LOCATION CERRILLOS NM+CO UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Ustic Calciargids
TYPICAL PEDON: Cerrillos fine sandy loam - rangeland. (Colors are for dry soils unless otherwise noted.)
A--0 to 5 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/4) fine sandy loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many fine roots; scattered surface gravel less than 15 percent by volume; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (2 to 5 inches thick)
Bt--5 to 9 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; strong fine to medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few fine roots; thin continuous clay films on faces of peds; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (4 to 9 inches thick)
Btk--9 to 13 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; few thin clay films on faces of peds; slightly effervescent with few soft calcium carbonate masses and lime-coated gravel; moderately alkaline; clear wavy boundary. (4 to 6 inches thick)
Bk--13 to 30 inches; pinkish white (7.5YR 8/2) clay loam, pink (7.5YR 7/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots to 15 inches; strongly effervescent with calcium carbonate disseminated; strongly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (7 to 20 inches thick)
C--30 to 60 inches; reddish yellow (5YR 6/6) sandy clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 5/4) moist; massive; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; slightly effervescent, strongly alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Santa Fe County, New Mexico; in abandoned railroad bank cut about 3.5 miles northwest of Galisteo, in the NE 1/4 of sec. 21, T. 14N., R 9E. Latitude 35 degrees 25 minutes 57.6 seconds N and Longitude 105 degrees 59 minutes 3.70 seconds W, NAD 27.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - The soil moisture control section is intermittently moist in some part from July to October and December to March. The soils are driest in May and June. The soil moisture regime is torric (aridic) bordering on ustic.
Mean annual soil temperature: 47 to 59 degrees F.
Depth to calcic horizon: 10 to 20 inches
Reaction: Neutral to strongly alkaline.
Rock Fragments: 0 to 15 percent in control section dominantly gravel, but may range to 35 percent in any horizon.
A horizon:
Hue - 5YR through 10YR.
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma 2 through 4.
Bt horizon:
Hue - 5YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 4 or 5 dry 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4.
Texture: Sandy clay loam or clay loam
Clay content: 27 to 35 percent clay
Bk horizon: Calcium carbonate equivalent - more than 15 percent.
Texture: Sandy clay loam, loam, or gravelly sandy clay loam
Clay content: 20 to 27 percent clay
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Alvey,
Barx,
Cabreros,
Clovis,
Fernando,
Flaco,
Horchata,
Maysdorf,
Millett,
Palabria,
Progresso,
Sanostee,
Schollee,
Selpats,
Solirec,
Spenlo,
Threetop,
Tuweep, and
Wineg soils.
Alvey soils have hue of 10YR or yellower
Barx, Fernando, and Solirec soils have colder winter temperatures and higher winter precipitation
Clovis and Spenlo soils receive more than half of it annual precipitation between the months of July and October and receive more precipitation in
May and June.
Cabreros, Flaco, Horchata, Progresso, Sanostee, and Threetop soils are moderately deep over bedrock.
Maysdorf, Selpats, and Threetop soils receive maximum precipitation in May and June. In addition, Maysdorf soils contains less than 15 percent carbonates in the calcic horizon.
Millett soils contains 25 to 75 percent gravel and cobbles in the lower part of the solum.
Palabria soils are deep to a lithic contact.
Scholle soils contains 15 to 35 percent gravel in the control section.
Selpats soils have skeletal lithologic discontinuity at depths ranging from 15 to 39 inches.
Tuweep soils are formed in alluvium from pyroclastics and basalt and have 10YR or yellower colors.
Wineg soils have a MAST of 56 degrees F. and MAP of over 14 inches.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Cerrillos soils are on gently sloping knolls and treads of fan remnants at elevations of 5,400 to 7,200 feet. The soils formed in medium to moderately fine textured sediments of alluvial, eolian, and colluvial materials. The sediments originated principally from monzonite and granite with some shale and sandstone additions. The climate at the type location is semiarid continental with mean annual precipitation of 10 to 13 inches. Mean annual temperature is 50 to 52 degrees F. The frost free period is 140 to 170 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Sedillo and Truehill soils. Sedillo soils are loamy-skeletal and occur on adjacent higher positions on treads of fan remnants. Truehill soils are loamy-skeletal, have dark surface horizons, and occur on risers of fan remnants.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well-drained, moderate to moderately slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Rangeland. The historic climax vegetation is blue grama, black grama, galleta, ring muhly, and broom snakeweed. The ecological site is Loamy(R036XB112NM).
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: North-central New Mexico and southern Colorado. MLRA 35, 36, 70. These soils are of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Santa Fe County (Santa Fe Area), New Mexico, 1970. The name is from a range of hills in New Mexico.
REMARKS: Diagnostic Horizons and Features Recognized in this Pedon:
Ochric epipedon: The zone from 0 to 5 inches. (A horizon).
Argillic horizon: The zone from 5 to 13 inches. (Bt and Btk horizons).
Calcic horizon: The zone from 13 to 30 inches. (Bk horizon).
Revised on 1/2003 to update classification from Haplargids to Calciargids, update competing series and the update format to current standards. When established the classification was fine-loamy, mixed, mesic Ustollic Haplargids.
Taxonomic version: Classified according to Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Tenth Edition, 2006.