LOCATION CHIME                   NV+CA

Established Series
Rev. RAF/JBF/TM/JVC
01/2019

CHIME SERIES

The Chime series are moderately deep, well drained soils that formed in residuum derived from tuffaceous sandstone. Chime soils are on plateaus and rock pediments. Slopes are 0 to 15 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 230 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 8 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Durinodic Xeric Haplargids

TYPICAL PEDON: Chime gravelly loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered with about 25 percent gravel.

A1--0 to 5 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) gravelly loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; moderate thin platy structure parting to moderate fine granular; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; common fine and very fine vesicular pores; 15 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 13 cm thick)

A2--5 to 15 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; weak thin platy structure parting to moderate fine granular; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few medium, fine, and very fine roots; few fine and very fine vesicular pores; 10 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 10 cm thick)

Bt1--15 to 23 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly clay loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few fine and very fine roots; common fine tubular pores; common distinct clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; 15 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (8 to 13 cm thick)

Bt2--23 to 38 cm; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) clay loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium and coarse angular blocky structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few medium, fine and very fine roots; common fine tubular pores; common distinct clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; 10 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); clear wavy boundary. (13 to 18 cm thick)

Bq--38 to 56 cm; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) clay loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, very firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and very fine roots; few fine tubular pores; continuous brittle matrix; 5 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 25 cm thick)

Cr--56 cm; weathered tuffaceous sandstone.

TYPE LOCATION: Elko County, Nevada; about 2,550 feet south and 310 feet east of the northwest quarter corner of section 13, T. 42 N., R. 45E., Mount Diablo Meridian; about 1.75 miles west-northwest of McCleary Well No. 2; USGS Humboldt Hill 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 41 degrees 32 minutes 22 seconds N and longitude 116 degrees 53 minutes 37 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 41.5394444 latitude, -116.8936111 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually moist in winter and spring, dry mid June through October; aridic soil moisture regime that borders on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 13 degrees C.
Depth to bedrock: 50 to 75 cm to a paralithic contact. The paralithic materials below the contact are weathered tuffaceous sedimentary rocks.
Depth to horizon with firm, brittle matrix: 36 to 50 cm.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 27 to 35 percent.
Rock fragments: Up to 20 percent, mainly gravel.

A horizons
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y.
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.

Bt horizons
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y.
Value: 5 through 7 dry.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Structure: Moderate or strong, fine to coarse angular or subangular blocky.

Bq horizon
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y.
Value: 6 through 8 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Loam, gravelly loam, clay loam, or gravelly clay loam.
Rock fragments: 5 to 20 percent, mainly gravel.
Secondary silica: Continuous brittle matrix and some pedons contain 20 to 60 percent discontinuous silica cementation.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Aladshi, Alley, Allor, Cleghorn, Glyphs, Igert, Mimentor, Nevador, Qwynn, Wedertz, Wedlar, and Zevadez series.

Aladshi, Alley, Allor, Cleghorn, Glyphs, Mimentor, Nevador, Qwynn, Wedertz, Wedlar, and Zevadez soils are deeper than 150 cm deep to bedrock. Igert soils have secondary calcium carbonate in a Bkq horizon and have a lithic contact at 64 to 100 cm.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Chime soils are on plateaus and rock pediments. These soils formed in residuum derived from tuffaceous sandstone with some influence from alluvium, loess, and volcanic ash. Slopes are 0 to 15 percent. Elevations range from 1,465 to 1,710 meters. The climate is semiarid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is mainly 200 to 250 mm but ranges up to 360 mm in parts of northeastern California. The mean annual temperature is 7 to 11 degrees C. The frost-free period is mainly 90 to 120 days but ranges down to 60 days in parts of northeastern California.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Clurde and Yuko soils. Clurde soils are very deep. Yuko soils are shallow to a paralithic contact.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: Chime soils are used for rangeland. The vegetation is mainly Wyoming big sagebrush, bottlebrush squirreltail, Sandberg's bluegrass, Douglas rabbitbrush, and basin wildrye.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Nevada and northeastern California. These soils are not extensive with about 7,900 acres of the series mapped to date. The series concept and main acreage is in MLRA 25, while other acreage occurs in MLRA 23.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Elko County, Nevada (Northwest Elko County Area), 1986.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 15 cm (A1 and A2 horizons).
Argillic horizon - The zone from 15 to 38 cm (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons).
Duric feature - The zone from 38 to 56 cm (Bq horizon).
Paralithic contact - The boundary at 56 cm to underlying weathered bedrock (Cr layer).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 15 to 38 cm (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons).

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.