LOCATION CASTOLON TX

Established Series
NAR
10/2012

CASTOLON SERIES

The Castolon series consists of very deep, moderately well drained soils formed in stratified alluvium. Castolon soils are on flood plains of large rivers, and have slopes of 0 to 3 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 11 inches and mean annual air temperature is about 70 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, superactive, calcareous, hyperthermic Ustic Torrifluvents

TYPICAL PEDON: Castolon silty clay loam-cultivated. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)

Ap1--0 to 4 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) silty clay loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline; abrupt wavy boundary. (4 to 6 inches thick)

Ap2--4 to 11 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; massive; moderately hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few fine and medium roots, few fine tubular pores; few platy clay bodies on vertical faces of cracks; few medium worm casts; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; abrupt smooth boundary. (4 to 8 inches thick)

C1--11 to 23 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) silty clay loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few fine and medium tubular roots; few fine tubular pores; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; abrupt wavy boundary. (10 to 14 inches thick)

C2--23 to 31 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) silt loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; few fine distinct brown (7.5YR 4/3) moist iron surface coat redox concentrations; massive; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and medium roots; few fine and common medium tubular pores; few thin stratified silt loam lenses; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline; abrupt wavy boundary. (6 to 8 inches thick)

C3--31 to 48 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) silt loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; few fine faint brown (7.5YR 4/3) moist, many medium prominent very dark brown (7.5YR 2.5/2) moist, and many medium faint dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist iron manganese surface coat redox concentrations; massive; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and medium roots; many fine tubular pores; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; abrupt smooth boundary. (12 to 18 inches thick)

C4--(48 to 62 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) silty clay loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; few fine distinct brown (7.5YR 4/3) moist and common coarse faint dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) iron surface coat redox concentrations; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; common fine and few medium tubular pores; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; abrupt smooth boundary. (10 to 16 inches thick)

C5--(62 to 84 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) silt loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; many fine distinct brown (7.5YR 4/3) moist and many coarse faint dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist iron surface coat redox concentrations; massive; slightly hard, friable, non-sticky and non-plastic; many fine tubular pores; few fine and medium charcoal fragments; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline; (4 to 8 inches thick)

TYPE LOCATION: Presidio County, Texas; from the junction of U.S Highway 67 and FM 170 on the east side of Presidio, 0.6 mile south on unpaved road; 0.2 mile east on unpaved road; 0.4 mile south on farm road; 100 feet east in cropland. Presidio East USGS 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle. Latitude: 29 degrees, 24 minutes, 29 seconds N.; Longitude: 103 degrees, 12 minutes, 30 seconds W. NAD 1983; UTM coordinates 673833 m E, 3254531 m N, Zone 13

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil moisture Receives precipitation in all months. Driest period is November through April with peak rainfall occurring during May through December. Ustic aridic soil moisture regime.

Soil temperature: 72 to 78 degrees F.

Soil depth: greater than 60 inches

Clay content in control section: 18 to 35 percent

Rock fragment content: 0 to 5 percent

Reaction: slightly to moderately alkaline

Salinity: non-saline to moderately saline

Stratification: common strata of finer or coarser material 1 to 24 inches thick

A horizon
Hue: 10YR, 7.5YR
Value: 3 to 7, dry or moist
Chroma: 2 to 5, dry or moist
Texture: silt loam, silty clay loam, loam, clay loam, clay
Clay content: 5 to 45 percent

C horizon
Hue: 10YR, 7.5YR
Value: 3 to 7, dry or moist
Chroma: 2 to 5, dry or moist
Texture: silt, silt loam, silty clay loam, loam, clay loam, clay
Clay content: 18 to 45 percent

COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Castolon soils are on flood plains of large rivers. Slopes are mostly 0 to 1 percent, ranging up to 3 percent. These soils formed in stratified, fine-silty alluvium. Mean annual precipitation is 254 to 330 mm (10 to 13 inches). Most precipitation occurs as high intensity rain during afternoon convective thunderstorms from June to September. Mean annual air temperature is 68 to 72 degrees F. Frost free period range from 240 to 280 days and elevation ranges from 1,710 to 4,000 feet.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Galindo (T)(TX), Leaton (TX), Lomapelona (TX), Paloblanco (TX), and Vicente (TX) series. Galindo soils are clayey over loamy. Leaton soils are fine, have aquic conditions, and contain significant natural redoximorphic features. Lomapelona soils are coarse-loamy.
Paloblanco soils are loamy over sandy. Vicente soils are coarse-silty.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderate to moderately slow. Runoff is medium.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used for livestock grazing and where irrigated for cultivated crops and pasture. Cotton, alfalfa, and grains are common irrigated crops. The vegetation consists of creosotebush, saltcedar, and palo verde.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: West Texas. MLRA 42. The series is of minor extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona.

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Brewster County, Texas, Main Part, 2008. The name is taken from a community along the Rio Grande within Big Bend National Park.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:

Ochric epipedon: the zone from 0 to 7 inches (A horizon)

Classified according to Soil Taxonomy, Second Edition, 1999; Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Eleventh Edition, 2010.

Moisture and temperature regime revised for the recorrelation of Brewster County, Texas, Main Part, 2/8/2008, CEM.

Revised for the correlation of Big Bend National Park, TX, Oct. 2010, CEM

Revised for the correlation of Hudspeth County, Texas (Main Part) and Culberson County, Texas (Main Part); July, 2012, NMS

Revised for the correlation of Presidio County, Texas ; Oct, 2012, WWJ

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.