LOCATION CREWS NMEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Clayey, mixed, superactive, mesic, shallow Petrocalcic Paleustolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Crews loam, rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
A1--0 to 5 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; moderate medium granular structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine and very fine roots; common fine tubular pores; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (3 to 6 inches thick)
B21t--5 to 10 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) clay loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; moderate coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate medium subangular blocky; very hard, firm, sticky and plastic; many fine and very fine roots; common medium and fine tubular pores; thin patchy clay films on faces of peds; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (2 to 8 inches thick)
B22t--10 to 16 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) clay, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate medium prismatic structure; very hard, firm, sticky and very plastic; common fine and very fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; thin patchy clay films on peds; mildly alkaline; abrupt wavy boundary. (3 to 10 inches thick)
Ccam--16 inches; white (10YR 8/2) indurated caliche, laminated and fractured on the surface; fractures do not extent deeper than about 3 inches.
TYPE LOCATION: San Miguel County, New Mexico; 3.5 miles from New Mexico Highway 104 on road to Maes; 800 feet west and 400 feet north of the junction of the Maes Road and the northeast boundary of the Las Vegas Grant.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Thickness of solum and depth to the petrocalcic horizon range from 8 to 20 inches. Rock fragments are less than 15 percent.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 or 5 and chroma of 2 or 3. It is loam, fine sandy loam, silt loam or light clay loam. Structure is moderate medium or fine granular.
The B2t horizon has hue of 10YR through 5YR, value of 4 or 5 and chroma of 2 through 5. It is clay loam or clay. This horizon is neutral or mildly alkaline. The lower part of the solum is weakly calcareous in some pedons.
COMPETING SERIES: This is the Slaughter series in another family. Slaughter soils have mean annual soil temperature warmer than 59 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Crews soils are on uplands and ridges. Slope ranges from 0 to 5 percent. Elevation is 5,300 to 7,200 feet. The soils formed in mixed material of local origin. The average annual precipitation is about 14 to 18 inches; the average annual temperature is about 47 degrees to 52 degrees F. Thornthwaite P.E. Index is about 29. The frost-free season is 140 to 160 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Carnero, Partri, and Tricon soils. Carnero and Partri soils lack a petrocalcic horizon. Tricon soils have a petrocalcic horizon at a depth of 20 to 40 inches.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderately slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Rangeland is the principal use. Native vegetation is mainly blue grama, ring muhly, buffalograss, cacti, and scattered pinyon pine and oneseed juniper in some areas.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northeastern New Mexico. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: San Miguel County Area, New Mexico, 1977.