LOCATION LIVEFIRE CA

Established Series
Rev: PBF/ET
09/2015

LIVEFIRE SERIES

The Livefire series consists of very deep, somewhat excessively drained soils that formed in mixed alluvium. Livefire soils are on alluvial fans, fan skirts, and fan aprons. Slope ranges from 0 to 8 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 5 inches and the mean annual air temperature is about 66 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy, mixed, thermic Typic Torriorthents

TYPICAL PEDON: On Gravesumit-Cajon-Livefire complex, 2 to 4 percent slopes at an elevation of 1,923 feet. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The surface is partially covered by 40 percent gravel.

A1 -- 0 to 2 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly loamy coarse sand, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; weak thick platy structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine roots throughout; noneffervescent; 35 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); abrupt smooth boundary.

A2 -- 2 to 4 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/4) loamy sand, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine roots throughout; noneffervescent; 10 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the A horizon is 2 to 7 inches).

C1 -- 4 to 29 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) loamy sand, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots throughout; slightly effervescent; 10 percent gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); clear wavy boundary.

C2 -- 29 to 54 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/4) gravelly sandy loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few coarse roots throughout; strongly effervescent; 15 percent gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); clear wavy boundary.

C3 -- 54 to 60 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) gravelly sandy loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; slightly effervescent; 15 percent gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2).

TYPE LOCATION: San Bernardino County, California; about 5.5 miles ESE of the eastern shore of Langford Lake; about 2,300 feet south and 1,400 feet east of the northwest corner of section 36, T. 13 N., R. 4 E.; 35 degrees, 10 minutes, 30 seconds north latitude and 116 degrees, 30 minutes, 46 seconds west longitude, East of Langford Well quadrangle; UTM 11S, 0544360e 3892560n (Datum:NAS-C).

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil moisture control section: Usually dry, moist in some part for short periods during winter and early spring and for 10 to 20 days cumulative between July and October following convection storms. The soils have a Typic-Aridic moisture regime.

Soil temperature: 63 to 72 degrees F.

Organic matter: 0 to 0.5 percent

Surface rock fragments: 30 to 60 percent gravel and 0 to 1 percent cobbles

Control section -

The particle-size control section averages sandy

Rock fragments: 5 to 30 percent

Effervescence: noneffervescent to strongly effervescent

A horizon

Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist

Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist

Texture of the fine earth: sand, loamy coarse sand or loamy sand

Rock fragments: 5 to 50 percent gravel

Clay content: 2 to 8 percent

Effervescence: noneffervescent or very slightly effervescent

Reaction: slightly or moderately alkaline

C horizon

Value: 5 to 7 dry, 4 to 6 moist

Chroma: 3 or 4 dry, 4 to 6 moist

Texture of the fine earth: sand, fine sand, loamy sand, or sandy loam

Clay content: 2 to 12 percent

Rock fragments: 1 to 40 percent gravel

Structure: massive or single grained

Consistence: soft to slightly hard and very friable or loose

Reaction: slightly to strongly alkaline

Other features: 0 to 3 percent randomly oriented, patchy carbonate coatings on undersides of rock fragments

Calcium carbonate equivalent: 0 to 1 percent

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Amole (T AZ), Hypoint (T NV), Orwash (NV), Redington (AZ) and Yellowrock (CA) series. Amole soils contain a high content of biotite and magnetite and are moist for more than 20 days, cumulative, in some part of the moisture control section between July and October. Hypoint soils have strata within the control section which contain more than 35 percent rock fragments. Additionally, Hypoint soils do not allow strata with sandy loam textures within the particle-size control section. Orwash soils are dominated by coarse sands and 2 to 5 mm gravel and have a mean annual soil temperature of 59 to 63 degrees F. Redington soils have brittle dense layers and more than 20 percent rock fragments in all horizons. Yellowrock soils have a moisture control section that is moist in some part more than half the time, cumulative, that the soil temperature at 20 inches is greater than 41 degrees F.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Livefire soils are on alluvial fans, fan skirts, and fan aprons. These soils formed in mixed alluvium. Slopes are 0 to 8 percent. Elevations are 1,600 to 3,200 feet. The climate is hot and arid with warm, moist winters and hot, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 3 to 7 inches; mean annual air temperature is 61 to 70 degrees F., and the frost-free season is 240 to 340 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Cajon, Goldivide (T CA), and Nasagold (T CA) series. Cajon soils are on similar landscape positions and have textures of loamy sand or coarser throughout the particle-size control section. Goldivide soils are on fan remnants, have a coarse-loamy particle-size control section, as well as an argillic horizon and calcic horizon. Nasagold soils are on similar landscape positions and have a coarse-loamy particle-size control section.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat excessively drained; negligible to very low runoff; moderately rapid permeability, none to rare flooding.

USE AND VEGETATION: Military exercises and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly creosotebush, white bursage, shadscale, budsage, winterfat and Indian ricegrass.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mojave Desert of southeastern California. MLRA 30. These soils are moderately extensive.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: PHOENIX, ARIZONA

SERIES ESTABLISHED: San Bernardino County, California, Fort Irwin Soil Survey Area, 2000. The name is coined.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:

1. Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to a depth of 4 inches (A1 and A2 horizons).

2. Particle-size control section - The zone from 10 inches to 40 inches (parts of the C1 and C2 horizons).

Responsibility for this series was transferred from Davis to Phoenix 9/2015. The last revision to the series was 7/2000. ET

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.