LOCATION HONOVA CA
Established Series
Rev. ET/MAV
06/2016
HONOVA SERIES
The Honova series consists of shallow and very shallow, well drained soils that formed from hard rhyolitic tuff. Honova soils are on volcanic tablelands with slopes of 0 to 30 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 180 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 15 degrees C.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Ashy, glassy, nonacid, thermic Lithic Xeric Torriorthents
TYPICAL PEDON: Honova cobbly ashy loamy sand - on a 4 percent east facing slope at 1,366 meters elevation under needleleaf rabbitbrush, spiny hopsage, and Nevada ephedra vegetation. Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated. When described June 29, 1978 the profile was dry throughout. Surface has 1 percent boulders, 1 percent stones, 30 percent cobbles and 25 percent gravel.
A1--0 to 8 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) cobbly ashy loamy sand, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; single grain; loose, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and few fine roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 15 percent angular gravel (tuff fragments), 15 percent angular cobbles, and 1 percent angular stones; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 13 cm thick).
A2--8 to 13 cm; light gray (2.5Y 7/2) gravelly ashy sandy loam, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and few fine roots; many very fine vesicular pores; 20 percent gravel (tuff fragments), 5 percent cobbles, and 1 percent stones; neutral (pH 7.3); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 15 cm thick).
A3--13 to 18 cm; light gray (2.5Y 7/2) ashy sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine roots; many very fine vesicular pores; 5 percent gravel (tuff fragments), 5 percent cobbles, and 1 percent stones; neutral (pH 6.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 20 cm thick).
R--18 cm; hard rhyolitic tuff; 30 cm fracture spacing.
TYPE LOCATION: Inyo County, California. About 5 miles north-northwest of Bishop, California on the volcanic tablelands; 100 yards north of dirt road; 700 feet south and 50 feet west of the northeast corner of Sec. 14, T. 6 S., R. 32 E., M.D.B.M., USGS Fish Slough 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 37 degrees 25 minutes 55 seconds N and longitude 118 degrees 25 minutes 22 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 37.4319444 latitude, -118.4227778 longitude.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to the hard tuff is 10 to 36 cm. The soil above the lithic contact is usually dry from mid-April to mid-November, and is moist in some or all parts the rest of the time; aridic moisture regime bordering on xeric. The soil temperature is above -13 degrees C from March 1 to December 15, but is rarely below -15 degrees C. The mean annual soil temperature is 15 to 17.2 degrees C. The soil surface has a 5 to 80 percent coverage of boulders, stones, cobbles, and gravel which are angular tuff fragments. The gravel and cobbles predominate. Surface stone and boulder coverage is 0 to 5 percent. These soils contain 40 to 60 percent rhyolitic volcanic ash. The soil is neutral or slightly alkaline. Rock fragment content of the control section ranges from 5 to 30 percent, consisting of 0 to 3 percent stones, 0 to 30 percent cobbles, and 5 to 20 percent gravel. These are angular tuff fragments. The clay content of the textural control section averages 6 to 10 percent.
The A horizon color is 10YR 5/3, 6/3, 6/4, 7/2, 7/3; 2.5Y 6/2 or 7/2. Moist color is 10YR 4/2, 4/3, 4/4, 5/2, 5/3; 2.5Y 4/2, 5/2 or 7/2.
The A1 horizon textures are loamy coarse sand, loamy sand, cobbly loamy sand, very cobbly loamy sand and extremely cobbly loamy sand. It contains 5 to 50 percent angular rock fragments consisting of 0 to 3 percent boulders and stones, 0 to 35 percent cobbles, and 5 to 20 percent gravel.
The A2 and A3 horizons textures are sandy loam or gravelly sandy loam. Rock fragment content ranges from 10 to 25 percent consisting of 0 to 3 percent stones, 5 to 10 percent cobbles, and 5 to 20 percent gravel. These are angular tuff fragments.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no other series in this family.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Honova soils are on nearly level to moderately steep volcanic tablelands with slopes of 0 to 30 percent. The soils formed in hard rhyolitic tuff at elevations of 1,310 to 1,740 meters. Some of the fine-earth material is thought to be of mixed aeolian origin. The mean annual precipitation is 100 to 250 mm, some as snow, and the mean annual temperature is 13.9 to 16.1 degrees C. The mean January temperature is about 2.8 degrees C; the mean July temperature is about 24 degrees C. The frost-free season is 140 to 175 days. Rock outcrops are associated with these soils.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Chidago (T) and
Blindspring (T) soils. Chidago soils are 50 to 100 cm deep and are ashy. Blindspring soils are more than 150 cm deep and are ashy.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; slow to medium runoff; moderately rapid permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for grazing and wildlife habitat. The vegetation consists of Nevada ephedra, blackbrush, spiny hopsage, needleleaf rabbitbrush and desert needlegrass.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Honova soils occur on volcanic formations in east central California. They are of moderate extent in MLRA 29.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES PROPOSED: Inyo County, California; Benton-Owens Valley Soil Inventory, 1983.
SOURCE OF NAME: Honova is an Indian name that is associated with the area.
REMARKS: Honova soils have an aridic moisture regime bordering on xeric. Classification was changed from Loamy to Ashy due to the changes in family criteria for Ashy families. Organic carbon content lab data measurements are 0.1 to 0.3 percent.
Diagnostic horizon and features recognized in the profile are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 18 cm (A horizons).
Lithic contact - The layer at 18 cm (The R horizon).
Mineralogy: Ashy, based on grain count by the NSSL, Lincoln Nebraska.
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.