LOCATION HEDOX CAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, nonacid, mesic Xeric Torriorthents
TYPICAL PEDON: Hedox loam-on a west facing concave slope of 16 percent under gray rabbitbrush, big sage, juniper and cheatgrass at 4,340 feet elevation. (When described on October 12, 1978, the soil was dry throughout. Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated).
A1--0 to 3 inches; light gray (10YR 7/2) loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak medium granular structure; loose, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine and medium roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 9 percent pebbles, 3 percent cobbles; neutral (pH 8.6); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 5 inches thick)
A2--3 to 8 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) loam, dark brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic, common very fine and few fine and medium roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 6 percent pebbles, 3 percent cobbles; neutral (pH 7.0); clear smooth boundary. (4 to 10 inches thick)
C1--8 to 19 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine and fine roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 6 percent pebbles, 3 percent cobbles; neutral (pH 7.0); clear smooth boundary. (8 to 10 inches thick)
C2--19 to 27 inches; very pale brown (10YR 8/3) gravelly loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; massive; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots; common very fine interstitial pores; 15 percent pebbles, 10 percent cobbles; neutral (pH 6.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 15 inches thick)
Cr--27 inches; weathered diatomaceous earth and lacustrine tuff.
TYPE LOCATION: Siskiyou County, California, about 12 miles southeast of Dorris, CA, 251 feet east of the dirt road that is on the west side of the Little Tablelands, 50 feet east and 200 feet south of the northwest corner of sec. 10, T. 46 N., R. 2 E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to a paralithic contact is 20 to 40 inches between the depths of 6 and 14 inches is dry in all parts for 135 to 145 days out of 255 days the soils temperature at a depth of 20 inches exceeds 41 degrees F. It is never moist in some part between 6 and 14 inches for 90 consecutive days when the soil temperature at a depth of 20 inches is greater than 47 degrees F. Temperature above 41 degrees F is from about March 15 to December 1 and is above 47 degrees F from about April 15 to November 15. Clay content is 18 to 25 percent in the 10 to 40 inch control section.
The A horizon has dry color of 10YR 7/2, 7/3, 6/2 or 6/3 and moist color of 10YR 4/2, 4/3, 3/2, or 3/3. Rock fragments range from 0 to 30 percent. Textures are loam and stony loam. Thickness ranges from 7 to 15 inches.
The C horizon has dry color of 10YR 8/3, 7/3 or 6/3 and moist color of 10YR 6/3 or 5/3. Texture is loam and gravelly loam. In the upper C horizon rock fragments range from 5 to 30 percent. In the lower C horizon the reaction is neutral to mildly alkaline and rock fragments range from 15 to 30 percent.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Digiorgio, Jenness, Lolalita and Polonio series in other families. The Digiorgio soils are greater than 60 inches deep and the mean annual soil temperature is greater than 59 degrees F. Jenness and Lolalita soils have coarse-loamy control sections. The Polonio soils are calcareous, greater than 60 inches deep and the mean annual soil temperature is greater than 59 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Hedox soils are on hills and sideslopes of plateaus. Slopes are 15 to 30 percent. The soils formed in material weathered from diatomacious earth and lacustrine tuff. Elevations are from 4,000 to 4,800 feet. The climate is semiarid with warm dry summers and cold moist winters. The annual precipitation is 10 to 14 inches. Snowfall is 20 to 30 inches. Mean January temperature is about 29 degrees F; mean July temperature is about 66 degrees F; mean annual temperature is about 48 degrees F. Frost-free season is about 50 to 80 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS; These are the Porterfield (T), Deven and Eastable (T) soils. Porterfield soils are 10 to 20 inches deep to a paralithic contact and are on convex positions within areas of Hedox soils. Deven soils are 10 to 20 inches deep to a lithic contact, have mollic epipedons and argillic horizons. They are on plateaus above Hedox soils. Eastable soils are greater than 60 inches deep and are on alluvial fans below Hammond soils.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; runoff is slow to rapid; moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used as rangeland and small areas of alfalfa and pasture. Native vegetation is bluebunch wheatgrass, Idaho fescue, Nevada bluegrass, big sagebrush.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern California Uplands. The series is not extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES PROPOSED: Siskiyou County, California, Butte Valley-Tule Lake Area 1980. Series name is coined.
REMARKS:
The superactive cation exchange activity class was added in 03/2003 to the taxonomic classification by the National Soil Survey Center on request of the Reno MLRA office, without review of the soil series property data. The remainder of this document has not been updated.