LOCATION LECYR                   CA

Established Series
REV: SMR/LJL/CAH
02/2025

LECYR SERIES

The Lecyr series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rock. The Lecyr soils are on ballenas. Slopes range from 4 to 30 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 200 mm, and the mean annual temperature is about 15 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, thermic Petronodic Ustic Haplocalcids

TYPICAL PEDON: Lecyr very gravelly sandy loam, on a north facing, 25 percent slope under rangeland at an elevation of 1430 meters. (Colors are for dry soils unless otherwise noted. 8/20/2013 actual site observation date.) The soil surface is covered by approximately 10 percent fine gravel, 60 percent medium and coarse gravel, 5 percent cobbles.

A--0 to 7 cm (0 to 3 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) very gravelly sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3), moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; common very fine roots throughout; few very fine irregular pores; 25 percent prominent white (10YR 8/1), dry, carbonate coats on rock fragments; 10 percent fine gravel, 35 percent medium and coarse gravel, 5 percent cobbles; violent effervescence(12 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.1); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 10 cm thick)

Bk1--7 to 14 cm (3 to 6 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) gravelly sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3), moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine roots throughout; few very fine irregular pores; 25 percent prominent white (10YR 8/1), dry, carbonate coats on rock fragments; 9 percent fine gravel, 6 percent medium and coarse gravel, 5 percent cobbles; violent effervescence(16 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 30 cm thick)

Bk2--14 to 28 cm (6 to 11 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) gravelly sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3), moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine roots throughout; few very fine irregular pores; 90 percent prominent white (10YR 8/1), dry, carbonate coats on bottom surfaces of rock fragments; 5 percent coarse distinct platy weakly coherent cemented very pale brown (10YR 8/2), dry, carbonate nodules with sharp boundaries in matrix; 10 percent fine gravel, 10 percent medium and coarse gravel, 5 percent cobbles; violent effervescence(20 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); abrupt wavy boundary. (10 to 30 cm thick)

Bkkq1--28 to 68 cm (11 to 27 inches); light gray (10YR 7/2) very gravelly sandy loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3), moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots throughout; few very fine irregular pores; 2 percent prominent very pale brown (10YR 7/3), dry, silica coats on rock fragments and 90 percent prominent white (10YR 8/1), dry, carbonate coats on bottom surfaces of rock fragments; 30 percent very coarse faint platy weakly coherent cemented very pale brown (10YR 8/2), dry, carbonate nodules with clear boundaries in matrix and 30 percent very coarse faint irregular noncoherent cemented very pale brown (10YR 8/2), dry, carbonate masses with sharp boundaries in matrix; 5 percent fine gravel, 25 percent medium and coarse gravel, 5 percent cobbles, 3 percent paracobbles; violent effervescence(28 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); strongly alkaline (pH 8.7); abrupt wavy boundary. (30 to 50 cm thick)

Bkkq2--68 to 75 cm (27 to 30 inches); light gray (10YR 7/2) cemented very gravelly sandy loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3), moist; strong very thick platy structure; very hard, very firm, weakly coherent by carbonates, slightly sticky and nonplastic; few fine roots top of horizon; few very fine irregular pores; 2 percent prominent very pale brown (10YR 7/3), dry, silica coats on rock fragments and 90 percent prominent white (10YR 8/1), dry, carbonate coats on bottom surfaces of rock fragments; 85 percent very coarse faint platy weakly coherent cemented very pale brown (10YR 8/2), dry, carbonate nodules with clear boundaries in matrix; 10 percent fine gravel, 20 percent medium and coarse gravel, 10 percent cobbles, 2 percent stones; violent effervescence(25 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 10 cm thick)

Bkq1--75 to 90 cm (30 to 35 inches); light gray (10YR 7/2) very gravelly loamy sand, pale brown (10YR 6/3), moist; massive; moderately hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots throughout; common very fine interstitial pores; 2 percent prominent very pale brown (10YR 7/3), dry, silica coats on rock fragments and 90 percent prominent white (10YR 8/1), dry, carbonate coats on bottom surfaces of rock fragments; 5 percent coarse distinct pendular moderately coherent cemented white (10YR 8/1), dry, carbonate nodules with clear boundaries on bottom of rock fragments; 10 percent fine gravel, 20 percent medium and coarse gravel, 10 percent cobbles, 3 percent paracobbles, 2 percent stones; violent effervescence(15 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); gradual smooth boundary.

Bkq2--90 to 150 cm (35 to 59 inches); light gray (10YR 7/1) extremely gravelly sand, brown (10YR 5/3), moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine interstitial pores; 2 percent prominent very pale brown (10YR 7/3), dry, silica coats on rock fragments and 90 percent prominent white (10YR 8/1), dry, carbonate coats on bottom surfaces of rock fragments; 10 percent medium prominent pendular very weakly coherent cemented white (10YR 8/1), dry, carbonate nodules with clear boundaries on bottom of rock fragments; 10 percent fine gravel, 55 percent medium and coarse gravel, 10 percent cobbles; violent effervescence(16 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.3). (Combined thickness of the Bkq horizons is 50 to 100 cm thick.)

TYPE LOCATION: San Bernardino County, California; about 15 miles southwest of Searchlight, Nevada and two miles west of the Castle Mountains; 2250 feet west and 2100 feet south of the northeast corner of section 2, T. 14 N., R. 17 E., San Bernardino Baseline and Meridian; USGS Hart Peak, California 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; 35 degrees, 19 minutes, 30.87 seconds north latitude and 115 degrees, 7 minutes, 2.02 seconds west longitude; UTM zone 11 671134e, 3910738n, NAD83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist in some part from December to March and intermittently moist for 10 to 20 days during July to September following summer convection storms; aridic moisture regime that borders on ustic.

Soil temperature: 15 to 19 degrees C
Depth to calcic horizon: 3 to 36 cm
Organic matter: 0 to 0.6 percent

Control section
Rock fragments: averages 35 to 60 percent
Clay content: averages 4 to 10 percent

A horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma: 3 or 4 moist
Clay content: 6 to 14 percent
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent, dominantly gravel
Effervescence: strongly or violently effervescent
Calcium carbonate equivalence of the fine earth fraction: 10 to 20 percent
Visible secondary carbonates: 1 to 10 percent gravel-sized calcium carbonate nodules

Bk1 horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 to 5 moist
Chroma: 4 or 5, dry or moist
Clay content: 8 to 17 percent
Rock fragments: 15 to 50 percent, dominantly gravel
Calcium carbonate equivalence of the fine earth fraction: 10 to 20 percent
Visible secondary carbonates: 0 to 5 percent carbonate nodules

Bk2 horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 to 5 moist
Chroma: 4 or 5, dry or moist
Clay content: 6 to 14 percent
Rock fragments: 15 to 60 percent, dominantly gravel
Calcium carbonate equivalence of the fine earth fraction: 20 to 40 percent
Visible secondary carbonates: 5 to 20 percent carbonate nodules or carbonate masses

Bkkq horizons
Value: 7 or 8 dry, 6 or 7 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Texture of the fine earth fraction: sandy loam or loamy sand
Clay content: 5 to 12 percent
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent
Reaction: moderately alkaline to strongly alkaline
Calcium carbonate equivalence of the fine earth fraction: 20 to 40 percent
Petronodic feature: 20 to 50 percent carbonate nodules
Reactions: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline
Note: Some pedons have horizons with 50 to 90 percent cementation but are too thin to qualify as a petrocalcic horizon.

Bkq horizons
Value: 5 to 8, dry or moist
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Texture of the fine earth fraction: loamy sand, and sand
Clay content: 2 to 8 percent
Rock fragments: 35 to 80 percent
Reaction: moderately alkaline to strongly alkaline
Calcium carbonate equivalence of the fine earth fraction: 15 to 35 percent
Visible secondary carbonates: 5 to 20 percent carbonate nodules or carbonate masses
Reactions: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline

COMPETING SERIES: These are no competing series currently.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Lecyr soils are on ballenas. Slopes range from 4 to 30 percent. The soils formed in alluvium derived from igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rock. Elevation ranges from 1320 to 1570 meters. The mean annual precipitation is 175 to 225 mm. The mean annual temperature is about 13 to 17 degrees C. The frost-free period is 210 to 270 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Minehart, Parched, Sagamore, Stonekey, and Vegasglow soils. Minehart, Parched and Vegasglow soils are on mountains and have argillic horizons. Sagamore and Stonekey soils are on fan remnants, have carbonatic minerology and have petrocalcic horizons.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: Lecyr soils are used for recreation and wildlife habitat. Native vegetation is big galleta, black grama, blackbrush, and Joshua tree.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mojave Basin and Range of California, U.S.A.; MLRA 30. The series is of small extent.

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

SERIES PROPOSED: San Bernardino County, California, Soil Survey of Mojave National Preserve Area, California, 2023. The name is from Leycr Well located within the survey area.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features in this pedon include:

Ochric epipedon - the zone from 0 to 14 cm. (A and Bk1 horizons)
Calcic horizon - the zone from 14 to 150 cm. (Bk2, Bkkq1, Bkkq2, Bkq1 and Bkq2 horizons)
Particle size control section - the zone from 25 to 100 cm. (Part of the Bk1, Bk2, Bkkq1, Bkkq2, Bkq1 and part of the Bkq2 horizons)

ADDITIONAL DATA: NASIS User Site ID: 2011CA071024.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.