LOCATION CHISPA TX+NM

Established Series
Rev. ACT/WWJ
07/2012

CHISPA SERIES

The Chispa series consists of very deep, well drained, moderately permeable soils that formed in loamy sediments of mixed origin. These nearly level to moderately steep soils are on ridges and fans of broad plains and valleys. Slope ranges from 0 to 15 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 13 inches, and mean annual air temperature is about 64 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, thermic Ustic Haplocalcids

TYPICAL PEDON: Chispa loam - rangeland (colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated).

A--0 to 4 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) fine sandy loam; brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak fine platy and subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable; many fine roots; many fine gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline; abrupt smooth boundary (2 to 11 inches thick).

Bk1--4 to 15 inches; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) sandy clay loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable; many fine roots; many fine lime coated gravel, few threads and fine concretions of calcium carbonate; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary.

Bk2--15 to 22 inches; light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) sandy clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 5/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable; few fine roots; 30 percent masses of calcium carbonate; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline; gradual wavy boundary.

Bk3--22 to 36 inches; light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) sandy clay loam; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable; few roots; many gravel; patchy clay films; 15 percent masses of calcium carbonate; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary (Combined thickness of Bk horizons is 20 to 60 inches).

BCk1--36 to 44 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) sandy clay loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; structureless; slightly hard, friable; few roots, few coarse fragments; 15 percent masses of calcium carbonate; violently effervescent, moderately alkaline; gradual smooth boundary (0 to 25 inches thick).

BCk2--44 to 80 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; structureless; slightly hard, friable; few roots, few coarse fragments; 15 percent very fine masses of calcium carbonate; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Jeff Davis County, Texas; 5-1/2 miles west of Valentine, at the northwest corner, sec. 371, Block 1, GH & SA Ry. Co. Survey.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil moisture: Ustic aridic moisture regime

Solum thickness: 60 to more than 80 inches

Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent

Reaction: moderately alkaline throughout

A horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 4 to 6, dry or moist
Chroma: 2 to 4, dry or moist
Texture: loam, fine sandy loam, sandy clay loam, sandy loam
Organic matter: 1 to 2 percent

Bk horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 4 to 7, dry or moist
Chroma: 3 to 6, dry or moist
Texture: loam, clay loam, sandy clay loam (greater than 35 percent sand)
Clay content: 20 to 35 percent
Below 10 inches the volume of weakly cemented masses of calcium carbonate ranges from 15 to 40 percent

BCk horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 6 to 8, dry or moist
Chroma: 3 to 6, dry or moist
Texture: loam, fine sandy loam, sandy clay loam (greater than 35 percent sand)
Calcium carbonate: few to many masses
Coarse fragments: 2 to 40 percent

C horizon (where present)
Colors and textures are similar to the BCk horizon. The horizon consists of highly calcareous materials that are structureless and do not have visible evidence of pedogenic processes.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Elfrida (AZ), Kahn (AZ), Laborcita (NM), Pandale (TX), Ratliff (TX), Salado (NM), San Jon (NM), and Tuzigoot (AZ) series. Pandale, Ratliff, and San Joh soils are moist in the sil moisture control section during May and June and occur in the Great Plains. Laborcita soils have more than 15 percent rock fragments. Kahn and Salado soils have less than 1 percent organic matter in the surface horizons. Elfrida and Tuzigoot soils have textures that have less than 35 percent sand (silt loam, silt clay loam, clay loam, loam). Tuzigoot sils have calcium carbonate concretions throughout.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Chispa soils are on ridges and fans on broad plains and valleys. Slopes are dominantly 1 to 3 percent but range up to 15 percent in places. The regolith consists of loamy sediments. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 10 to 16 inches and mean annual temperature ranges from 58 to 70 degrees F. Frost free season ranges from 210 to 250 days and elevation ranges from 3,800 to 5,500 feet.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Conchas, Hodgins, and Reagan series, and Ima, Nickel, and Volco series. Ima soils do not have a calcic horizon and are in the coarse-loamy family. Nickel soils are in the loamy-skeletal family. Volco soils have sola less than 20 inches over volcanic bedrock.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderate. Runoff is negligible on slopes less than 1 percent, very low on 1 to 3 percent slopes, low on 3 to 5 percent slopes, and medium on 5 to 15 percent slopes.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used mostly for rangeland. Vegetation is desert grassland consisting of chino grama, sideoats grama, black grama, hairy tridens, and creosotebush.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southwestern Texas and south-central New Mexico. The series is of minor extent. MLRA 42 and 70B

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Jeff Davis County, Texas, 1971.

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

Ochric epipedon - 0 to 4 inches (A horizon)

Cambic horizon - 4 to 15 inches (Bk horizons)

Calcic horizon - 15 to 80 inches (Bk2, Bk3, BCk1, BCk2 horizons)

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

This soil was formerly included with the Reagan series.

Updated competing series section 3/17/08, CEM

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.