LOCATION BRIOS AZEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy, mixed, hyperthermic Typic Torrifluvents
TYPICAL PEDON: Brios sandy loam - cultivated. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
Ap--0 to 14 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, common fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; 5 percent fine gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (7 to 16 inches thick)
C1--14 to 22 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) coarse sand, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable; many fine irregular pores; 5 percent fine gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (8 to 34 inches thick)
C2--22 to 60 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) stratified coarse sand and gravelly coarse sand with thin (1/4 to 2 inches) strata of fine sandy loam and sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; single grain; loose; many fine irregular pores; 14 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4).
TYPE LOCATION: Maricopa County, Arizona; 65 feet south and 228 feet east of the northwest corner of section 10, T. 2 N., R. 2 W. Lat. 33 degrees 32 minutes 12 seconds N., long. 112 degrees 27 minutes 38 seconds W., NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - Intermittently moist in some part of the soil moisture control section during July-September and December-February. Driest during May and June. Typic aridic soil moisture regime.
Soil Temperature: 72 to 77 degrees F.
Rock fragments: Less than 10 percent gravel by volume but ranges up to 35 percent in some pedons
Organic matter content: Less than 1 percent, decreases irregularly
Calcium carbonate: Noneffervescent to violently effervescent. Is disseminated or as fine threads, filaments or coatings on gravel; less than 15 percent calcium carbonate equivalent
A horizon
Hue: 10YR, 7.5YR
Value: 5, 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2, 3 or 4, dry or moist
C horizon
Hue: 10YR, 7.5YR
Value: 5, 6 or 7 dry, 3, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2, 3 or 4 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Texture: Stratified coarse sand to loamy sand with thin (1/4 to 1 inch) strata of fine sandy loam and sandy loam (2 to 15 percent clay)
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Coachella (CA), Nonamewash (NV) and Vint (AZ) series. Coachella soils have a hue of 5Y or 2.5Y. Nonamewash soils have gypsum and relict mottles within the control section. Vint soils are dominantly loamy fine sand in the control section.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Brios soils are on flood plains and alluvial fans. Slopes are dominantly less than 3 percent but range up to 5 percent. They formed in mixed and stratified alluvium. Elevation is 175 to 2,200 feet. The climate is hot arid continental. Mean annual precipitation is 2 to 10 inches, occurring as summer thunderstorms and gentle winter rains. Mean annual air temperature is 69 to 75 degrees F. The frost-free period is 240 to 350 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Coolidge and Gilman soils. Coolidge and Gilman soils are coarse-loamy and Coolidge soils have a calcic horizon.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Excessively drained; slow runoff; rapid permeability. These soils are subject to flooding.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for livestock grazing, recreation and for growing irrigated cotton, alfalfa, small grains and vegetables. The vegetation is four-wing saltbush, mesquite, creosotebush, big galleta and arrowweed.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southwestern Arizona. The series is moderately extensive. MLRAs 31 and 40.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Maricopa County, Arizona; 1972.
Remarks: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Entisol feature - The absence of diagnostic subsurface horizons
Classified according to Soil Taxonomy, Second Edition, 1999; Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Tenth Edition, 2006
Revised for the correlations of AZ661, 11/08, PDC