LOCATION HILLERY NMEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic, frigid Pachic Argiustolls
TYPIFYING PEDON: Hillery stony loam, rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A11--0 to 3 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) stony loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; weak thin platy and weak very fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly plastic; many fine and very fine roots; few very fine and fine pores; about 15 percent basalt stones; neutral (pH 6.6); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 8 inches thick)
A12--3 to 18 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; weak very fine granular structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly plastic; many fine and very fine roots; few fine pores; less than 5 percent basalt stones; neutral (pH 6.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (7 to 16 inches thick)
B21t--18 to 49 inches; reddish brown (2.5YR 4/4) clay, dark reddish brown (2.5YR 3/4) moist; moderate coarse subangular and angular blocky structure; common pressure faces; very hard, very firm, slightly sticky, very plastic; few very fine roots; few very fine pores within peds; common, moderately thick clay films on faces of peds; 10 to 15 percent basalt pebbles and cobbles; neutral (pH 7.0); gradual wavy boundary. (26 to 33 inches thick)
B22t--49 to 54 inches; reddish brown (2.5YR 4/4) clay, reddish brown (2.5YR 4/4) moist; moderate coarse subangular and angular blocky structure; common pressure faces; very hard, very firm, slightly sticky, very plastic; common, moderately thick clay films on faces of peds; 10 to 15 percent basalt pebbles and cobbles; neutral (pH 7.2); gradual wavy boundary. (3 to 7 inches thick)
C--54 to 60 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/2) cobbly clay, brown (7.5YR 4/2) moist; massive; very hard, very firm, slightly sticky, very plastic; 15 to 20 percent pebbles and cobbles; neutral (pH 7.2).
TYPE LOCATION: Colfax County, New Mexico; about 7 miles east of Black Lake; 1,990 feet west and 1,345 feet south of the northeast corner of sec. 21, T.24N., R.17E.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Average annual soil temperature is about 40 degrees to 44 degrees F. and the average summer soil temperature is about 60 degrees F. The solum is 38 to 60 inches thick. Rock fragments make up 5 to 30 percent of the control section and consist of basalt pebbles, cobbles, stones, and boulders. In some pedons there are thin discontinuous lenses with more than 30 percent rock fragments. The pedon is neutral to medium acid. The mollic epipedon is 16 to 22 inches thick. The A horizon has value of 3 through 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist, and chroma of 1 through 3 dry and moist. The B2t horizon has hue of 2.5YR through 10YR, value of 4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist and chroma of 2 through 4 dry and moist. It is clay with 50 to 60 percent clay. In some pedons the B2t horizon rests on bedrock. Some pedons have thin C horizons with hue of 7.5YR or 5YR, value of 4 or 5 dry and moist and chroma of 2 through 6 dry or moist.
COMPETING SERIES AND THEIR DIFFERENTIAE: These are the Grail, Kubler, Pagoda and Peninsula series. Grail, Kubler, and Peninsula soils have less than 50 percent clay in the control section. Also, Kubler soils have calcareous material at depths of 24 to 50 inches. Pagoda soils have 35 to 50 percent clay in the B2t horizon and have an ustic moisture regime bordering on aridic.
SETTING: Hillery soils are on gently sloping to moderately steep basalt mesas and flows at elevations ranging from 8,200 to 11,000 feet. Slopes are 1 to 15 percent. They formed in fine textured residuum weathered from basalt. The climate is continental with an average annual temperature of about 40 percent F. and an average summer temperature of about 60 degrees F. Annual precipitation is 18 to 23 inches with 60 percent falling in the frost-free season.
PRINCIPAL ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are Barela, Burnac, and Saladon soils. Barela and Burnac soils lack mollic epipedons more than 16 inches thick and have mixed mineralogy. Saladon soils have an aquic moisture regime.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well-drained; medium runoff; slow and very slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for summer range, recreation, wildlife and watershed. Principal plants are Arizona fescue, mountain muhly, Junegrass, timber oatgrass, pine dropseed and scattered Douglas-fir, white fir, Engelmann spruce and aspen.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern New Mexico. The series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Colfax County, New Mexico, 1974.
ADDITIONAL DATA: 70NMex-4-1-1 and 70NMex-4-1-2, Lincoln Lab. 70L111, texture and thin section.