LOCATION BUCHENAU CAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, active, thermic Typic Durixeralfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Buchenau loam - undisturbed range pasture. (Colors for dry conditions unless otherwise noted).
A1--0 to 8 inches; gray (10YR 5/1) loam, very dark gray (10YR 3/1) moist; massive dry, very weak very fine granular structure moist; hard, friable; moderately low in organic matter; fine pores; moderately alkaline (pH 7.9); moderately calcareous; clear smooth boundary. (4 to 8 inches thick)
B21t--8 to 16 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) light clay loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; hard, friable; thin patchy clay films on ped faces; fine pores; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); moderately calcareous, the lime both disseminated and in soft whitish seams and very fine hard segregations; clear smooth boundary. (3 to 8 inches thick)
B22t--16 to 30 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/20 light clay loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; hard, friable; thin patchy clay films on ped faces; low in organic matter; fine pores; moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); moderately calcareous, the lime both disseminated and in very fine hard white segregations; abrupt smooth boundary (3 to 14 inches thick)
Ccam--30 to 38 inches; very pale brown (10YR 8/3) strongly lime-cemented hardpan, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); clear smooth boundary. (6 to 10 inches thick)
C2--38 to 60 inches; light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) sandy clay loam stratified with thin lenses of lime hardpan, olive brown (2.5Y 4/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable; moderately alkaline, moderately calcareous.
TYPE LOCATION: Madera County, California. SW 1/4, SW 1/4, sec. 16, T. 9 S., R. 18 E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The soils have umbric epipedons, argillic and calcic horizons (minimal argillic with 10 percent clay increase A/B); are dry for 60 consecutive days; have mean soil temperature 59 degrees F; are of mixed mineralogy. Depth to the calcic horizon ranges from 20 to 52 inches. The soils have variable amounts of salt and alkali.
The A horizons range in color from gray, brown, grayish brown and dark grayish brown in 10YR hue; in texture from very fine sandy loam, loam to silt loam; moderately to strongly alkaline and slightly to moderately calcareous.
The B horizons range in color from grayish brown, light brownish gray to yellowish brown; in texture from loam to clay loam; in reaction from mildly to strongly alkaline and slightly to moderately calcareous.
The Ccam horizon is strongly cemented with lime and has over 15 percent calcium carbonate equivalent (45 percent in official).
COMPETING SERIES: There are no other series in the same family. similar series in the same subgroup is Jesbel which is in a fine family. Similar soils are the Fresno and El Paso which have duripans, and Pozo soils which lack argillic horizons.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Buchenau soils occur on small alluvial fans formed from metasedimentary rocks. They occur at elevations of less than 300 feet to 1,500 feet in a subhumid mesothermal climate with mean annual rainfall of 12 to 15 inches with hot dry summers and cool winters. Mean annual temperature is 62 degrees F; average January temperature is 44 degrees F, and average July temperature is 79 degrees F and an average frost-free season of about 250 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These include the Arlington, Cometa, Daulton, Hanford, Whiterock and Whitney. The Cometa has a claypan, the Daulton and Whiterock are developed over bedrock and the Whitney has semi-consolidated parent material of granitic sediments. Hanford soils lack an argillic horizon and Arlington soils have weak duripans.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: General drainage is well to moderately well drained. Runoff is medium to very slow. Permeability is moderately slow to the hardpan, then very slow.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for annual grass pasture and dry farmed grain. Vegetation consists of saltgrass and annual grasses, forbs and weeds.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The soils occur on the east side of the San Joaquin Valley and intermountain valleys of southern California. The soils are inextensive, comprising approximately 6,000 acres.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Madera Area, California, 1959. (Source of name is a ranch in Madera County).
REMARKS: The soils were formerly classified in the Chestnut great soil group. The activity class was added to the classification in January of 2003. Competing series were not checked at that time. - ET
Last revised by the state on 7/66.