LOCATION GAINES NMEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, mixed, superactive, frigid Pachic Argiustolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Gaines silty clay loam, range and wooded. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A--0 to 9 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) silty clay loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; weak very fine granular structure; hard, friable, sticky, slightly plastic; many fine roots; many fine interstitial and few fine tubular pores; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (5 to 12 inches thick)
Bt1--9 to 15 inches; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) silty clay loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; strong medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, sticky, plastic; common fine and medium, and few coarse roots; common fine interstitial pores; common thin clay films on surfaces of peds and as coatings in pores; 5 percent channery fragments; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (5 to 10 inches thick)
Bt2--15 to 22 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) silty clay loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; moderate medium prismatic and strong medium subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, sticky, plastic; common fine, medium and coarse roots; common fine interstitial pores; common thin clay film on surfaces of peds and coatings in pores; 5 percent channery fragments; neutral; gradual wavy boundary. (6 to 12 inches thick)
Btk3--22 to 32 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) clay, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate medium prismatic parting to moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm very sticky, plastic; few fine, medium and coarse roots; common fine and very fine interstitial pores; few thin clay films on grains of sand and coatings in pores; 10 percent channery limestone fragments, 5 percent flagstone; few fine soft lime masses; slightly alkaline; gradual irregular boundary. (8 to 14 inches thick)
C--32 to 48 inches; upper 3 to 8 inches has soil material like the Btk3 horizon intermixed with the coarse fragments grading into 85 to 95 percent highly fractured, weathered, limestone intermingled with siltstone and limy shale. (16 to 32 inches thick)
R--48 inches; limestone bedrock.
TYPE LOCATION: Otero County, New Mexico; about 0.2 miles north of Dry Canyon and Rinconada road in the northwest corner of a bar pit which is about 300 feet west of the Goat Canyon-Salt Well road near the W1/4 corner of sec. 36, T.12S., R.12E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
The solum is 24 to 48 inches thick.
Depth to limestone bedrock: 40 to 72 inches.
Limestone fragments in the control section: 5 to 35 percent.
Average annual soil temperature: 41 degrees to 47 degrees F. with summer temperature of about 56 degrees F.
Soil moisture: These soils are usually moist with the driest period between April and June. Typic ustic moisture regime.
The solum is neutral to slightly alkaline.
A thin O1 horizon occurs in some pedons.
A horizon
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 3 through 5 dry and 2 and 3 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry or moist.
B2t horizon
Hue: 5YR through 10YR
Value: 3 through 5 dry and 2 or 3 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry or moist
Texture: silty clay loam, clay loam or clay
Clay content: 35 to 60 percent clay.
Calcium carbonate (lower B2t or C horizons): nonvisible and finely divided to few, medium soft lime masses and thin lime mycelia.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Bandarito (CO), Encicado (NM), Robolato (NM), Seeprid (UT), Telefono (NM) series. Bandarito, Encicado and Robolato soils are very deep. Seeprid soils formed in parent materials from sandstone. Telefono soils are moderately deep.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Gaines soils are on gently sloping to moderately steep ridge tops, crests and saddles of limestone hills and mountains at elevations of 6,800 to 8,400 feet. The soils formed in materials weathered from folded limestone. These soils occur in dry subhumid climate. Mean annual precipitation is about 17 to 21 inches with a summer maximum. Mean annual temperature is about 39 degrees to 45 degrees F. The Thornthwaite P-E Index is about 28 to 43.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Jarita, Mescalero, Telefono and the competing Peso soils. Jarita soils have average soil temperatures greater than 47 degrees F. Mescalero soils lack argillic horizons and have more than 35 percent coarse fragments in the control section. Telefono soils have cryic temperatures.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well-drained; rapid runoff; slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Native range, wildlife, recreation, woodland and watershed. Principal native vegetation is blue grama, mountain brown, sideoats grama, western wheat grass, ponderosa pine and oak brush.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mountainous areas of south central New Mexico. The series is of moderate extent. MLRAs 39 & 48A.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Otero County (Mescalero-Apache Area), New Mexico, 1970.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon and Pachic feature: The zone from 0 to 22 inches. (A and Bt horizons)
Argillic horizon: The zone from 9 to 32 inches. (Bt and Btk horizons)
Classified according to Keys to Soil Taxonomy Ninth Edition, 2003.