LOCATION CANFIRE                 CA+NV

Established Series
Rev. EWB/JVC/JBF
03/2017

CANFIRE SERIES

The Canfire series consists of shallow, well drained soils that formed in residuum and colluvium derived from metamorphic rocks. Canfire soils are on mountains. Slopes are 30 to 75 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 480 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 6 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic Lithic Argixerolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Canfire very gravelly sandy loam--forest land. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered with 25 percent gravel, 25 percent channers, 10 percent cobbles, 10 percent flagstones, 3 percent stones, and 1 percent boulders.

A--0 to 5 cm; grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) very gravelly sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (2.5Y 3/2) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; common very fine roots; many very fine interstitial and common very fine tubular pores; 20 percent gravel, 10 percent channers, and 10 percent cobbles; slightly acid (pH 6.4); clear wavy boundary. (3 to 8 cm thick)

Bt1--5 to 18 cm; grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) very gravelly loam, very dark grayish brown (2.5Y 3/2) moist; moderate fine and medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, moderately sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine, fine, medium and coarse roots; common very fine tubular and interstitial pores; common faint clay bridges between sand grains; 30 percent gravel and 5 percent channers; 10 percent parachanners; neutral (pH 6.7); clear wavy boundary. (10 to 18 cm thick)

Bt2--18 to 43 cm; light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/3) very gravelly loam, olive brown (2.5Y 4/3) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, moderately sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine and common fine, medium, coarse and very coarse roots; common very fine tubular and interstitial pores; common faint clay bridges between sand grains; 30 percent gravel and 10 percent channers; 10 percent parachanners; neutral (pH 6.7); abrupt irregular boundary. (15 to 30 cm thick)

R--43 cm; hard fractured gneiss.

TYPE LOCATION: Mono County, California; on the Toiyabe National Forest about 2 miles southwest of the town of Walker; approximately 2,000 feet north and 350 feet east of the southwest corner of section 5, T. 7 N., R. 23 E.; USGS Chris Flat 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 38 degrees 28 minutes 42.6 seconds N and longitude 119 degrees 29 minutes 3 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 38.4785833 latitude, -119.4828611 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually moist in the moisture control section during late fall, winter, and spring; dry from July through early October for 75 to 90 consecutive days in the four months following the summer solstice; xeric moisture regime that borders on aridic.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 10 degrees C.
Mollic epipedon thickness: 18 to 25 cm; includes the Bt1 horizon.
Depth to bedrock: 36 to 50 cm to a lithic contact.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: Averages 18 to 25 percent.
Rock fragments: Averages 35 to 60 percent, mainly gravel. Lithology of rock fragments are metamorphic rocks such as schist or gneiss.

A horizon
Hue: 2.5Y or 10YR.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Organic matter content: 1 to 3 percent.
Reaction: Slightly acid or neutral.

Bt1 horizon
Hue: 2.5Y or 10YR.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Texture: Very gravelly loam or very gravelly sandy clay loam.
Clay content: 18 to 25 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent.
Pararock fragments: 5 to 15 percent paragravel or parachanners.
Organic matter content: 1 to 3 percent.
Reaction: Slightly acid or neutral.


Bt2 horizon
Hue: 2.5Y or 10YR.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Texture: Very gravelly loam or very gravelly sandy clay loam.
Clay content: 18 to 25 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent.
Pararock fragments: 5 to 15 percent paragravel or parachanners.
Organic matter content: 0.5 to 1 percent.
Reaction: Slightly acid or neutral.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Chinabutte, Clovercreek, Gwin, Shepridge, Stepmount, and Windry series.
Chinabutte, Clovercreek, Gwin, and Windry soils have more than 25 percent clay in the particle-size control section. Shepridge soils are slightly alkaline. Stepmount soils have identifiable secondary carbonates in the argillic horizon.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Canfire soils are on mountains. They typically occur on backslope positions. They formed in residuum and colluvium derived from metamorphic rocks such as schist or gneiss. Slopes are 30 to 75 percent. Elevations range from 1,670 to 2,710 meters. The climate is subhumid-continental with cold, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 350 to 600 mm, mean annual temperature is 4 to 7 degrees C., and the frost-free period is 50 to 80 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Chrisflat, Crispy, and Pinew soils. Chrisflat soils are very deep and have thick mollic epipedons. Crispy and Pinew soils are shallow to paralithic contacts and have a frigid temperature regime.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; very high surface runoff; moderate permeability; moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Canfire soils are used for forest land, recreation, watershed, and wildlife habitat. The native vegetation is mainly a forest canopy of singleleaf pinyon with an understory of antelope bitterbrush, mountain big sagebrush, currant, bluegrass, and desert needlegrass. Some areas have scattered Jeffrey pine.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Eastern California and western Nevada, on the east side of the Sierra Nevada Range. These soils are not extensive with about 2,000 acres of the series mapped to date. MLRAs 22A and 26.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California.

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Mono County (Toiyabe National Forest Area), California, 2006.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 18 cm (A and Bt1 horizons).
Argillic horizon - The zone from 5 to 43 cm (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons).
Lithic contact - The boundary at 43 cm to underlying hard bedrock (R layer).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 5 to 43 cm (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons).

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.