LOCATION CHURCH NM+KS TXEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, mixed, superactive, mesic Ustic Aquicambids
TYPICAL PEDON: Church clay loam - rangeland. (Colors are for dry conditions unless otherwise noted)
A1--0 to 7 inches; gray (10YR 5/1) clay loam, dark gray (10YR 4/1) moist; moderate fine granular structure; slightly hard, friable; slightly sticky, slightly plastic; abundant fine roots, very few fine tubular pores; surface 1-1/2 inches is grayish brown (10YR 5/2) silt loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderately calcareous; moderately alkaline; slightly saline; clear smooth boundary. (5 to 10 inches thick)
B1--7 to 11 inches; light gray (2.5Y 7/1) heavy clay loam, gray (2.5Y 5/1) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky breaking to moderate very fine subangular blocky structure; hard, friable; sticky, plastic; plentiful fine roots; few fine tubular pores; there is considerable tonguing and mixing from the above horizon; few fine faint threads of lime; strongly calcareous; moderately alkaline; moderately saline; abrupt wavy boundary. (3 to 7 inches thick)
B2g--11 to 23 inches; light gray (5Y 7/1) clay, light gray to gray (5Y 6/1) moist; few fine prominent mottles of brownish yellow (10YR 6/6), yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) moist; moderate medium prismatic breaking to moderate subangular and angular blocky; very hard, very firm, sticky, plastic; few fine roots; few very fine and fine tubular pores; surface of peds and root channels are coated with dark gray (10YR 4/1) moist, soil from horizons above; strongly calcareous; strongly alkaline; moderately saline; gradual boundary. (10 to 26 inches thick)
Cg--23 to 60 inches; light gray (5Y 7.5/1) clay, light olive gray (5Y 6/2) moist; common fine prominent mottles of brownish yellow (10YR 6/6), yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) moist and olive yellow (2.5Y 6/7), light olive brown (2.5Y 5/7) moist; massive in place, but breaks to weak medium subangular and angular blocky; very hard, very firm, sticky, plastic; very few fine roots; few very fine and fine tubular pores; strongly calcareous; strongly alkaline; moderately saline. (Several to many feet thick)
TYPE LOCATION: Harding County, New Mexico; 50 feet north and 1,600 feet west of SE corner, sec. 25, T. 19 M., R. 28 E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of solum ranges from 18 to 43 inches. Mineralogy is mixed. The average soil temperature ranges from 47 degrees F. and less than 59 degrees F. These soils are usually dry in the 7 to 20 inch control section but are not dry in all parts above 12 inches more than half the time the soil temperature is more than 41 degrees F. The driest periods occur between October and May. In the summer months they are infrequently inundated after heavy rains. Ponding in the adjacent playas may cause high water tables in the C horizons during some years. Thin layers of dark colored deposition range from 0 to 4 inches. The color of the A horizon ranges in hue from 10YR to 2.5Y, in chroma from 1 to 2, and in value from 5 to 6 dry and 3.5 to 5 moist. The color of the B horizon ranges in hue from 2.5Y to 5Y, in chroma from 1 to 2, and in value from 2, and in value from 5 to 7 dry and 4 to 6 moist. The texture of the B horizon and the control section is dominantly clay but ranges from heavy clay loam to silty clay with clay content ranging from 38 to 52 percent. Lime accumulation ranges from none to a few threads or concretions. The color of the C horizon ranges in hue from 2.5Y to 5Y, in chroma from 1 to 2, and in value from 6 to 8 dry and 4 to 6 moist. The B and C horizons range from moderately to strongly alkaline and slightly to moderately saline. Mottles due to segregated iron are few from 10 to 24 inches and few to common below 24 inches.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no known soils in the same family. Closely related soils are in the Anamite and Litle series. The Anamite soils lack strong gleying with prominent mottles of segregated iron, are noncalcareous in the upper part of the solum and have average annual soil temperatures of more than 59 degrees F. The Litle soils lack gleying and have shale occurring within depths of 20 to 40 inches.
SETTING: The Church soils occur on level, low benches surrounding large enclosed basins or playas on the High Plains. Slopes are typically less than 1 percent, but may range to 3 percent. The regolith consists of fine textured, calcareous, moderately alkaline water-deposited sediments. The climate is semi-arid continental. At the type location the average annual precipitation is 16 inches. The average air temperature is 54 degrees F. The Thornthwaite P-E Index is 27. Elevations range from 4,500 to 6,500 feet.
PRINCIPAL ASSOCIATED SOILS: These include the La Brier, Manzano, and Zita series, all of which have mollic epipedons, have deeper sola and are well-drained. The La Brier soils also have argillic horizons. The Monzano and Zita soils contain less than 35 percent clay.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Moderately well-drained; runoff is slow; permeability is very slow.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used almost entirely for rangeland. Native vegetation is principally western wheatgrass, alkali sacaton, inland saltgrass, and alkali muhly.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The High Plains of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas. The series is moderately extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Temple, Texas
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Mesa Soil Conservation District, Harding County, New Mexico, 1939.
REMARKS: The Church soils were classified in the Calcisol or the Calcisol-Humic Gley intergrade great soil group in the modified 1938 yearbook classification system. This revision modernizes the central concept on soils with only moderately dark surfaces, light colored strongly calcareous cambic horizons and gleyed C horizons. Their sola are usually dry, but they have formed by weathering under acqueous or very moist conditions.
OSED scanned by SSQA. Last revised by state on 1/68.