LOCATION BIDONIA            AZ
Established Series
Rev. WJ/NLM/RLB
05/2006

BIDONIA SERIES


The Bidonia series consists of shallow, well drained soils that formed in alluvium from sandstone. Bidonia soils are on plateaus and mesas and have slopes of 1 to 8 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 12 inches and the mean annual temperature is about 54 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Clayey, kaolinitic, mesic Lithic Ustic Haplargids

TYPICAL PEDON: Bidonia very channery loam - woodland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A1--0 to 1 inch; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) very channery loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; moderate fine granular structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; many vesicular pores; 25 percent channers, 10 percent flagstones; slightly alkaline (pH 7.5); abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)

A2--1 to 3 inches; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) channery fine sandy loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; moderate thin platy structure; slightly hard, friable, sticky and plastic; few very fine roots; many vesicular pores; discontinuous stone line at 3 to 4 inches, horizontally oriented channers; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 2 inches thick)

Bt1--3 to 10 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) clay, yellowish red (5YR 4/6) moist; moderate coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate fine subangular blocky; hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; few thin clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 10 inches thick)

Bt2--10 to 14 inches; yellowish red (5YR 4/6) channery clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 5/4) moist; strong very fine subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; few fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; common moderately thick clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; 30 percent channer-size pan fragments; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt smooth boundary.

2R--14 inches; thin bedded fine grained sandstone; common red (2.5YR 4/6) clay films and lime coatings in fractures.

TYPE LOCATION: Mohave County, Arizona, about 5.5 miles southwest of Colorado City; 1000 feet east and 500 feet north of the southwest corner of section 15, T. 41N., R. 7W.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil Moisture: Intermittently moist in some part of the soil moisture control section during July-September and December-March. Driest during May and June. Ustic aridic soil moisture regime.

Rock Fragments: less than 35 percent in the control section

Soil temperature: 54 to 57 degrees F.

Depth to bedrock: 10 to 20 inches

A horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 3 through 6, dry or moist

Bt horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 4 through 6, dry or moist
Texture: clay, sandy clay, clay loam, loam
Reaction: slightly or moderately alkaline

A Bk or Btk horizon with less than 15 percent calcium carbonate equivalent is present in some pedons.

COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Bidonia soils are on plateaus and mesas at elevations of 4,900 to 5,800 feet. These soils formed in alluvium from sandstone. Slopes range from 1 to 8 percent. The mean annual precipitation is 10 to 14 inches. The mean annual air temperature is 52 to 55 degrees F. The frost-free period is 150 to 165 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Kech, Barx and Mespun soils. Kech soils are loamy. Barx soils are fine-loamy, Mespun soils are sandy, and both are very deep.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; slow permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: Bidonia soils are used for livestock grazing and fuelwood harvesting. The present vegetation is Utah Juniper and pinyon pine.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Arizona. The series is of moderate extent. MLRA 35.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Coconino County, Arizona; Soil survey of Coconino County Area, Arizona, North Kaibab Part; 1991.

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

Ochric epipedon - the zone from 0 to 3 inches (A horizon)

Argillic horizon - the zone from 3 to 14 inches (Bt1, Bt2 horizons)

Lithic contact - the boundary at 14 inches (R horizon)

ADDITIONAL DATA:

NSSL sample - S82AZ-015-002


National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.