LOCATION CHERRY SPRING           NV

Established Series
Rev. RAF/RLB/JBF
02/2016

CHERRY SPRING SERIES

The Cherry Spring series consists of moderately deep to a strongly cemented duripan, well drained soils that formed in loess high in volcanic ash over alluvium derived from mixed rocks. Cherry Spring soils are on fan piedmont remnants. Slopes are 2 to 8 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 200 mm and the mean annual air temperature is about 8 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Haploxeralfic Argidurids

TYPICAL PEDON: Cherry Spring silt loam--rangeland (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A1--0 to 8 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) silt loam; dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate thick platy structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and fine roots; many very fine and fine, few medium vesicular pores; neutral (pH 6.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 15 cm thick)

A2--8 to 18 cm; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) silt loam; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; strong medium platy structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and fine roots; many very fine and fine, few medium vesicular pores; neutral (pH 6.7); abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 15 cm thick)

A3--18 to 38 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) silt loam; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and fine roots; many very fine and fine, few medium vesicular pores; neutral (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 20 cm thick)

Bt--38 to 74 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) loam; brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to weak medium subangular blocky; hard, friable, sticky and plastic; many very fine and fine roots; few very fine and fine tubular, and common medium and very fine interstitial pores; common thin clay films lining pores and few moderately thick clay films on faces of ped; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear smooth boundary. (10 to 38 cm thick)

Btqk--74 to 91 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) loam that is weakly silica-cemented and contains many fine white (10YR 8/1) lime carbonate filaments, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak medium and fine subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; few fine tubular, many fine and very fine interstitial pores; common moderately thick clay films in pores and few thin clay films on ped faces; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear wavy boundary. (13 to 25 cm thick)

2Bqkm1--91 to 104 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) strongly cemented gravelly duripan with many fine and medium white (10YR 8/1) lime carbonate filaments, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; weak medium and coarse platy structure; extremely hard, extremely firm and very firm, brittle; few very fine roots along fracture planes; many very fine and medium interstitial pores; violently effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (13 to 30 cm thick)

2Bqkm2--104 to 137 cm; white (10YR 8/1) strongly cemented duripan with very thin (0.5 mm) brown (10YR 5/3) discontinuous silica laminae, pale brown (10YR 6/3) and brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak fine platy structure; extremely hard and very hard, extremely firm and very firm; few very fine roots; many very fine and fine interstitial pores; violently effervescent matrix, noneffervescent in silica laminae; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8)

TYPE LOCATION: Eureka County, Nevada; approximately 14 miles north of Carlin; about 1,850 feet north and 1,600 feet west of the southeast corner of Section 24, T. 35 N., R. 51 E.; USGS Swales Mountain NW 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 40 degrees 54 minutes 18 17 seconds N and longitude 116 degrees 11 minutes 07 09 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 40.9047222 latitude, -116.1858333 longitude.NAD 83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry; moist in the winter and spring, dry early June through October; aridic soil moisture regime bordering on xeric
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 11 degrees C.
Combined thickness of A and Bt horizons: 50 to 100 cm.
Depth to the strongly cemented duripan: 50 to 100 cm.
Other features: Substrata of contrasting textures are present below the duripan in some pedons.

Particle size control section - Clay content: 20 to 35 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent.

A horizon
Value: 4 through 7 dry, (greater than 5.5 when the surface 18 cm are mixed), 2 through 4 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.
Reaction: Neutral or slightly alkaline.

Bt horizon
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Chroma: 3 through 6.
Texture: Loam, silt loam, clay loam, with less than 35 percent sand.
Structure: Weak or moderate, fine to coarse prismatic and parts to subangular blocky.
Reaction: Slightly alkaline through strongly alkaline, increasing with depth.

Btqk horizon
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Structure: Subangular blocky or it is massive.
Reaction: Slightly alkaline to strongly alkaline.
Cementation: Weakly silica cemented or has 20 to 40 percent durinodes in a friable matrix.
Carbonates: Few to many lime carbonate filaments or soft masses. Slightly effervescent through violently effervescent. Some pedons lack lime carbonate filaments.

Bqkm horizon
Reaction: Moderately alkaline through very strongly alkaline.
Other features: Thin, discontinuous silica laminae common in some pedons.

2Bk horizon (when present)
Common below the duripan in some pedons.
Texture: Stratified extremely gravelly sandy loam to sandy loam.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Aquinas, Boulflat, Eastval, Spasprey, Yody and Zaidy series.

Aquinas soils have an argillic horizon that is dominantly sandy clay loam with more than 35 percent sand. Boulflat soils have A and Bt horizons that are 20 to 50 cm thick and have depth to bedrock of less than 100 cm. Eastval soils have neutral reaction in the argillic horizon and lack weak silica or durinodes above the duripan. Spasprey soils have A and Bt horizons that are 25 to 50 cm thick and more than 35 percent sand in the argillic horizon. Yody soils have an argillic horizon with more than 35 percent sand and a calcic horizon above the duripan. Zaidy soils have a Bt horizon with a sodium absorption ratio of 6 to 13, lack a strongly alkaline lower Bt subhorizon and parent materials are not dominated by loess high in pyroclastics.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Cherry Springs soils are on fan piedmont remnants. These soils formed in loess over alluvium derived from mixed rocks. Slopes are 2 to 8 percent. Elevations are 1,460 to 1,830 meters. The climate is cool, semiarid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 180 to 250 mm; mean annual temperature is 7 to 10 degrees C, and the frost-free season is 100 to 120 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Berning, Chiara, Cortez, Orovada and Tomera soils. Berning soils are clayey-skeletal. Chiara soils are shallow to an indurated duripan. Cortez soils are fine and have an indurated duripan. Orovada soils have a cambic horizon and are coarse-loamy. Tomera soils lack a duripan and have a fine textured natric horizon.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Rangeland and wildlife habitat. The vegetation is mainly big sagebrush, Sandberg bluegrass, bottlebrush squirreltail, and Thurber's needlegrass and basin wild rye.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northeastern Nevada. MLRA 25, 24. These soils are moderately extensive.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Eureka County, Nevada, 1977.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Argillic horizon - The zone from about 38 to 91 cm (Bt and Btkq horizon).
Strongly cemented duripan - The zone from about 91 to 137 cm (2Bkqm1 and 2Bkqm2 horizon).
Xeric feature - the soil meets the organic carbon requirement for xeric.
Particle-size control section - The zone from about 38 to 88 cm (The Bt horizon and part of the Btkq horizon).

---

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.