LOCATION FOXTROT NM TXEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, thermic Argic Petrocalcids
TYPICAL PEDON: Foxtrot sand -- rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
A--0 to 1 inch; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) crushed, sand, brown (7.5YR 5/4) crushed, moist; 3 percent clay; single grain; nonsticky, and nonplastic, noneffervescent, by HCl, 3 normal; moderately alkaline pH8.0, pH meter 1:1 water; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick)
2Btk1--1 to 6 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) crushed, sandy clay loam, brown (7.5YR 5/4) crushed, moist; 20 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly sticky and slightly plastic, common fine roots throughout and common coarse roots throughout and common very fine roots throughout; few distinct clay film on faces of peds; 5 percent medium spherical carbonate masses throughout; 5 percent nonflat 0.1- to 0.6-inch monzonite fragments; violently effervescent, by HCl, 3 normal; slightly alkaline pH 7.7, pH meter 1:1 water; 10 percent calcium carbonate equivalent;; clear smooth boundary. (3 to 10 inches thick)
2Btk2--6 to 29 inches; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) crushed, sandy clay loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/4) crushed, moist; 20 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly sticky and slightly plastic, few fine and few medium roots; few distinct clay films on faces of peds; 25 percent coarse spherical weakly cemented carbonate masses throughout; violently effervescent, by HCl, 3 normal; slightly alkaline pH 7.6, pH meter 1:1 water; 17 percent calcium carbonate equivalent;; clear smooth boundary. (15 to 30 inches thick)
2Bkm--29 to 53 inches; pink (7.5YR 7/3) crushed, sandy clay loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/4) crushed, moist; 20 percent clay; weak thick platy structure; slightly sticky and slightly plastic, the top of the pan contain a thin root mat; the matrix is weakly to strongly cemented and fractured; 85 percent coarse spherical strongly cemented carbonate nodules that are weakly to strongly cemented throughout; violently effervescent, by HCl, 3 normal; moderately alkaline pH 8.0, pH meter 1:1 water; 34 percent calcium carbonate equivalent; clear smooth boundary. (18 to 34 inches thick)
3Bk--53 to 80 inches; pink (7.5YR 7/3) crushed, sandy clay loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/4) crushed, moist; massive; slightly sticky and slightly plastic, 5 percent coarse spherical extremely weakly cemented carbonate masses throughout; violently effervescent, by HCl, 3 normal; moderately alkaline pH 8.0, pH meter 1:1 water.
TYPE LOCATION: Otero County, New Mexico; approximately 13.7 miles west and 14.9 miles south of Oro Grande; 1,800 feet E. and 2,500 feet S. of the NW corner of Section 3, R. 6 E., T. 25 S.; UTM zone 13, 0375543E, 3558880N; NAD 27; USGS Newman NE topographic quadrangle; lat. 32 degrees 9 minutes 41 seconds N. and 106 degrees 19 minutes 12 seconds W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil Moisture: Typic aridic soil moisture regime. The moisture control section is usually dry in all parts more than three-fourths of the time that the soil temperature exceeds 41 degrees F.
Mean annual soil temperature: 63 to 67 degrees F.
Depth to calcic horizon: 4 to 13 inches
Depth to petrocalcic horizon: 20 to 40 inches
Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay content: 18 to 27 percent
Coarse fragment content: 0 to 10 percent
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 40 percent (less than 2-mm fraction)
A horizon:
Hue: 5YR or 7.5YR
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 4 to 6, dry or moist
Coarse fragments: mixed igneous fragments; 0 to 10 percent gravel size fragments
Btk horizon:
Value: 5 or 8 dry, 4 to 6 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6, dry or moist
Coarse fragments: mixed igneous fragments; 0 to 10 percent gravel size fragments
2Bkm horizon
Value: 7 or 8 dry, 5 or 6 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4 dry or moist.
Coarse fragment 60 to 85 percent carbonates nodules.
Other features: The matrix is weakly to strongly cemented in places.
3Bk horizon:
Value: 7 to 8 dry, 5 or 6 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4, dry or moist
Coarse fragments: mixed igneous fragments; 5 to 15 percent gravel size fragments
Other features: Contains 5 to 15 percent nodules or weakly cemented
carbonates masses.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Cacique (NM),
Castaneda (AZ) and
Winerton (CA) series.
Cacique soils do not have a calcic horizon above the petrocalcic horizon.
Castaneda soils are intermittently moist in some part of the soil moisture control section for less than 20 days cumulative during July - September, and contain a calcic horizon above the cemented hardpan.
Winerton soils have a sodium adsorption ratio of 13 to 30.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: eolian sands over alluvium
Landform: basin floor
Slope: 0 to 5 percent
Mean annual temperature: 62 to 66 degrees F.
Mean annual precipitation: 8 to 10 inches
Precipitation pattern: precipitation falls mostly during the months of July through September. The driest months are March and April. Precipitation during the months of January, February, and March is less than 13 percent of the total.
Frost-free period: 200 to 240 days
Elevation: 3,900 to 4,200 feet
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Copia,
Hueco, and
Nations soils.
Copia soils do not have petrocalcic horizons and are on sand sheets on the basin floor.
Hueco and Nations soils are coarse-loamy and are on the basin floor.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderately slow above and below the very slowly permeable petrocalcic horizon. Runoff is high.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for grazing livestock. Vegetation is of the desert shrub type consisting of mesa dropseed, spike dropseed, threeawns, broom snakeweed, and mesquite.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Trans-Pecos of Texas and southern New Mexico; LRR D, MLRA 42; small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Otero County, New Mexico; 2001.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle-size control section: The zone from 1 to 21 inches. (2Btk1 and 2Btk2 horizons)
Ochric epipedon: The zone from 0 to 7 inches. (A, 2Btk1 and 2Btk2 horizons, mixed to 7 inches)
Argillic horizon: The zone from 1 to 29 inches. (2Btk1 and 2Btk2 horizons)
Petrocalcic horizon: The zone from 29 to 53 inches. (2Bkm horizon)
The assignment of the cation-exchange activity class is inferred from lab data from similar soils in the surrounding area.