LOCATION BELLAVISTA CA+UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Durixeralfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Bellavista loam - pasture. (Colors for dry soil unless otherwise stated)
Apk--0 to 9 inches; gray (10YR 5/1) loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; massive, breaking to weak coarse platy structure; soft, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; plentiful very fine and fine roots; common very fine tubular and interstitial pores; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0), strongly effervescent with disseminated lime; clear smooth boundary. (7 to 10 inches thick)
Btk--9 to 20 inches; light gray and light brownish gray (10YR 6/1, 6/2) light fine sandy clay loam; dark grayish-brown (10YR 4/2) moist; massive; hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; abundant very fine and plentiful medium roots; many very fine and common fine tubular pores; common thin clay films in pores; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); strongly effervescent with disseminated lime; abrupt wavy boundary. (8 to 14 inches thick)
Bkm1--20 to 23 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) with light gray lime coatings, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist with yellowish brown lime streaks; massive; indurated, extremely hard, extremely firm, nonsticky, nonplastic; roots spread out above pan; very few fine tubular pores; upper boundary is capped with 1/4 inch thick layer of silica and lime; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); violently effervescent, lime is both disseminated and in seams; clear wavy boundary. (1 to 4 inches thick)
Bkm2--24 to 42 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) with light gray lime streaks, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; massive; very hard, very firm, indurated with some soft spots; nonsticky, nonplastic; no roots, few fine tubular pores; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); violently effervescent with lime disseminated and in seams; clear wavy boundary.
Bkqm--42 to 64 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) with light gray streaks, loamy coarse sand, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist, with very pale brown streaks; strong fine and medium platy structure; hard, very firm, nonsticky and nonplastic; no roots; few fine tubular pores; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0) abrupt, smooth and wavy boundary. The Cm horizon is 12 to 24 inches thick.
2Bkqm--64+ inches; brown (7.5YR 5/4) sandy loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist with few faint very dark brown mottles; massive; hard, very firm, nonsticky, nonplastic; no roots; few fine tubular pores; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0).
TYPE LOCATION: In Plumas County, California, on the east side of the junction of Dyson Lane and Highway 49, 50 feet east of the roadside fence; 1,400 feet west and 1,300 feet south of the NE corner of section 17, T. 22 N., R. 16 E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness is 20 to 30 inches to the top of the duripan. Mean annual soil temperature ranges from 50 to 53 degrees F. Mineralogy is mixed. The A horizon colors are in 10YR and 2.5Y hues and have values of 5 to 7 dry and 3 or 4 moist. Chromas are 1 or 2. Texture ranges from fine sandy loam to loam in the upper part of the A horizon and fine sandy clay loam to clay loam in the lower part. Structure is weak to strong platy or the horizon may be massive. Reaction is moderately alkaline and strongly calcareous. The Cm horizon colors are in 10YR and 2.5Y hues with values of 5 to 8 dry and 3 to 5 moist. Chromas are 1 or 2. Structure is massive or platy and cementation is stronger in the upper Cm horizons than in the lower Cm horizons. The uppermost Cm horizon commonly has a thin indurated layer at the top. The lower Cm horizons are strongly to weakly cemented. Cementing agents are lime and silica.
COMPETING SERIES: These include the Chiara, Lien, and Skull Creek series in the same subgroup and the Honey, Hovey, Kafader and Raglan series in similar subgroups. There are no series in the same family. The Chiara, Lien and Skull Creek soils all are frigid. The Honey soils have argillic horizons, the Kafader soils have duric horizons that lack induration, and the Raglan soils have cambic horizons.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Bellavista soils are on nearly level but usually hummocky basins or adjacent low terraces. The underlying sediments are stratified, alkaline and coarse loamy. Elevations range from 4,500 to 5,000 feet. The climate is cool continental with mean annual rainfall of 12 to 18 inches with warm dry summers and cold, moist winters. Mean annual temperature is about 48 degrees F, average January temperature about 28 degrees F, and average July temperature about 66 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: Bellavista soils are in the same general areas as the Baldock soils in basins, the Bidwell and Loyalton soils on low terraces and the Bieber soils on high terraces.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well drained; slow runoff and moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used mostly for pasture with a few areas in dryland grain crops. Native vegetation consists of sagebrush and annual and perennial grasses.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The soils are in the high valleys of north-eastern California where they are inextensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Redding Area, California 1907.
REMARKS: The Bellavista series was formerly classified in the Groundwater Calcisol group.
Series reclassified on September, 1994. Competing series not reviewed at that time.
The superactive cation exchange activity class was added in 03/2003 to the taxonomic classification by the National Soil Survey Center on request of the Reno MLRA office, without review of the soil series property data. The remainder of this document has not been updated.