LOCATION CRUICE                  AZ

Established Series
Rev. JMH/MJA
02/2025

CRUICE SERIES

The Cruice series consists of very shallow or shallow, well drained soils that formed in residuum derived from basalt. Cruice soils are on upper positions of lava fields formed from non-viscous lava flows. Slopes range from 0 to 4 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 12 inches and the mean annual temperature is 52 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Ustic Petroargids

TYPICAL PEDON: Jo-Cruice complex (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted).

A--0 to 3 inches (0 to 8 cm); dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) gravelly loam, brown (10YR 4/3), moist; weak fine subangular blocky; soft, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common irregular pores, very few fine roots throughout; 15 percent gravel; violent effervescence; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); clear smooth boundary

Bt--3 to 9 inches (8 to 22 cm); dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) clay loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2), moist; moderate medium subangular blocky; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky, moderately plastic; few very fine dendritic tubular pores; common very fine and fine roots throughout; 10 percent distinct clay films on all faces of peds; 10 percent gravel; violent effervescence; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); diffuse wavy boundary

Bk--9 to 15 inches (22 to 39 cm); brown (10YR 5/3) silty clay loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4), moist; moderate medium subangular blocky; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky, moderately plastic; few very fine dendritic tubular pores, few very fine and fine roots throughout, 5 percent gravel; violent effervescence; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear smooth boundary

Bkm--15 to 19 inches (39 to 49 cm); cemented material; abrupt wavy boundary

R--19 to 29 inches (49 to 74 cm); basalt bedrock

TYPE LOCATION: Coconino County, Arizona; located about 3.6 kilometers (2.2 miles) south of Ash Fork, Arizona; USGS Quadrangle Ash Fork; Latitude 35.1890750, Longitude -112.4743194, Datum WGS84.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture regime: aridic bordering on ustic
Mean annual soil temperature: 51 to 55 degrees F
Rock fragment content: 0 to 15 percent
Depth to lithic contact: 9 to 20 inches
Particle-size control section:
Clay content: 18 to 35 percent

A horizon
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 4 or 5 (3 or 4 moist)
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 0 to 10 percent
Reaction: moderately alkaline

Bt horizon
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 4 or 5 (3 or 4 moist)
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist
Texture: clay loam
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 10 to 15 percent
Sodium Adsorption Ratio (SAR): 0 to 2
Reaction: moderately alkaline

Bk horizon
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 5 or 6 (3 or 4 moist)
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist
Texture: clay loam or silty clay loam
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 40 percent
Sodium Adsorption Ratio (SAR): 0 to 2
Reaction: moderately alkaline

Bkm horizon
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 6 or 7, dry or moist
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist

COMPETING SERIES: None.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: residuum derived from non-viscous basalt lava flows
Landform: weathered lava field plains
Slopes: 0 to 4 percent
Elevation: 5,200 to 7,000 feet
Mean annual air temperature: 47 to 50 degrees F
Mean annual precipitation: 10 to 14 inches
Precipitation peaks in July and August, and in winter months. May and June are much drier.
Frost-free period: 140 to 160 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Jo, Penzance, Lonti, and Taine soils. Jo soils do not have an argillic horizon and are moderately deep and deep to a restricted layer. Jo soils are in lower positions on the lava field that accumulate more carbonate. Penzance soils are in alluvial areas. Lonti and Taine soils are in more viscous lava flow fields.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: well drained, moderate permeability

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used principally as grazing land and habitat. Native vegetation is mainly blue grama, juniper, and barberry.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Arizona. MLRA 39.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California.

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Coconino County, Arizona.

REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon: from 0 to 2 centimeters. (A horizon)
Argillic horizon: from 8 to 22 centimeters. (Bt horizon).
Calcic horizon: from 22 to 49 centimeters (Bk horizon)
Petrocalcic horizon: from 39 to 49 centimeters (Bkm horizon)
Lithic contact: at 49 centimeters. (R bedrock)
Name is taken from a nearby vertical control point in land survey.
Taxonomic Version: Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Thirteenth Edition, 2022
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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.