LOCATION BEELINE AZEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, calcareous, hyperthermic, shallow Typic Torriorthents
TYPICAL PEDON: Beeline very gravelly sandy loam, rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) Surface has 40 percent cover of fine pebbles.
A--0 to 1 inches; light reddish brown (5YR 6/3) very gravelly sandy loam, reddish brown (5YR 5/3) moist; weak thin platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; 45 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 2 inches thick)
C1--1 to 7 inches; light reddish brown (5YR 6/3) sandy loam, reddish brown (5YR 5/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; 5 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (2 to 8 inches thick)
C2--7 to 9 inches; pink (5YR 7/3) sandy loam, reddish brown (5YR 5/3) moist; massive; hard, firm, nonsticky and nonplastic; few medium roots; common very fine interstitial pores; 5 percent pebbles; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (2 to 8 inches thick)
2Cr--9 to 60 inches; pink (5YR 7/3) weakly cemented sandy conglomerate, common lime coating in joints.
TYPE LOCATION: Maricopa County, Arizona; 1,200 feet west and 100 feet north of the southeast 1/4 of section 20, T.4N. R.7E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - Intermittently moist in some parts of the SMCS during July-September and December-February. Typic aridic moisture regime.
MAST: 72 to 76 degrees F.
Depth to Cr horizon: 5 to 10 inches.
Rock fragments: 15 to 90 percent on soil surface; dominantly gravel but includes cobbles in some pedons. 0 to 35 percent pebbles in the control section.
A horizon:
Hue: 5YR or 7.5YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry or moist
Texture: sandy loan
Carbonates: Slightly or strongly effervescent.
C horizon:
Hue: 5YR or 7.5YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 4 to 6 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry, 2 to 4 moist
Texture: sandy loam, very fine sandy loam, loam
Clay content: 8 to 18 percent clay
Carbonates: Strongly or violently effervescent; some pedons are noneffervescent immediately above the Cr horizon.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Beeline soils are on fan terraces and hillslopes and have slopes of 3 to 45 percent. They formed in material weathered from sandy conglomerate. Elevations are 1,400 to 2,000 feet. Beeline soils are in a hot arid continental climate. Average annual precipitation is 7 to 10 inches, occurring as summer thunderstorms and gentle winter rains. Mean annual temperature is 70 to 74 degrees F. The frost-free period is 250 to 300 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Ebon soils and the similar Cipriano and Gunsight soils. Ebon soils are deep and clayey-skeletal.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium to rapid runoff; moderately rapid permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for rangeland and recreation. Native vegetation is mainly creosotebush, triangle bursage, ratany, big galleta, barrel cactus, saguaro, ocotillo, whitethorn, littleleaf paloverde, Mormon-tea and bush muhly.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: South Central Arizona. The series is inextensive. MLRA 40.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Maricopa County, Arizona, 1982.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - the zone from the surface to a depth of 2 inches (A horizon).