LOCATION KORTTY                  NV

Established Series
Rev. RAF/TM/JVC/JBF
02/2019

KORTTY SERIES

The Kortty series consists of deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium and loess derived from mixed rocks. Kortty soils are on summits of fan remnants. Slopes are 0 to 2 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 180 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 9 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Duric Petroargids

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

A1--0 to 8 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) silt loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; weak thick platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; few fine roots; few coarse and medium, many fine and very fine vesicular pores; 5 percent gravel; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 10 cm thick)

A2--8 to 15 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) silt loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; moderate thin platy structure, slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine and few very fine roots; few fine vesicular and tubular pores; 5 percent gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 18 cm thick)

Bt--15 to 30 cm; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) clay loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and very roots; few fine tubular pores; common faint clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; 5 percent gravel; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt wavy boundary. (13 to 18 cm thick)

Bq--30 to 38 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/4) loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and very fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; 5 percent gravel; continuous brittle matrix and 5 percent durinodes; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 10 cm thick)

Bqk1--38 to 76 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/4) loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; massive; hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and very fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; 5 percent gravel; continuous brittle matrix and 25 percent durinodes; strongly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (10 to 43 cm thick)

Bqk2--76 to 107 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) gravelly silt loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few fine and very fine roots; 10 percent durinodes; 15 percent gravel; common fine lime carbonate filaments; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); gradual wavy boundary. (28 to 36 cm thick)

Bqk3--107 to 140 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very gravelly sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; hard, firm, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; 40 percent gravel; continuous brittle matrix; common fine lime carbonate filaments; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); clear wavy boundary. (25 to 50 cm thick)

Bqkm--140 to 150 cm; very pale brown (10YR 8/2) strongly cemented duripan, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) moist; massive; extremely hard, very firm; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2).

TYPE LOCATION: Elko County, Nevada; about 28 miles west of Josephine Reservoir, about 1,820 feet north and 1,600 feet east of the southwest corner of section 32, T. 47 N., R. 45 E., Mount Diablo meridian; USGS Star Valley Ridge West 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 41 degrees 55 minutes 40 seconds N and longitude 116 degrees 58 minutes 27 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 41.9277778 latitude, -116.9738889 longitude.NAD 83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist in winter and spring, dry in summer and autumn; typic aridic soil moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 12 degrees C.
Depth to base of argillic horizon and zone of silica accumulation: 10 to 18 cm.
Depth to identifiable secondary carbonates: 30 to 56 cm.
Depth to very gravelly horizons: 81 to 127 cm.
Depth to thin duripan: 127 to 150 cm.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 25 to 35 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent gravel. Lithology of fragments is mixed.

A horizons Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.

Bt horizon
Texture: Loam or clay loam.
Structure: Subangular blocky or angular blocky.
Consistence: Slightly hard or hard; slightly sticky or moderately sticky and slightly plastic or moderately plastic.

Bq, Bqk1, and Bqk2 horizons
Value: 7 or 8 dry, 5 or 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Loam, gravelly loam, or gravelly silt loam. Some pedons have texture of gravelly fine sandy loam.
Rock fragments: 5 to 20 percent, mainly gravel.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Silica cementation: Weakly cemented; Pedons have a continuous brittle matrix in the Bq and Bqk1 horizons. Most pedons also have 5 to 25 percent durinodes.
Salinity (EC): 0 to 8 mmhos/cm, commonly more than 4 mmhos below 76 cm.
Sodicity (SAR): 13 to 30.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 0 to 5 percent.

Bqk3 horizon
Rock fragments: 35 to 50 percent, mainly gravel.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Consistence: Slightly hard or hard, dry; very friable through firm, moist.
Silica cementation: Most pedons have either 20 to 40 percent weakly cemented durinodes or have a continuous brittle matrix.
Salinity (EC): 0 to 4 mmhos/cm.
Sodicity (SAR): 13 to 45.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 1 to 5 percent.

Bqkm horizon
Consistence: Very hard or extremely hard, dry.

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

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Kortty soils are on summits of fan remnants. They formed in alluvium derived from mixed rocks with some influence from loess and volcanic ash. Slopes are 0 to 2 percent. Elevations range from 1,485 to 1,650 meters. The climate is semiarid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 150 to 200 mm, the mean annual temperature is 7 to 10 degrees C, and the frost-free period is 100 to 120 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Clurde and Sodhouse soils. Clurde soils are fine-loamy, very deep, and have cambic horizons and horizons of silica accumulation. Sodhouse soils are loamy, shallow to indurated duripans, and have cambic horizons.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: Kortty soils are used for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The vegetation is mainly shadscale, bud sagebrush, bottlebrush squirreltail, winterfat, and halogeton.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Nevada. These soils are not extensive, with about 3,500 acres of the series mapped to date. MLRA 25.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Elko County, Nevada, Northwest Part, 1986.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 15 cm (A1 and A2 horizons).
Argillic horizon - The zone from 15 to 30 cm (Bt horizon).
Duric feature - The zone from 30 to 140 cm (Bq, Bqk1, Bqk2, and Bqk3 horizons).
Duripan - The zone from 140 to 150 cm (Bqkm horizon).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 15 to 30 cm (Bt horizon).

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.