LOCATION CHUCKMILL               NV

Established Series
Rev. BKP/JBF
02/2012

CHUCKMILL SERIES

The Chuckmill series consists of shallow over a duripan, well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from welded tuff. Chuckmill soils occur on fan remnants. Slopes are 2 to 15 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 230 mm and the mean annual temperature is 9 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic, shallow Vitrixerandic Argidurids

TYPICAL PEDON: Chuckmill gravelly ashy loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is partially covered with 30 percent gravel. Lithology of the rock fragments is welded tuff.

A--0 to 5 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) gravelly ashy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; moderate thick platy structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine roots; common fine vesicular pores; 30 percent gravel; neutral (pH 7.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 13 cm thick)

Bt1--5 to 10 cm; brown (10YR 4/3) gravelly ashy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine roots; common fine and medium vesicular and few fine interstitial pores; 25 percent gravel; common distinct clay films bridging sand grains; neutral (pH 7.2); abrupt smooth boundary.

Bt2--10 to 25 cm; brown (7.5YR 5/4) gravelly ashy clay loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine, common fine and medium, and few coarse roots; few fine tubular pores; 20 percent gravel; common distinct clay films bridging sand grains; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of Bt horizons is 13 to 33 cm thick)

Btqk--25 to 36 cm; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) very gravelly ashy clay loam, brown (7.5YR 5/4) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common fine and medium roots; few fine tubular pores; 40 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; common faint clay films bridging sand grains; 5 percent durinodes; many (30 percent) secondary silica and secondary calcium carbonate pendants on bottom of rock fragments; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt wavy boundary. (8 to 20 cm thick)

Bqkm1--36 to 41 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) cemented material, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; very rigid; indurated; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4), abrupt wavy boundary. (3 to 23 cm thick)

Bqkm2--41 to 152 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) cemented material, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; extremely hard, slightly rigid; strongly cemented; violently effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.5).

TYPE LOCATION: Lincoln County, Nevada; about 10 feet south of the jeep trail, 0.33 mile east of Miller Creek; 2,570 feet north and 2,510 feet west of the southeast corner of section 19, T. 6 N., R. 70 E.; USGS Miller Canyon 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 38 degrees 21 minutes 57 seconds N and longitude 114 degrees 10 minutes 3 seconds W; NAD 83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Moist in winter and spring, dry in summer and fall except for 10 to 20 days cumulative between July and September due to convection storms; aridic soil moisture regime bordering on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 11 degrees C.
Depth to duripan: 25 to 36 cm.
Duripan thickness: 76 to 127 cm.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 18 to 27 percent.
Rock fragments: 15 to 35 percent mainly gravel. Lithology of the fragments is welded tuff.

A horizon
Value: 5 through 7 dry, 4 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Mineralogy: averages 20 to 30 percent volcanic glass in the 0.02 to 2 mm fraction and averages 0.09 to 0.2 percent Al plus 1/2Fe, extracted by ammonium oxalate.

Bt horizons
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 4 through 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Ashy loam or ashy sandy clay loam, sub-horizons of ashy clay loam are in the lower part of some pedons.
Clay content: Averages 18 to 27 percent.
Rock fragments: 15 to 35 percent, mainly gravel.
Reaction: Neutral through strongly alkaline.
Mineralogy: averages 20 to 30 percent volcanic glass in the 0.02 to 2 mm fraction and averages 0.09 to 0.2 percent Al plus 1/2Fe, extracted by ammonium oxalate.

Btqk horizon
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Ashy clay loam, or ashy sandy clay loam.
Clay content: 27 to 35 percent.
Rock fragments: 15 to 45 percent, mainly gravel.
Consistence: Slightly hard or hard, dry, slightly sticky or moderately sticky and slightly plastic or moderately plastic, wet.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline through very strongly alkaline.
Durinodes: 5 to 15 percent, very weakly to moderately cemented.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 15 percent.
Mineralogy: averages 20 to 30 percent volcanic glass in the 0.02 to 2 mm fraction and averages 0.09 to 0.2 percent Al plus 1/2Fe, extracted by ammonium oxalate.

Bqkm horizons
Value: 7 or 8 dry, 5 through 7, moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Cementation: Indurated duripan, with very strongly and strongly cemented laminae.

Bqk horizon (when present below the duripan)
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Ashy loamy sand or ashy sandy loam.
Clay content: 8 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent, mostly gravel.
Reaction: Strongly alkaline or very strongly alkaline.
Cementation: Discontinuous strong and weak secondary silica cementation with secondary calcium carbonate and secondary silica pendants on the bottom of rock fragments.

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Bartome series. Bartome soils have a duripan at 36 to 50 cm and have 0 to 15 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Chuckmill soils are on fan remnants. These soils formed in alluvium derived from welded tuff. Slopes are 2 to 15 percent. Elevations are 1,720 to 2,170 meters. The mean annual temperature ranges from 7 to 11 degrees C. The mean annual precipitation ranges from 200 to 250 mm. The frost-free season ranges from 90 to 130 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: There are the Lojet, Qwynn, and Sevenmile series. Lojet soils are moderately deep to a duripan. Qwynn and Sevenmile soils do not have a duripan.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: Chuckmill soils are used for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The potential native vegetation includes Indian ricegrass, needleandthread, galleta, black sagebrush, fourwing saltbush and winterfat. This pedon is correlated to Ecological Site R028AY013NV Shallow Calcareous Loam 8-10 P.Z.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: East-central Nevada. These soils are not extensive. MLRA 28A.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Lincoln County, North Part, Nevada, 2005.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the surface to 5 cm (A horizon).
Argillic horizon - The zone from about 5 to 36 cm (Bt1, Bt1 and Btqk horizons).
Duripan - The zone from 36 to 152 cm (Bqkm1 and Bqkm2 horizons).
Vitrixerandic feature - 20 to 30 percent volcanic glass in the 0.02 to 2 mm fraction and averages 0.09 to 0.2 percent Al plus 1/2Fe, extracted by ammonium oxalate between 0 to 36 cm (A, Bt1, Bt2, and Btqk horizons).
Particle-size control section - The zone from the surface to 36 cm (A, Bt1 and Bt2, and Btqk horizons).

ADDITIONAL DATA: Pedon ID#: 90NV784397-JFH.
Previous authors and editors include: CWL/JWM/TM.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.