LOCATION BERRYHILL NMEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, mixed, superactive, mesic Chromic Gypsitorrerts
TYPICAL PEDON: Berryhill silty clay--in rangeland on a convex surface of 4 percent slope at an elevation of 7,120 feet. (Colors are for dry soils unless otherwise noted.)
A--0 to 2 inches; light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) silty clay, olive brown (2.5Y 4/4) moist; moderate medium granular structure; soft, friable, very sticky and very plastic; common very fine and fine roots; common very fine vesicular and few fine irregular pores; few cracks 0.5 inch wide; carbonates are disseminated; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)
Bw--2 to 12 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) clay, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; very hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; many very fine and fine roots; common fine irregular and few fine vesicular pores; common pressure faces; few cracks 0.5 inch wide; carbonates are disseminated; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 31 inches thick)
Bssyz1--12 to 26 inches; grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) clay, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; moderate medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; extremely hard, extremely firm, very sticky and very plastic; common very fine and few fine roots; few fine irregular pores; many pressure faces; common 0.5 inch diameter slickensides; few cracks 0.5 inch wide extending to 25 inches; common medium gypsum and sodium sulfate crystals; carbonates are disseminated; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); clear wavy boundary. (The combined thickness of the Bssyz horizons are 20 to 69 inches.)
Bssyz2--26 to 39 inches; grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) clay, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; massive; extremely hard, extremely firm, very sticky and very plastic; few fine roots; few fine irregular pores; common pressure faces; few 0.5 inch slickensides; few fine gypsum and sodium sulfate crystals; carbonates are disseminated; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); gradual wavy boundary. (The combined thickness of the Bssyz horizons are 20 to 69 inches.)
Bssyz3--39 to 70 inches; grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) clay, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; massive; extremely hard, extremely firm; very sticky and very plastic; few very fine roots; few fine irregular pores; many pressure faces; common fine gypsum and sodium sulfate crystals; carbonates are disseminated; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0). (The combined thickness of the Bssyz horizons are 20 to 69 inches.)
TYPE LOCATION: McKinley County, New Mexico; Goat Mountain Quadrangle; about 1000 feet west and 1800 feet north of the southeast corner of sec 3, T. 14 N., R. 11 W.; 107 degrees 59 minutes 6 seconds west longitude, 35 degrees 28 minutes 9 seconds north latitude.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil Moisture: Intermittently moist in some part of the soil moisture control section November through April and July through October. The period of maximum precipitation is July through October. The soil is driest during May and June. Ustic aridic moisture regime.
Soil temperature: 51 to 56 degrees F
Particle-size control section: 40 to 55 percent clay
Depth to gypsum and sodium sulfate accumulations: 3 to 32 inches
Depth to the gypsic horizon: 12 to 20 inches with 10 to 35 percent gypsum, gypsum content decreases in the underlying horizon
Reaction: slightly or moderately alkaline
Vertic properties: gilgai - microrelief ranges up to 2 inches cracks: 0.5 to 2 inches in width range from 2 to 30 inches or more pressure faces and slickensides: few to many below 2 inches
A horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 5 or 6 dry
Chroma: 2 to 4 dry and moist
Rock fragments: 0 to 20 percent sandstone and shale gravel and channers
Salinity: EC of 0-2 mmhos/cm
Sodicity: SAR of 0-2
Bw horizon (may be absent):
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 3 or 4 moist
Chroma: 3 or 4 moist
Salinity: EC of 2-4 mmhos/cm
Sodicity: SAR of 2-5
Bssyz1 horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4 moist
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 1 to 10 percent
Gypsum and sodium sulfate: Few to common clusters of crystals
Percent gypsum: 10 to 35 percent
Salinity: 2-4 mmhos/cm
Sodicity: 2-5 SAR
Bssyz2 and Bssyz3 horizons:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4 moist
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 1 to 10 percent
Gypsum and sodium sulfate: Few to common clusters of crystals
Percent gypsum: 2 to 8 percent
Salinity: 2-8 mmhos/cm
Sodicity: 2-8 SAR
COMPETING SERIES: This is the Rehobeth (NM) series. The Rehobeth soils have hues 2.5YR and redder.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Berryhill soils formed in alluvium and slope alluvium derived from gypsiferous Mancos shale and are alluvial fans on valley sides and hills and stream terraces on valley floors. Slopes are 2 to 8 percent. Elevations range from 7,000 to 7,800 feet. The mean annual temperature is 49 to 54 degrees F., and the mean annual precipitation is 10 to 13 inches. The frost free period is 120 to 140 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Casamero,
Penistaja and
Tintero
soils on fan terraces; and the
Sparank,
San Mateo, and
Zia soils on floodplains, alluvial fans, and stream terraces. The Casamero soils are moderately deep to shale. The Penistaja and Tintero soils are fine-loamy. The Sparank, San Mateo, and Zia soils lack a gypsic horizon.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained, medium to very high runoff, and very slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: This series is used for rangeland. The present vegetation is western wheatgrass, blue grama, bottlebrush squirreltail, winterfat, fourwing saltbush, galleta, threeawns, broom snakeweed, rubber rabbitbrush, and scattered pinyon pine and oneseed juniper.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: West central New Mexico. MLRA 35, LRR-D. This series is of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: McKinley County Area, New Mexico; McKinley County and Parts of Cibola and San Juan Counties, 2001.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon: The zone from 0 to 2 inches. (A horizon)
Gypsic horizon: The zone from 12 to 26 inches. (Bssyz1)
Vertic properties: Gilgai microrelief ranges up to 2 inches. Cracks are 0.5 to 2 inches in width and
range 2 to 30 inches or more. Pressure faces and slickensides are few to many below 2 inches.
Classified according to Soil Taxonomy Second Edition, 1999.
ADDITIONAL DATA: This pedon had tests run for PSA, %OM, SAR, and % gypsum by Inter-Mountain Laboratories in Farmington, New Mexico.