LOCATION HOLSINE                 NV

Established Series
Rev. JWM/DHZ/TM
02/2012

HOLSINE SERIES

The Holsine series consists of very deep, well drained soils on eroded fan remnants and pediment remnants. They formed in alluvium derived from limestone and welded tuff and mixed lacustrine deposits. Slopes range from 2 to 30 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 225 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 8 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy-skeletal over loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Xeric Haplocalcids

TYPICAL PEDON: Holsine very gravelly sandy loam - rangeland (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The surface is partially covered with approximately 30 percent gravel and 30 percent cyanobacteria.

A--0 to 8 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; strong coarse subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; many very fine, common fine, and few medium roots; many very fine and fine vesicular pores; 50 percent gravel; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (4 to 10 cm thick)

Bkq1--8 to 25 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) extremely gravelly sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky, nonplastic; many very fine roots; many very fine and fine interstitial pores; common secondary calcium carbonate masses on the bottom of rock fragments; few secondary silica nodules on the bottom of rock fragments; 65 percent gravel; violently effervescent, moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 25 cm thick)

Bkq2--25 to 83 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) extremely gravelly loamy coarse sand, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; single grain; loose, nonsticky, nonplastic; common very fine, few fine and medium roots; many very fine and fine interstitial pores; common secondary calcium carbonate masses on the bottom of rock fragments; few secondary silica nodules on the bottom of rock fragments; 70 percent gravel; violently effervescent, moderately alkaline (pH 8.1); clear smooth boundary. (35 to 65 cm thick)

2C--83 to 178 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very fine sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few very fine, fine and medium roots; few very fine irregular pores; common medium geogenic calcium carbonate masses along sedimentary layers and between fractures; 10 percent gravel; violently effervescent, strongly alkaline (pH 8.8).

TYPE LOCATION: Lincoln County, Nevada; approximately 100 meters east of borrow pit and 1.4 kilometers south of White Rock well. 272 meters south and 120 meters east of the northwest corner of section 28, T.3 N., R.70 E. USGS Eagle Valley Reservoir 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 38 degrees 5 minutes 39.5 seconds N and longitude 114 degrees 9 minutes 10.6 seconds W; UTM zone 11s, 749668e, 4220107n; NAD83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually moist in winter and spring, dry in summer and fall except intermittently moist for 10 to 20 days between July and September due to convection storms; aridic soil moisture regime that borders on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 12 degrees C.
Depth to calcic horizon: 4 to 8 cm.
Depth to non-gravelly unconformable material: 54 to 94 cm.
Thickness of calcic horizon: 50 to 90 cm.
Reaction: Moderately to strongly alkaline (pH 7.9 to 9.0).
Carbonate development stage: Stage II.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 4 to 8 percent in the upper, sandy-skeletal part and 8 to 12 percent in the lower, loamy part.
Rock fragments: 60 to 75 percent in the upper part and 0 to 15 percent in the lower part. Lithology of the fragments is limestone and welded tuff.

A horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Mineralogy: 12 to 20 percent volcanic glass in the 0.02 to 2 mm fraction and averages 0.01 to 0.05 percent Al plus 1/2Fe, extracted by ammonium oxalate.

Bkq1 horizon (when present)
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Sandy loam or coarse sandy loam.
Structure: Weak or moderate, medium or coarse, subangular blocky structure.
Rock fragments: 60 to 75 percent gravel.
Secondary calcium carbonate: 5 to 20 percent by volume, as masses.
Secondary silica: 1 to 5 percent by volume, as nodules.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 20 percent.
Mineralogy: 12 to 24 percent volcanic glass in the 0.02 to 2 mm fraction and averages 0.01 to 0.09 percent Al plus 1/2Fe, extracted by ammonium oxalate.

Bkq2 horizon
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Structure: Massive or single grain.
Rock fragments: 60 to 75 percent gravel.
Secondary calcium carbonate: 5 to 20 percent by volume, as masses.
Secondary silica: 1 to 10 percent by volume, as nodules.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 20 percent.

2C horizon
Value: 4 to 6, dry or moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent gravel.
Other Features: 1 to 20 percent geogenic calcium carbonate as masses along sedimentary layers and between fractures.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 20 percent.

COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Holsine soils are on summits, shoulders, and backslopes of eroded fan remnants and pediment remnants. They formed in alluvium derived from tuff and limestone over mixed lacustrine deposits. Slopes range from 2 to 30 percent. Elevations range from 1,350 to 2,000 meters. The climate is cool, semiarid with a mean annual temperature of 7 to 10 degrees C. The mean annual precipitation is 200 to 250 mm. The frost-free period is about 90 to 110 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Decathon, Fanu, Holtle, Poorma, and Usine soils. Decathon soils have argillic horizons and duripans. Fanu and Holtle soils have mollic epipedons. Usine and Poorma soils do not have calcic horizons.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well-drained; low or moderate runoff; moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is black sagebrush, Indian ricegrass, needleandthread, bottlebrush squirreltail, and blue grama. This pedon is correlated to Ecological Site Description, R029XY008NV, Shallow Calcareous Loam 8-12 P.Z.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: East-central Nevada. Holsine soils are of small extent. MLRA's 28A and 29.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona.

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Lincoln County (Meadow Valley Area), Nevada, 1971.

REMARKS: A 2/2008 revision moves the type location and changes the family particle size class to sandy-skeletal over loamy. Prior to 2008 Holsine soils were formerly classified as minimal Calcisols.

Diagnostic horizon and features in this pedon include:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the surface to 18 cm (A and part of the Bqk1 horizons).
Calcic horizon - The zone from 8 to 83 cm (Bkq1 and Bkq2 horizons).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 25 to 100 cm (Bkq2 and 2Ck horizons).

ADDITIONAL DATA: Pedon Id: 06NV613006-JWM

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.