LOCATION LOSTRIDGE CAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, isotic Xeric Humicryepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Lostridge very gravelly coarse sandy loam--forest land. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered with 35 percent gravel and less than 1 percent stones.
A1--0 to 3 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) very gravelly coarse sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate medium granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine roots; common very fine interstitial and tubular pores; 35 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (2 to 6 inches thick)
A2--3 to 11 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) very gravelly coarse sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate medium granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many fine to coarse roots; common very fine interstitial and tubular pores; 45 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (5 to 9 inches thick)
Bw--11 to 23 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) very gravelly coarse sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common fine to coarse roots; common very fine interstitial and tubular pores; 45 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (8 to 15 inches thick)
C--23 to 29 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) very gravelly coarse sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common fine to coarse roots; common very fine interstitial and tubular pores; 50 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
Cr--29 inches; weathered tuff.
TYPE LOCATION: Alpine County, California; on the Toiyabe National Forest about 0.75 mile northeast of The Nipple peak; approximately 1,400 feet south and 1,375 feet west of the northeast corner of section 7, T. 9 N., R. 19 E.; USGS Carson Pass 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; 38 degrees 39 minutes 3.9 seconds north latitude and 119 degrees 55 minutes 47.1 seconds west longitude, NAD27.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - Usually moist in the moisture control section during late fall, winter, and spring; dry from mid-July through September for 60 to 80 consecutive days in the four months following the summer solstice; Typic xeric moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature - 40 to 44 degrees F.
Mean summer soil temperature - 44 to 47 degrees F.
Umbric epipedon thickness - 7 to 16 inches.
Depth to bedrock - 20 to 40 inches to a paralithic contact. The paralithic materials below the contact are weathered tuff or tuff-breccia.
Sodium fluoride pH - 10.0 to 11.5.
Particle-size control section - Clay content: Averages 12 to 18 percent; Rock fragments: Averages 35 to 60 percent, mainly gravel. Lithology of fragments are volcanic rocks such as tuff, tuff-breccia, and andesite.
A horizons
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Organic matter content: 2 to 10 percent.
Reaction: Very strongly acid or strongly acid.
Bw horizon
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Very gravelly sandy loam or very gravelly coarse sandy loam.
Clay content: 12 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent.
Structure: Weak or moderate subangular blocky.
Reaction: Very strongly acid or strongly acid.
C horizon (when present)
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4 dry or moist.
Texture: Very gravelly sandy loam or very gravelly coarse sandy loam.
Clay content: 10 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent.
Pararock fragments: 10 to 25 percent paragravel or parachanners.
Reaction: Very strongly acid or strongly acid.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Callat (T), Fishsnooze, Florand, Forsell, Sibelia, Sonorapass, and Sumeadow series.
Callat soils are moderately deep to densic contacts. Fishsnooze and Sonorapass soils are moderately deep to lithic contacts. Florand and Sibelia soils are deep to paralithic contacts. Forsell and Sumeadow soils are very deep.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Lostridge soils are on mountains. They typically occur on planar to convex-shaped backslope positions. They formed in residuum and colluvium derived from andesitic tuff and tuff-breccia. Slopes are 15 to 50 percent. Elevations range from 8,000 to 9,500 feet. The climate is subhumid-continental with cold, moist winters and cool, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 25 to 55 inches, the mean annual temperature is 36 to 39 degrees F., and the frost-free period is 30 to 60 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Fishsnooze and Florand soils.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium surface runoff; moderately rapid permeability (high saturated hydraulic conductivity).
USE AND VEGETATION: Lostridge soils are used for forest land, recreation, watershed, and wildlife habitat. The native vegetation is mainly a forest canopy of lodgepole pine and California red fir with an understory of sedge, bluegrass, and currant.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Eastern California, on the east side of the Sierra Nevada Range. These soils are not extensive with about 8,300 acres of the series mapped to date. MLRA 22A.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Alpine County (Toiyabe National Forest Area), California, 2006.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Umbric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 11 inches (A1 and A2 horizons).
Cambic horizon - The zone from 11 to 23 inches (Bw horizon).
Paralithic contact - The boundary at 29 inches to underlying soft bedrock (Cr layer).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 10 to 29 inches (Bw and C horizons and part of the A2 horizon).
The revision of December 2006 updated the taxonomic class from Xeric Dystrocryepts based on the tenth edition of the Keys to Soil Taxonomy, 2006.
ADDITIONAL DATA: The typical pedon at the series type location is sampled for the Soil Survey Laboratory (SSL), Lincoln, NE as soil survey sample number S99CA-003-006 (pedon # 00P0469).