LOCATION DESTAZO                 CA+NV

Established Series
Rev. HLH/JJJ/ARW/KJO
04/2015

DESTAZO SERIES

The DeStazo series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in material from mixed alluvium. DeStazo soils are on fan piedmonts, stream flood plains and in basins and have slopes of 0 to 10 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 5 inches and the mean annual air temperature is 62 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, carbonatic, thermic Petronodic Haplocalcids

TYPICAL PEDON: DeStazo sandy loam, rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A1--0 to 2 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) sandy loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; weak medium platy structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; common very fine interstitial pores; violently effervescent, carbonates disseminated; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 7 inches thick)

A2--2 to 11 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) sandy loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; few fine tubular and common very fine interstitial pores; violently effervescent, carbonates disseminated; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); gradual smooth boundary. (0 to 12 inches thick)

Bk1--11 to 21 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very gravelly clay loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and plastic; few very fine and fine roots; few very fine and medium tubular pores; violently effervescent, carbonates disseminated and segregated as approximately 50 percent (by volume) irregularly shaped, extremely hard, white (10YR 8/2) nodules, 1 to 2cm in diameter; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear wavy boundary. (6 to 25 inches thick)

Bk2--21 to 32 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very gravelly clay loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; massive; hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; violently effervescent, carbonates disseminated and segregated as approximately 60 percent (by volume) irregularly shaped, extremely hard, white (10YR 8/2) nodules, 1 to 2cm in diameter; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear wavy boundary. (8 to 31 inches thick)

Bk3--32 to 52 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) extremely gravelly clay loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; massive; hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; few medium tubular pores; violently effervescent, carbonates disseminated and segregated as approximately 70 percent (by volume) irregularly shaped, extremely hard, white (10YR 8/2) nodules, 2 to 5cm in diameter; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 25 inches)

Bk4--52 to 65 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) clay loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; massive; hard, firm, sticky and plastic; few fine and medium roots; few fine tubular pores; violently effervescent, carbonates segregated as filaments and threads; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4).

TYPE LOCATION: Kern County, California; Mojave Desert; about 4 miles southwest of California City; in the SE1/4 of SW1/4 of SW1/4 of section 2, T.11N., R.11W., SBB&M; Latitude 35 degrees, 4 minutes, 25 seconds north and 118 degrees, 1 minute, 5 seconds west; Sanborn quadrangle.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The soil between the depths of 8 and 15 inches is moist in all parts from late November until March. Mean annual soil temperature ranges from 59 to 64 degrees F. Organic matter is less than 1 percent. Some pedons are saline, with conductivity of the saturation extract ranging up to 16mmhos/cm.

The A horizon is fine sand, fine sandy loam, sandy loam, loam or light sandy clay loam. It is brown pale brown, or light yellowish brown (10YR 5/3, 6/3, 6/4). Disseminated carbonates occur throughout the A horizon in some pedons or start in the lower part in other pedons. Coarse fragments in the form of nodules are scattered over the surface in some pedons and make up 0 to 5 percent of the horizon by volume.

The Bk and C horizons are light yellowish brown, pale brown, or very pale brown (10YR 6/4, 6/3 7/3, 7/4), or light brownish gray, light gray, or white (2.5Y 6/2, 7/2, 8/2). It is clay loam or sandy clay loam and has 18 to 35 percent clay in the 10- to 40-inch section. This horizon is heavy sandy loam in the lower part in some pedons. Coarse fragments in the form of extremely hard nodules make up 35 to 80 percent by volume of the 10- to 40-inch control section. The sum of the carbonates is more than 65 percent and calcium carbonate is more than 40 percent by weight. Nodules are to about 0 to 10 percent below depths of 40 to 60 inches. Some pedons have an unrelated faintly mottled stratified horizon at depths greater than 60 inches.

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Weiser series. Weiser soils have rock fragments rather than lime nodules.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: DeStazo soils are on fan piedmonts, stream flood plains and basins and formed from mixed alluvium. Flooding is rare. Elevations are 1,500 to 3,800 feet. The climate is aridic with hot, dry summers and mild, somewhat moist winters. Mean annual precipitation is 3 to 8 inches, some as snow. Average January temperature is 44 to 45 degrees F.; average July temperature is 80 to 88 degrees F. The mean annual temperature is 60 to 65 degrees F. The frost-free season is 200 to 300 days. The Thornthwaite PE index is less than 12.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Cajon, Garlock, and Rosamond soils. These soils have less than 40 percent calcium carbonate. Also, Garlock soils have a B2t horizon, and Cajon soils are sandy.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; negligible to medium runoff; moderately slow permeability. Wind erosion is moderate in some areas.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used mainly for recreation. In good years the soil is used for sheep range. Vegetation is Atriplex and creosotebush with scattered annual grasses.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: High Desert area of the Mojave Desert. Series is moderately extensive.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: PHOENIX, ARIZONA

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Kern County, California, 1976.

REMARKS: Series reclassified on September, 1994. Competing series not reviewed at that time. Partially revised, 6/96.

ADDITIONAL DATA: NSSL pedon S74CA-029-006.

This series includes the central concept of the inactivated Sunrise series which had the same type location, characterization pedon and OSD. The concept of DeStazo is that the durinodes are non-slaking fragments > 2mm and should be considered to act as rock fragments. The Sunrise series did not consider the durinodes as RF and consequently the soil was classified as fine-loamy instead of loamy-skeletal.

Runoff classes based on Ksat and slope as described in "Terminology Used in Soil Survey Data Entry or Manuscript Editing of:" 9-23-94 MAV. Runoff changed from slow to medium to negligible to medium.

Ochric epipedon - The zone from 0 to 11 inches (A1 and A2 horizons)

Calcic horizon - The zone from 11 to 52 inches (Bk1, Bk2 and Bk3 horizons)

Particle size control section - The zone from 10 to 40 inches (Bk1, Bk2 and part of the Bk3 horizons)

Responsibility for this series was transferred from Davis to Phoenix 4/2015. The last revision to the series was 2/1997. ET

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.