LOCATION BERREND TX

Established Series
NAR-JAC
10/2012

BERREND SERIES

The Berrend series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in loamy alluvium and eolian sediments derived from conglomerate and volcanic sources. Berrend soils occur on piedmont slopes and fan remnants. Slopes range from 1 to 8 percent. The mean annual air temperature is about 61 degrees F and mean annual precipitation is about 16 inches.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, thermic Calcidic Argiustolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Berrend sandy clay loam - rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)

A--0 to 2 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) sandy clay loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; few very fine and fine pores; 1 percent igneous gravel; noneffervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (1 to 4 inches thick)

Bt1--2 to 13 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) sandy clay loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate medium subangular structure; moderately hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; common fine and medium pores; few distinct clay films on faces of peds; 1 percent igneous gravel; noneffervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary.

Bt2--13 to 19 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/3) clay loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; common fine and medium pores; few distinct clay films on faces of peds; 1 percent igneous gravel; noneffervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizons is 6 to 20 inches)

Btk--19 to 38 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/4) clay loam, brown (7.5YR 4/3) moist; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; common fine and few medium pores; very few faint clay films on faces of peds; few fine and medium masses of calcium carbonate; 1 percent igneous gravel; strong effervescence; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 45 inches)

Bk--38 to 60 inches; light brown (7.5YR 6/3) loam, brown (7.5YR 5/3) moist; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; few fine pores; few distinct coats of calcium carbonate on rock fragments; common medium and coarse masses of calcium carbonate; 5 percent igneous gravel; violent effervescence; moderately alkaline; diffuse wavy boundary. (12 to 30 inches thick)

C--60 to 80 inches; pink (7.5YR 7/4) fine sandy loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/4) moist; massive; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; 5 percent igneous gravel; strong effervescence; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Presidio County, Texas; From the intersection of U.S. Highways 90 and67 in Marfa; 8.6 miles south on U.S. Highway 67; 165 feet east in rangeland.USGS topographic quadrangle - San Esteban Lake, TX. Latitude: 30 degrees, 11 minutes, 38.7 seconds, N; Longitude: 104 degrees, 04 minutes, 23.6 seconds West, NAD 83. UTM Coordinates: 589213 m E, 3340655 m N, Zone 13.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil Moisture: An Aridic Ustic soil moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature: 61 to 63 degrees F
Thickness of the mollic epipedon: 10 to 19 inches
Depth to a calcic horizon: 10 to 40 inches

Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay content: 18 to 35 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent

A horizon
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 3 to 5 dry, 2 to 3 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry or moist
Texture: loam, fine sandy loam, sandy loam, sandy clay loam
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 0 to 10 percent
Effervescence: noneffervescent
Reaction: neutral to slightly alkaline

Bt horizons
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 3 to 5, dry or moist
Chroma: 2 to 4, dry or moist
Texture: loam, clay loam, sandy clay loam, sandy loam
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 0 to 10 percent
Effervescence: noneffervescent
Reaction: slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline

Btk horizons
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 4 to 7 dry, 3 to 5 moist
Chroma: 3 to 4, dry or moist
Texture: loam, clay loam, sandy clay loam
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 25 percent
Effervescence: noneffervescent
Effervescence: slightly to strongly
Reaction: slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline

Bk horizon
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 3 to 6 moist
Chroma: 3 or 4 dry or moist
Texture: loam, clay loam, sandy clay loam, sandy loam, fine sandy loam
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 10 to 30 percent
Effervescence: strongly or violently
Reaction: moderately alkaline

C horizon
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 6 to 7 dry, 4 to 6 moist
Chroma: 3 to 4, dry or moist
Texture: loam, fine sandy loam, sandy loam, loamy sand
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 20 percent
Effervescence: strongly or violently
Reaction: moderately alkaline

COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Berrend soils are on piedmont slopes and fan remnants at an elevation of 4,000 to 6.695 feet. Slopes range from 1 to 8 percent. These soils formed in loamy alluvium and eolian sediments derived mostly from conglomerate and volcanic sources. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 15 to 20 inches. Most precipitation occurs as high intensity rain during thunderstorms from June to September. Precipitation during the months of January, February, and March is less than 13 percent of the annual total. Mean annual air temperature ranges from 59 to 61 degrees F. The frost-free period is 180 to 220 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Boracho (TX), Chilimol (TX), Espy (TX), Marfa (TX), Murray (TX), and Musquiz (TX) series. Boracho and Espy soils are shallow to a petrocalcic layer. Chilimol and Murray soils do not have an argillic horizon. Marfa and Musquiz soils have more than 35 percent clay content in the particle-size control section.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderate. Runoff is low on 1 to 5 percent slopes, and medium on 5 to 8 percent slopes.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. Native vegetation consists of blue grama, black grama, cane bluestem, threeawn, yucca, and javelina bush.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: West Texas. MLRA 42. This series is of moderate extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Presidio County, Texas, 2012. The name comes from berrendo, a local term for pronghorn antelope.

REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle-size control section - 2 to 22 inches (Bt1, Bt2, Btk horizons)

Mollic epipedon - The zone from 0 to 19 inches (A, Bt1, Bt2 horizons)

Argillic horizon - The zone from 2 to 38 inches (Bt1, Bt2 and Btk horizons)

Calcic horizon - The zone from 38 to 60 inches (Bk horizon)

Classified according to Soil Taxonomy, Second Edition, 1999; Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Eleventh Edition, 2010

Revised for the correlation of Presidio County, Texas ; Oct, 2012, WWJ

ADDITIONAL DATA:
Data from Texas Tech University Soil Characterization Lab is available for pedon S00-TX377-1010.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.