LOCATION CHIPOTLE NM+TX

Established Series
Rev. DGS/RLB
07/2012

CHIPOTLE SERIES

The Chipotle series consists of very deep, well drained, moderately rapidly permeable soils that formed in gravelly alluvium from tuff. These nearly level to gently sloping soils are on inset fans of the fan piedmont. Slope ranges from 0 to 3 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 11 inches and the mean annual temperature is about 62 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy-skeletal, mixed, thermic Ustic Torrifluvents

TYPICAL PEDON: Chipotle extremely gravelly sandy clay loam - rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated).

A--0 to 4 inches; dark reddish gray (5YR 4/2) crushed, extremely gravelly sandy clay loam, very dark gray (5YR 3/1) crushed, moist; 24 percent clay; moderate fine granular and weak fine subangular blocky structure; loose; slightly sticky and nonplastic; common fine roots throughout; 60 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 0.1- to 3-inch tuff gravel and 10 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 3- to 10-inch tuff cobbles; noneffervescent by HCl, 1 normal; neutral, pH 6.7, pH meter 1:1 water; gradual smooth boundary. (0 to 5 inches thick)

2C1--4 to 17 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/3) crushed, extremely gravelly sandy loam, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/3) crushed, moist; 10 percent clay; massive; soft, very friable; nonsticky and nonplastic; very few fine roots throughout; very few fine dendritic tubular pores; 60 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 0.1- to 3-inch tuff gravel; 5 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 3- to 10-inch tuff cobbles and 5 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 10- to 24-inch tuff stones; noneffervescent by HCl, 1 normal; slightly acid, pH 6.5, pH meter 1:1 water; gradual smooth boundary. (5 to 15 inches thick)

3C2--17 to 52 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/3) crushed, extremely gravelly sand, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) crushed, moist; 2 percent clay; massive; loose; nonsticky and nonplastic; very few fine roots throughout; 60 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 0.1- to 3-inch tuff gravel; 5 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 3- to 10-inch tuff cobbles and 5 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 10- to 24-inch tuff stones; noneffervescent, by HCl, 1 normal; slightly acid, pH 6.4, pH meter 1:1 water; diffuse smooth boundary. (20 to 35 inches thick)

4C3--52 to 64 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/3) crushed, very cobbly sandy clay loam, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) crushed, moist; 24 percent clay; massive; slightly hard, very friable; slightly sticky and slightly plastic; very few fine roots throughout; 5 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 0.1-to 3-inch tuff gravel; 35 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 3-to 10-inch tuff cobbles and 10 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 10- to 24-inch tuff stones; noneffervescent, by HCl, 1 normal; neutral, pH 6.9, pH meter 1:1 water; abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 15 inches thick)

5C4--64 to 80 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) crushed, extremely gravelly sandy loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/3) crushed, moist; 12 percent clay; massive; soft, very friable; slightly sticky and slightly plastic; 80 percent nonflat subrounded indurated 0.1- to 3-inch tuff gravel; noneffervescent, by HCl, 1 normal; neutral, pH 6.7, pH meter 1:1 water.

TYPE LOCATION: Dona Ana County, New Mexico; approximately 3.1 miles W. and 9.3 miles S. of White Sands; 2220 feet E. and 1380 feet S. of the NW corner of S. 9, T. 24 S., R. 4 E., USGS Bishop Cap topographic quadrangle; latitude: 32 degrees 14 minutes 19.00 seconds north and longitude: 106 degrees 32 minutes 23.00 seconds west. UTM zone 13S, 354952E, 3567950 N, NAD 27.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil Moisture: An ustic aridic moisture regime. The soil moisture control section is usually dry in all parts less than three-fourths of the time that the soil temperature exceeds 41 degrees F.

Mean annual soil temperature: 61 to 65 degrees F.

Particle-size control section (weighted average)

Clay content: 2 to 10 percent

Coarse fragment content: 60 to 85 percent

Reaction: slightly acid to neutral

A horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2.5 or 3 moist
Chroma: 1 to 3, dry or moist
Texture modifier: very gravelly or extremely gravelly
Coarse fragments: tuff fragments; 35 to 75 percent total coarse fragments; 50 to 70 percent gravel; 5 to 20 percent cobbles

C horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2.5 to 4 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4, dry or moist
Texture modifier: very gravelly, extremely gravelly or very cobbly
Coarse fragments: tuff fragments; 35 to 80 percent total coarse fragments; 5 to 80 percent gravel; 0 to 35 percent cobbles; 0 to 10 percent stones.
Texture: sand, sandy loam, sandy clay loam, coarse sand, loamy sand, loamy coarse sand

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Santera (TX) series. Santera soils are somewhat excessively drained, have a hue of 10YR, and a reaction of slightly to strongly alkaline.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Chipotle soils are on inset fans of the fan piedmont. They formed in gravelly alluvium from tuff. Slopes range from 0 to 3 percent. Elevation ranges from 4,000 to 5,700 feet. The mean annual air temperature is 60 to 67 degrees F. The frost-free period is 170 to 250 days. The mean annual precipitation is 10 to 16 inches. Precipitation falls mostly during the months of July through September. The driest months are March and April.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Brewster, Crotalus, Reduff, and Sotol series.
Brewster and Reduff soils are less than 20 inches to bedrock and are on mountain tops and flanks.
Crotalus soils are moderately deep to a calcic horizon and are on mountain flanks and bases.
Sotol soils have a clayey-skeletal particle size control section and are on mountain flanks and bases.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderately rapid. Runoff is medium.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used for livestock grazing. Vegetation is of the desert grassland type consisting of sideoats grama, black grama, apache plume, mesquite, catclaw acacia, and desert willow.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southern New Mexico; LRR D, MLRA 42. The series is of minor extent.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Dona Ana County, New Mexico; 2001.

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

Particle-size control section: The zone from 10 to 40 inches. (2C1, 3C2, and 4C3 horizons)

Fluventic properties: The stratification of textures throughout the profile.

Torric feature: Soil has an aridic moisture regime that borders on an ustic moisture regime.

The assignment of the cation exchange capacity is inferred from lab data from similar soils in the surrounding area.

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

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

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.