LOCATION DRIT NV
Established Series
Rev. DMC/GJS/JBF
01/2023
DRIT SERIES
The Drit series consists of deep, well drained soils that formed in colluvium from granitic and metavolcanic rocks. Drit soils are on mountain backslopes. Slopes are 15 to 75 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 360 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 8 degrees C.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic Pachic Haploxerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Drit gravelly coarse sandy loam, rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A1--0 to 5 cm; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) gravelly loamy coarse sand, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; single grain; loose, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine interstitial pores; 20 percent 2 to 5 mm and 5 percent 5 to 76 mm gravel, slightly acid (pH 6.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (3 to 10 cm thick)
A2--5 to 20 cm; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) coarse sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and few fine roots; common very fine and few fine tubular pores; 5 percent 2 to 5 mm and 5 percent 5 to 76 mm gravel, neutral (pH 7.2); clear smooth boundary. (8 to 20 cm thick)
A3--20 to 38 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) gravelly coarse sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine, fine, and medium roots; few very fine and fine tubular pores; many black (10YR 2/1) organic stains coating sand grains; l0 percent 2 to 5 cm and 5 percent 5 to 76 mm gravel; neutral (pH 7.0); clear smooth boundary. (13 to 25 cm thick)
A4--38 to 71 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) very gravelly coarse sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine, and few fine, medium, and coarse roots; many very fine tubular pores; l0 percent 2 to 5 mm and 25 percent 5 to 76 mm gravel, l0 percent cobbles and stones; few faint organic stains coating sand grains; neutral (pH 7.0); clear smooth boundary. (25 to 40 cm thick)
Bw--71 to 97 cm; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very gravelly coarse sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; l0 percent 2 to 5 mm and 20 percent 5 to 76 mm gravel, l5 percent cobbles and stones; few thin organic stains coating sand grains; neutral (pH 7.0); clear smooth boundary. (20 to 50 cm thick)
C--97 to 152 cm; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) very gravelly coarse sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; 20 percent 2 to 5 mm diameter and 25 percent 5 to 76 mm gravel; neutral (pH 6.8).
TYPE LOCATION: Douglas County, Nevada; about 1,600 feet east and 1,670 feet north of the southwest corner of section 18, T. 14 N., R. 23 E.; USGS Mount Como 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 39 degrees 04 minutes 32 seconds N and longitude 119 degrees 26 minutes 53 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 39.0755556 latitude, -119.4480556 longitude.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually moist; dry late July to late October; xeric soil moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 9 degrees C.
Mollic epipedon: 50 to 97 cm thick.
Depth to C horizon: 70 to 117 cm.
Reaction: Slightly acid or neutral.
Particle-size control section - Clay percent: 8 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments: 40 to 75 percent, mainly 2 to 5 mm gravel with 5 to 35 percent cobbles or stones in any one horizon.
A horizons
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist.
Chromas: 1 through 3.
B2 horizon
Value: 4 through 7 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4.
Texture: Very gravelly or extremely gravelly coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, or fine sandy loam.
C horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4.
Rock fragments: 40 to 70 percent, mostly gravel.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Dehlinger,
Demox,
Gamboa,
Goldmountain,
Hannarocks,
Langrell,
Murken,
Packard,
Plumas,
Raster,
Watterson and Wrenthan series.
Dehlinger soils have a loam or clay loam particle-size control section.
Demox soils are mildly alkaline.
Gamboa soils have a minimum thickness of the mollic epipedon of 100 cm.
Goldmountain,
Hannarocks and
Murken soils have bedrock at 50 to 100 cm.
Langrell, Murken and
Raster soils are usually dry for less than 90 days and are not dominated by 2 to 5 mm gravel.
Packard soils have a loam or clay particle-size control section with 25 to 35 percent clay.
Watterson soils have lack a cambic horizon. Wrenthan soils have a silt loam or silty clay loam particle-size control section.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Drit soils are on north facing mountain backslopes at elevations of 1,524 to 2,134 meters. Slopes are 15 to 75 percent. The soils formed in colluvium weathered from granitic and metavolcanic rocks. The climate is cold, moist winters and warm dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 300 to 400 mm; and the mean annual temperature is 7 to 9 degrees C. The frost-free season is 80 to l00 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Glean,
Roloc, and
Trid soils. Glean soils have a frigid soil temperature regime. Roloc soils are shallow and have an argillic horizon. Trid soils are moderately deep and have a very gravelly argillic horizon.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; medium runoff; high saturated hydraulic conductivity.
USE AND VEGETATION: Livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The vegetation is mainly Wyoming big sagebrush, antelope bitterbrush, and Thurber's needlegrass with invasion of singleleaf pinyon.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Western Nevada. The series is of small extent. MLRA 26.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Douglas County Area, Nevada, 1981.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Pachic epipedon - The zone from the surface to 71 cm (A1, A2, A3 and A4 horizons).
Cambic horizon - The zone from 71 to 97 cm (Bw horizon).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 25 to 100 cm (A3, A4, Bw and part of the A2 and C horizons).
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.