LOCATION HANDY NV

Established Series
Rev. JVC/JBF
11/2016

HANDY SERIES

The Handy series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium and colluvium derived from igneous rocks with some influence from limestone and dolostone. Handy soils are on fan remnants and hills. Slopes are 2 to 30 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 280 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 7 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Clayey over loamy, smectitic over mixed, superactive, frigid Xeric Haplargids

TYPICAL PEDON: Handy gravelly loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A--0 to 10 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak fine and very fine granular structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; many very fine and few fine interstitial pores; 20 percent gravel; neutral (pH 7.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 15 cm thick)

BA--10 to 20 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) gravelly clay loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak fine and very fine granular structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine, and few fine roots; many very fine and fine interstitial pores; few fine tubular pores; 15 percent gravel; neutral (pH 7.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 20 cm thick)

Bt1--20 to 33 cm; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly clay loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; strong fine prismatic structure; hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; few coarse, medium, fine and very fine roots; common very fine and fine interstitial pores, few fine tubular pores; common distinct clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; 15 percent gravel; neutral (pH 6.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (10 to 36 cm thick)

Bt2--33 to 48 cm; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) gravelly clay, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; strong fine prismatic structure; hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; few coarse, medium, fine, and very fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; many prominent clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; 15 percent gravel; slightly effervescent on bottoms of some gravel; neutral (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 50 cm thick)

Btk--48 to 76 cm; very pale brown (10YR 8/4) gravelly clay, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) moist; moderate very fine and fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine and fine roots; few very fine and fine interstitial pores; 25 percent gravel; secondary carbonates segregated as few fine coats on bottoms of rock fragments; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 53 cm thick)

2Bk--76 to 152 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) gravelly fine sandy loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common fine and very fine roots; many fine and very fine interstitial pores; 30 percent gravel; secondary carbonates segregated as common fine coats on bottoms of rock fragments; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.3).

TYPE LOCATION: Eureka County, Nevada; approximately 10 miles north of Eureka on the east side of Whistler mountain; about 1,000 feet north of the southeast corner of section 36., T. 21 N., R. 52 E.; USGS Whistler Mountain 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 39 degrees 38 minutes 16 seconds N and longitude 116 degrees 3 minutes 32 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 39.6377778 latitude, -116.0588889 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually moist in winter and spring, dry June through October, aridic moisture regime that borders on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 7 to 8 degrees C.
Ochric epipedon thickness: 10 to 25 cm.
Depth to secondary carbonates: 30 to 58 cm.
Depth to strongly contrasting loamy materials: 50 to 100 cm.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 40 to 50 percent in the upper part and 5 to 23 in the strongly contrasting lower part.
Rock fragments: 0 to 30 percent in the upper part and averages 15 to 35 percent in the strongly contrasting lower part, mainly gravel.

A horizon
Value: 4 through 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist; dry value is 6 when the upper 18 cm of the soil is mixed.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Reaction: Neutral or slightly alkaline.

Bt and Btk horizons
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR, with 5YR in some pedons.
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Clay or gravelly clay.
Clay content: 40 to 50 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 30 percent.
Structure: Moderate to strong angular blocky or prismatic.
Reaction: Neutral through moderately alkaline, commonly increasing with depth.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 1 to 10 percent in the Btk horizon.

2Bk horizon
Texture: Stratified gravelly loam to very gravelly loamy sand.
Clay content: 5 to 23 percent.
Rock fragments: 15 to 60 percent, mainly gravel.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Effervescence: Strongly effervescent or violently effervescent.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 2 to 10 percent.

COMPETING SERIES: At present, there are no other series in this family.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Handy soils are on fan remnants and hills. These soils formed in alluvium and colluvium derived from igneous rocks but are influenced some by limestone and dolostone. Slopes are 2 to 30 percent. Elevations range from 1,680 to 2,170 meters. The climate is semiarid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 200 to 360 mm, mean annual temperature is 6 to 7 degrees C, and the frost-free period is 70 to 100 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Devoy, Locane, and Overland soils. Devoy soils are clayey-skeletal, moderately deep to lithic contacts, have mollic epipedons, and a cryic temperature regime. Locane soils are clayey-skeletal and shallow to lithic contacts. Overland soils are loamy-skeletal, moderately deep to lithic contacts, and have calcic horizons and carbonatic mineralogy.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; very high surface runoff; moderately low saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Handy soils are used for rangeland and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly big sagebrush, Nevada ephedra, Sandberg's bluegrass, bottlebrush squirreltail. Some areas have scattered singleleaf pinyon and Utah juniper.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Central Nevada. These soils are moderately extensive. MLRA 28B.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Eureka County (Diamond Valley Area), Nevada, 1971.

REMARKS: The revision of January 2002 updates the taxonomic class from Fine, smectitic, frigid Xeric Haplargids. There is a strongly contrasting particle-size class due to the major lithologic discontinuity at 76 cm.

Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 20 cm (A and BA horizons).
Argillic horizon - The zone from 20 to 76 cm (Bt1, Bt2, and Btk horizons).
Identifiable secondary carbonates - The zone from 33 to 152 cm (Btk and 2Bk horizons).
Major lithologic discontinuity - The abrupt change to loamy material at 76 cm (2Bk horizon).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 20 to 100 cm (Bt1, Bt2, and Btk horizons and part of the 2Bk horizon).

ADDITIONAL DATA: Previous authors and editors include: WMA-RAF-RLB.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.