LOCATION BYWELL NMEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive Typic Cryaquolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Bywell silt loam - meadow. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A1--0 to 4 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) silt loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; common fine distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) mottles; moderate fine granular structure; soft, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine and very fine roots; many fine interstital pores; moderately acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (4 to 15 inches thick)
A2--4 to 11 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; common fine distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) mottles; moderate fine granular structure; soft, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine and very fine roots; many fine tubular pores; 10 percent pebbles; slightly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 11 inches thick)
2C1--11 to 25 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) very cobbly sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; common medium distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) mottles; massive; soft, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine and very fine roots; common fine vesicular pores; 30 percent pebbles and 25 percent cobbles; neutral; gradual smooth boundary. (12 to 25 inches thick)
2C2--25 to 30 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very cobbly sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) moist; many medium distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) mottles; massive; soft, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; few very fine vesicular pores; 20 percent pebbles and 20 percent cobbles; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
2Cg1--30 to 42 inches; gray (10YR 5/1) very cobbly coarse sandy loam, dark gray (10YR 4/1) moist; many medium prominent yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) mottles; massive; soft, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; 15 percent pebbles and 20 percent cobbles; neutral; abrupt smooth boundary. (6 to 14 inches thick)
3C--42 to 60 inches; gray (10YR 6/1) rounded pebbles and cobbles.
TYPE LOCATION: Rio Arriba County, New Mexico; 11.8 miles east and 2.7 miles south of Chama; New Mexico state plane coordinates 2,134,230 feet north and 466,740 feet east. 106 degrees, 22 minutes, 02 seconds west longitude; 36 degrees, 51 minutes, 58 seconds north latitude.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: The SMCS is saturated December through June and moist in at least some parts the remainder of the year.
Mean Annual Soil temperature: 36 to 38 degrees F.
Mean Summer Soil Temperature: 40 to 50 degrees F.
Percent clay in control section: 10 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments within control section: 35 to 55 percent cobbles and pebbles.
Reaction: Neutral to moderately acid.
Water Table: At the soil surface to 2.5 feet.
Thickness of mollic epipedon: 9 to 15 inches.
Depth to 2C horizons: 10 to 21 inches.
Depth to 3C horizon (when present): more than 40 inches.
A horizon - Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist. Chroma: 2 or 3. Rock Fragments: 0 to 10 percent pebbles.
2C horizon - Value: 4 to 6 dry, 3 to 5 moist. Chroma: 3 or 4. Texture: very cobbly sandy loam, very cobbly coarse sandy loam
2Cg horizon - Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y. Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist. Chroma: 1 or 2 Texture: very cobbly sandy loam or very cobbly coarse sandy loam.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no other competing series in the same family. A similar soil is Crubas(NM). Crubas soils have more than 35 percent clay in the particle-size control section and less than 35 percent rock fragments.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Bywell soils are on stream terraces and have formed in alluvium derived from metamorphic rocks. The seasonal water table is at the soil surface to 2.5 feet. Slopes range from 0 to 2 percent. The mean annual precipitation is 30 to 35 inches, and the mean annual temperature is 35 to 38 degrees F. Elevations are 9,600 to 10,400 feet; and the frost-free period is 50 to 70 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the similar Crubas and the Croftshaw series. Croftshaw soils have less than 35 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Poorly drained; very slow to slow runoff; moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Bywell soils are used mainly for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is bluegrass, sedge and rush species, alpine timothy, shrubby cinquefoil, clover, and tufted hairgrass.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern New Mexico. The series is of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, 1989.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - 0 to 11 inches;
Aquic moisture regime - saturation, low chroma colors and mottles in lower part of mollic epipedon.
The superactive cation exchange activity class was added in 03/2003 to the taxonomic classification by the National Soil Survey Center on request of the Lakewood MLRA office, without review of the soil series property data. The remainder of this document has not been updated.