LOCATION BUCKSPRING              NV

Established Series
Rev. LJL/TM/ET
04/2015

BUCKSPRING SERIES

The Buckspring series consists of shallow, well drained soils that formed in residuum and colluvium from limestone. Buckspring soils are on back slopes of mountains. Slope ranges from 15 to 50 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 14 inches and the mean annual air temperature is about 47 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic Aridic Lithic Argiustolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Buckspring very gravelly loam, forest and wildlife habitat. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered by approximately 50 percent gravel, 8 percent cobbles and 1 percent stones.

A1--0 to 2 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) very gravelly loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate thick platy structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine roots; many very fine and common fine tubular pores; 40 percent pebbles, 8 percent cobbles and 1 percent stones; very slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)

A2--2 to 10 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) extremely cobbly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine through very coarse roots; many very fine tubular pores; 40 percent pebbles and 25 percent cobbles; very slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 8 inches thick)

Btk--10 to 17 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) extremely cobbly loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine, few fine through coarse roots; many very fine tubular pores; 5 percent, faint, clay films on sand grains, rock fragments and lining pores; 50 percent, fine, continuous, prominent, very pale brown (10YR 8/3), calcium carbonate pendants on undersides of rock fragments; 25 percent pebbles and 35 percent cobbles; very slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); very abrupt wavy boundary. (6 to 16 inches thick)

R--17 inches; hard limestone.

TYPE LOCATION: Clark County, Nevada; about 8 miles east and 9 miles north of Charleston Peak, Nevada; approximately 2.3 miles north and 0.7 miles west of Wheeler Well on the north end of the Spring Mountains; tentatively sectioned area 1,800 feet south and 1,700 feet east of the northeast corner of section 7, T. 18 S., R. 55 E.; USGS Willow Peak, Nevada, 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; 36 degrees, 24 minutes, 9.2 seconds north latitude and 115 degrees, 50 minutes, 24.3 seconds west longitude; UTM 11, 0604009e, 4029223n; NAD83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - usually dry, moist in late winter and early spring and intermittently moist in the upper part following summer convection storms; aridic soil moisture regime bordering on ustic.
Soil temperature: 47 to 52 degrees F.
Mollic epipedon thickness: 7 to 15 inches, may include the upper part of B horizons.
Depth to argillic horizon: 1 to 10 inches.
Depth to lithic contact: 14 to 20 inches.

Control section - Rock fragments: 50 to 70 percent, mainly gravel and cobbles.
Clay content: 15 to 25 percent.

A horizons - Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry and moist.
Structure: Platy or subangular blocky.
Consistence: Nonsticky or slightly sticky, nonplastic or slightly plastic.
Effervescence: Very slightly effervescent to strongly effervescent.
Calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction: 0 to 5 percent.
Reaction: Neutral or slightly alkaline.
Organic matter: 1.0 to 2.0 percent.

Bk horizon(s) (when present) - Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry and moist.
Texture: Loam or silt loam.
Rock fragments: 50 to 70 percent, mainly gravel and cobbles.
Effervescence: Very slightly effervescent through strongly effervescent.
Calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction: 0 to 5 percent.
Reaction: Neutral or slightly alkaline.
Organic matter: 1.0 to 2.0 percent.

Btk horizon(s) - Value: 4 through 6, dry; 3 or 4, moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4 dry and moist.
Texture: Loam or silt loam.
Structure: Moderately or strong, fine or medium.
Consistence: Slightly hard through hard, very friable or friable, slightly plastic or moderately plastic.
Rock fragments: 50 to 70 percent, mainly gravel and cobbles.
Effervescence: Very slightly effervescent through violently effervescent.
Calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction: 0 to 5 percent.
Reaction: Neutral or slightly alkaline.
Organic matter: 0.2 to 0.8 percent.
Other features: In some pedons, the upper subhorizon of the Btk horizon is part of the mollic epipedon.

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Wheelerpass series. Wheelerpass soils are noneffervescent throughout the profile.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Buckspring soils are on back slopes of mountains. Slope ranges from 15 to 50 percent. These soils formed in residuum and colluvium from limestone. Elevations are 5,800 to 7,500 feet. The climate is sub-humid continental, cool, with moist winters and common summer convection storms. The mean annual precipitation is 12 to 16 inches, mean annual air temperature is 45 to 49 degrees F., and the frost-free period is 90 to 130 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Fletcherpeak soils. Fletcherpeak soils have a frigid soil temperature regime.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; very high runoff; moderate permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for forest and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly singleleaf pinyon, Utah juniper, black sagebrush, Gambels oak, desert snowberry, purple birds beak and muttongrass.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mojave Desert of southern Nevada; MLRA 30. These soils are moderately extensive.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: PHOENIX, ARIZONA

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Clark County Area, Nevada, 2006. Proposed in Clark County Area, Nevada, 2003. The name is coined from Buck Spring located in the Spring Mountains.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in the profile are:
Mollic epipedon - 0 to 10 inches (A1 and A2 horizons).
Argillic horizon - 10 to 17 inches (Btk horizon).
Lithic contact - 17 inches (upper boundary of the R layer).
Particle-size control section - 10 to 17 inches (Btk horizon).

Responsibility for this series was transferred from Davis to Phoenix 4/2015. The last revision to the series was 7/2006. ET

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.