LOCATION GANCE                   NV

Established Series
Rev. CEJ/PWB/RLB/JBF
05/2016

GANCE SERIES

The Gance series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from mixed rocks with a component of loess and volcanic ash. Gance soils are on fan piedmont remnants. Slopes are 2 to 50 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 230 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 9 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Clayey-skeletal, smectitic, mesic Durinodic Xeric Haplargids

TYPICAL PEDON: Gance very cobbly loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soils unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered with 30 percent cobbles and 30 percent gravel.

A--0 to 10 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very cobbly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate very thin and thin platy structure; soft, very friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine roots; many very fine vesicular pores; 25 percent cobbles and 30 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 25 cm thick)

Bt1--10 to 20 cm; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) very gravelly clay, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate fine and medium angular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, moderately sticky and very plastic; many very fine and fine and few medium roots; many very fine tubular pores; 10 percent cobbles and 25 percent gravel; many pressure faces and many faint clay films lining pores; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear wavy boundary. (8 to 18 cm thick)

Bt2--20 to 30 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) very gravelly clay, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; strong fine and medium angular blocky structure; hard, friable, very sticky and very plastic; common very fine and fine and few medium roots; common very fine tubular pores; 10 percent cobbles and 40 percent gravel; many pressure faces and many distinct clay films lining pores; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 20 cm thick)

Bt3--30 to 43 cm; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very gravelly sandy clay, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; moderate fine and medium angular blocky structure; hard, friable, very sticky and very plastic; common very fine and few fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; 15 to 20 percent cobbles; 30 percent gravel; many pressure faces and many distinct clay films lining pores; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 30 cm thick)

Btk--43 to 74 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/4) extremely cobbly sandy clay, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; moderate fine angular blocky structure; hard, very friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few very fine and fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; 30 percent cobbles and 40 percent gravel; many pressure faces and distinct clay films lining pores; common very fine soft carbonate filaments; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 30 cm thick)

Bqk1--74 to 107 cm; very pale brown (10YR 8/2) extremely cobbly sandy loam, very pale brown (10YR 7/3) moist; massive; hard, firm and brittle, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine tubular pores; many coarse soft carbonate masses; 40 percent cobbles and 40 percent gravel; continuous brittle matrix; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear irregular boundary. (7 to 33 cm thick)

Bqk2--107 to 140 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) extremely gravelly coarse sandy loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; massive; hard, firm and brittle, nonsticky and slightly plastic; few very fine tubular pores; many soft carbonate masses; 10 percent cobbles and 70 percent gravel; continuous brittle matrix; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 56 cm thick)

Bqk3--140 to 173 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) extremely gravelly sandy loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; massive; hard, firm and brittle, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common soft carbonate masses; 20 percent cobbles and 50 percent gravel; continuous brittle matrix; strongly effervescent, moderately alkaline (pH 8.4).

TYPE LOCATION: Elko County, Nevada; about 19 miles north of Elko, approximately 1,200 feet north and 750 feet east of the southwest corner of section 14, T. 37 N., R. 56 E.; USGS The Buttes 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 41 degrees 05 minutes 31 seconds N and longitude 115 degrees 38 minutes 20 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 41.0919444 latitude, -115.6388889 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist in some part late October through early June; aridic soil moisture regime bordering on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 11 degrees C.
Depth to base of Bt horizon: 59 to 81 cm.
Depth to carbonates: 33 to 80 cm.
Depth to continuously brittle Bqk horizon: 64 to 97 cm.
Other features: Some pedons have noncemented horizons below the Bqk horizon. Some pedons have buried Bt horizons below 142 cm.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: Averages 35 to 55 percent.
Rock fragments: Averages 35 to 75 percent.

A horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.
Reaction: Neutral through moderately alkaline.

Bt1 horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4.
Texture: Gravelly or very gravelly clay or clay loam.
Clay content: 35 to 45 percent.
Rock fragments: 20 to 55 percent mainly gravel, with up to 10 percent cobbles.
Structure: Very fine to medium subangular blocky.

Lower Bt horizons
Value: 4 through 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4.
Texture: Very gravelly clay, extremely gravelly clay or very gravelly sandy clay and extremely cobbly sandy clay.
Clay content: 40 to 55 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 80 percent mainly gravel, with up to 20 percent cobbles.
Structure: Fine or medium subangular or angular blocky or fine to coarse prismatic.
Reaction: Slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline, usually increasing with depth.
Other features: Some pedons have a Bk horizon between the Btk and the Bqk horizons.

Bqk horizon
Value: 6 through 8 dry, 5 through 7 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4.
Texture: Very gravelly, extremely gravelly, extremely cobbly sandy loam, loam and coarse sandy loam.
Rock fragments: 35 to 80 percent, of which up to 40 percent is cobbles.
Cementation: Continuously brittle matrix that is hard and firm.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Effervescence: Strongly effervescent through violently effervescent.

COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Gance soils are on summits and side slopes of fan piedmont remnants. These soils formed in alluvium derived from mixed rock sources with a component of loess and volcanic ash. Slopes are 2 to 50 percent. Elevations are 1,525 to 2,045 meters. The climate is cool and semiarid with warm, dry summers and cool, moist winters. The mean annual precipitation is 200 to 250 mm and comes mostly in the form of snow; mean annual temperature is 8 to 10 degrees C, and the frost free season is 100 to 120 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Dewar, Hunnton and Wieland soils. These soils have less than 35 percent rock fragments in their particle-size control sections. Also, Dewar soils are shallow to a indurated duripan and Hunnton soils are moderately deep to a indurated duripan.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; medium to rapid runoff; moderately low saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Rangeland and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly Wyoming big sagebrush, Douglas rabbitbrush, phlox, Sandberg bluegrass, bottlebrush squirreltail, Indian ricegrass and cheatgrass.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northeastern Nevada. These soils are not extensive. MLRA 24, 25, 28B.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Elko County, Nevada, Central Part, 1986.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 10 cm (A horizon).
Abrupt texture change - At 10 cm ( boundary between A and Bt1 horizon).
Argillic horizons - The zone from 10 to 74 cm (Bt1, Bt2, Bt3 and Btk horizons).
Duric horizons - The zone from 74 to 173 cm (Bqk1, Bqk2 and Bqk3 horizons).
Xeric feature - Soil meets the organic carbon requirement for xeric.
Particle-size control section - The zone from 10 to 60 cm (Bt1, Bt2 and Bt3 horizons and a portion of the Btk horizon).

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.