LOCATION CHURIPA NMEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic, shallow Argiduridic Durustolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Churipa very cobbly loam, very stony--on a beveled summit of a mesa sloping 9 percent to the west-southwest at 6,360 feet elevation--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted. When described, the soil was dry throughout.)
A--0 to 1 inch; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very cobbly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; common very fine roots; few very fine interstitial pores; 15 percent gravel, 25 percent cobbles, and 2 percent stones; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)
Bt1--1 to 6 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/3) loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and moderately plastic; common fine and few very fine roots; few fine and few very fine tubular pores; few faint clay films on faces of peds; 5 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (3 to 5 inches thick)
Bt2--6 to 9 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/3) clay loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) moist; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few coarse, few medium, few fine, and few very fine roots; few fine and few very fine tubular pores; few distinct and few faint clay films on faces of peds; 2 percent gravel and 10 percent cobbles; slightly effervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 4 inches thick)
Btk--9 to 13 inches; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) cobbly loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few medium, common fine and few very fine roots; few fine tubular pores; few distinct and few faint clay films on faces of peds; 10 percent gravel and 15 percent cobbles; slightly effervescent, secondary calcium carbonate segregated as common fine irregularly shaped concretions and common coarse rounded concretions; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (3 to 8 inches thick)
Bk--13 to 17 inches; light brown (7.5YR 6/3) cobbly loam, brown (7.5YR 4/3) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common medium, common fine and few very fine roots; common fine and few very fine tubular pores; 10 percent gravel, 15 percent cobbles, and 2 percent stones; strongly effervescent, secondary calcium carbonate segregated as few course and common fine irregularly shaped concretions; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt wavy boundary. (2 to 5 inches thick)
Bkqm--17 to 30 inches; pink (7.5YR 8/4) duripan, pink (7.5YR 7/4) moist; moderate very thick platy structure; extremely hard and extremely firm; few very fine roots; few very fine irregularly shaped pores; matrix is cemented by secondary silica; 5 percent gravel; violently effervescent, matrix is impregnated and partially cemented with secondary calcium carbonate; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); clear wavy boundary. (6 to 14 inches thick)
B'k--30 to 35 inches; white (7.5YR 8/1) extremely cobbly loamy sand, pink (7.5YR 7/3) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common fine and few very fine tubular pores; 20 percent gravel, 55 percent cobbles, and 5 percent stones; violently effervescent, matrix is impregnated with secondary calcium carbonate; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 5 inches thick)
2R--35 inches; indurated basalt bedrock.
TYPE LOCATION: Santa Fe County, New Mexico; about 10 miles west of Santa Fe; about 1,250 feet east and 1,100 feet south of the northwest corner of section 8, T.16N., R.8E.; USGS Agua Fria 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; Latitude 35 degrees 38 minutes 7 seconds North and Longitude 106 degrees 7 minutes 14 seconds West.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - The soil moisture control section is intermittently moist in some part from July to October and December to March. It is assumed to be dry in all parts 50 to 75 percent of the time (cumulative), when the soil temperature at 20 inches is 41 degrees F. or higher. The soils are driest in May and June. The soil moisture regime is aridic bordering on ustic.
Mean annual soil temperature - 52 to 54 degrees F.
Thickness of mollic epipedon - 7 to 11 inches
Depth to base of argillic horizon - 10 to 19 inches
Depth to calcareous material (as visible secondary calcium carbonate) - 6 to 9 inches
Depth to duripan and petrocalcic horizon - 12 to 20 inches
Volcanic glass content - 1 to 3 percent in the very fine sand and fine sand fractions of the surface and subsoil
Lithology of rock fragments: basalt.
Particle-size control section (weighted averages)
Silicate clay content: 20 to 30 percent
Sand content: 40 to 50 percent
Fine sand or coarser content: 25 to 35 percent
Rock fragment content: 10 to 20 percent gravel and cobbles
Reaction - slightly alkaline in the surface and upper part of the subsoil; moderately alkaline to strongly alkaline in the lower part of the subsoil and in the substratum
Salinity, mmhos/cm - 0 to 1 in the soil
Sodicity, SAR - 0 to 1 in the soil
A horizon
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma: 2 through 4 dry; 2 or 3 moist
Rock fragment content: total range is 35 to 60 percent
10 to 25 percent gravel
20 to 30 percent cobbles
1 to 3 percent stones
Bt horizons
Value: 4 to 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma: 2 to 3, dry or moist
Texture: clay loam or loam
Rock fragment content: total range is 5 to 10 percent
0 to 5 percent gravel
0 to 5 percent cobbles
Btk horizon
Value: 4 through 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist
Chroma: 2 through 4 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Texture: cobbly loam or gravelly loam
Rock fragment content: total range is 15 to 35 percent
5 to 15 percent gravel
10 to 20 percent cobbles
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 1 to 3 percent
Bk horizon
Value: 5 through 7 dry, 4 through 6 moist
Chroma: 3 to 4 dry, 2 through 4 moist
Texture: cobbly loam or gravelly sandy loam
Rock fragment content: total range is 15 to 35 percent
5 to 15 percent gravel
10 to 15 percent cobbles
0 to 5 percent stones
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 25 percent
Bkqm horizon
Value: 6 through 8 dry, 5 through 8 moist
Chroma: 0 through 4 dry, 2 through 4 moist
Term used in lieu of texture: petrocalcic/duripan
B'k horizon
Value: 7 or 8 dry, 6 or 7 moist
Chroma: 1 or 2 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Texture: extremely cobbly loamy sand or extremely cobbly sand
Rock fragments: Total range is 65 to 85 percent
15 to 20 percent gravel
50 to 60 percent cobbles
0 to 5 percent stones
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 30 to 40 percent
COMPETING SERIES: There are currently no competitors.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Churipa soils are on beveled summits and shoulders of mesas. They formed in alluvium derived from basalt, volcanic ash, and cinders. Slopes are 5 to 15 percent. Elevation ranges from 5,700 to 6,700 feet. The mean annual precipitation is 10 to 12 inches with about 45 percent falling as rain from high-intensity convective thunderstorms between July and September. The mean annual air temperature is 50 to 52 degrees F. The frost-free period is 150 to 170 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Calabasas, Medrano, Tetilla, and Tsinat soils. Calabasas soils are deep to petrocalcic horizons, are fine-silty, and occur on summits of undulating plateaus. Medrano soils are shallow to duripans, are loamy-skeletal, and occur on cinder cones. Tetilla soils have calcic horizons below 40 inches, do not have cemented pans, and occur on toeslopes of undulating plateaus. Tsinat soils are moderately deep to petrocalcic horizons, have calcic horizons, and occur on summits of undulating plateaus.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; low surface runoff; moderately slow permeability in the subsoil, moderately rapid permeability in the substratum, and very slow permeability in the duripan/petrocalcic horizon.
USE AND VEGETATION: Churipa soils are used for urban development, livestock grazing, and recreation. The historic climax vegetation is blue grama, skunkbush sumach, galleta, sideoats gama, little bluestem, and oneseed juniper. The ecological site is Shallow(R036XB116NM).
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Churipa soils are of small extent on the southcentral Espanola Basin part of the Basin and Range province in northcentral New Mexico. The MLRA is 36.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Santa Fe County, New Mexico; Santa Fe Area Soil Survey Update; 2008. Churipa is a local place name.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to a depth of 1 inch. (A horizon)
Argillic horizon - The zone from 1 to 13 inches. (Bt1, Bt2, and Btk horizons)
Duripan and petrocalcic horizon - The zone from 17 to 30 inches. (Bkqm horizon)
Lithic contact - indurated basalt bedrock at 35 inches (2R layer)
Particle-size control section: the zone from 1 to 13 inches (entire argillic horizon)
Note: This soil has minor amounts of volcanic glass in either the very fine sand or fine sand fractions within 50 cm of the soil surface. It is assumed that most of the volcanic glass derived from nearby Pleistocene ash eruptions has altered to more stable minerals like chalcedony. In addition, Lincoln lab data on similar soils indicates that ammonium oxalate extractable aluminum and iron percentages are very low. Typical totals of aluminum plus 1/2 iron percentages are less than 0.20. Churipa soils thus do not have the properties of the andic intergrades.
Taxonomic version: Classified according to Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Tenth Edition, 2006.
ADDITIONAL DATA: The series type location has been sampled for the National Soil Survey Laboratory (NSSL), Lincoln, NE, as soil survey sample number S99NM-049-16. Reference analyses to determine if this soil has a duripan, petrocalcic horizon, or both are being performed.