 60 inches; pink (5YR 7/4) very gravelly sandy loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; massive; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; 60 percent fine and medium gravel; thin patchy calcium carbonate coatings on the bottom of gravels; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4). (34 to 40 inches thick)

TYPE LOCATION: Taos County, New Mexico, 3.1 miles northeast of Amalia on the north side of the Ute Creek and 200 feet north of road; 105 degrees, 25 minutes, 00 seconds west longitude; 36 degrees, 57 minutes, 30 seconds north latitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil Moisture: Intermittently moist December through March, and July through October; ustic moisture regime, bordering on aridic.

Soil Temperature: 41 to 47 degrees F.

Depth to the calcic horizon: 10 to 30 inches

Particle-size control section: clay loam or sandy clay loam (10 to 35 percent clay, 30 to 65 percent gravel, 0 to 15 percent cobbles on a weighted average)

A horizon:
Hue - 10YR or 7.5YR
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 through 4 moist
Chroma: 2 through 4
Texture: sandy loam, coarse sandy loam, loam, or clay loam with 40 to 50 percent gravel
Reaction: neutral to slightly alkaline

Bt horizon:
Hue 7.5YR or 5YR
Value: 4 through 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist
Chroma: 2 through 6
Texture: sandy loam, loam, and clay loam
Clay content: 10 to 35
Rock fragments: 30 to 65 percent gravel and 0 to 15 percent cobbles
Reaction: neutral to moderately alkaline

Bk horizon:
Hue - 10YR, 7.5YR, or 5YR
Value:..6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 3 or 4
Texture: loamy coarse sand, coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, and loamy sand
Clay content: 2 to 18
Rock fragments: 30 to 65 percent gravel and 5 to 30 percent cobbles
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 40 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline

COMPETING SERIES:
Twinadams (MT): moderately deep to bedrock.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Amalia soils are on fan piedmonts, fan remnants, and hills, and have slopes of 3 to 50 percent. The soils formed in calcareous gravelly alluvium from mixed rocks: sedimentary, gneiss, granite, and breccia and outwash derived form granite, gneiss, and mica schist. Elevation is 7,000 to 10,000 feet. The mean annual precipitation is 12 to 16 inches and comes mainly in the summer and fall. The mean annual air temperature is 37 to 45 degrees F. The frost-free season is 75 to 110 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are Manzano and Tenorio soils. Manzano soils have a mollic epipedon thicker than 20 inches. Tenorio soils have a fine-loamy over sandy or sandy-skeletal control section.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; high runoff; moderate permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used for rangeland and wildlife. Present vegetation is bluegrama, big sagebrush, pinyon pine and juniper.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: High intermountain valleys of north-central New Mexico and South Central Colorado. The series is of small extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Taos Area, New Mexico, 1976.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized on this pedon are:

Ochric epipedon - the zone from the surface to 3 inches. (A horizon)

Argillic horizon - the zone from 3 to 17 inches. (Bt horizons)

Calcic Horizon - the zone from 17 to 65 inches. (Bk horizon)

After reviewing the climatic data from Northeast New Mexico and South Central Colorado, the soil is aridic-ustic. 07/2008. The previous classification was Ustic Calciargids.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.