LOCATION LUNING                  NV

Established Series
Rev. JFS/EWB/JVC/JBF
05/2016

LUNING SERIES

The Luning series consists of very deep, somewhat excessively drained soils that formed in alluvium or eolian sand over alluvium derived from mixed rocks. Luning soils are on fan aprons, fan skirts, inset fans, alluvial flats, alluvial fans, sand sheets, beach plains, and fan piedmonts. Slopes are 0 to 8 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 125 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 11 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy, mixed, mesic Typic Torriorthents

TYPICAL PEDON: Luning loamy sand--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A--0 to 10 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) loamy sand, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; single grain; loose, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and few fine roots; common fine and medium interstitial pores; 3 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (8 to 18 cm thick)

C1--10 to 18 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly loamy coarse sand, brown (10YR 4/3) massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; common medium interstitial and few medium tubular pores; 45 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 45 cm thick)

C2--18 to 28 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly loamy sand, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine and few medium and coarse roots; common fine interstitial and few fine tubular pores; 20 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear smooth boundary. (8 to 25 cm thick)

C3--28 to 38 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly coarse sand, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots; common medium and coarse interstitial pores; 40 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt wavy boundary. (8 to 25 cm thick)

C4--38 to 107 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) loamy sand, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine and few medium roots; common fine interstitial and few medium and coarse tubular pores; 10 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (25 to 76 cm thick)

C5--107 to 132 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly sand, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few fine roots; common medium interstitial pores; 45 percent gravel and 5 percent stones; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 60 cm thick)

C6--132 to 152 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) fine sand, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; single grain; loose, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots; common very fine and fine interstitial pores; 2 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2).

TYPE LOCATION: Mineral County, Nevada; about 2 miles northeast of Kinkaid along the pole line road; 2,600 feet east and 1,000 feet north of the southwest corner of section 18, T. 8 N., R. 33 E.; USGS Indian Head Peak 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 38 degrees 32 minutes 57 seconds N and longitude 118 degrees 20 minutes 46 second W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 38.5491667 latitude, -118.3461111 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist in some part for short periods during winter and spring; moist in the upper part of the moisture control section for 10 to 20 days cumulative between July and October due to convection storms; typic aridic soil moisture regime.
Soil temperature: 12 to 15 degrees C.
Reaction: Slightly alkaline through strongly alkaline.
Effervescence: Noneffervescent through violently effervescent.
Other features: Thin (1.5 to 5 cm), discontinuous strata or lenses of sandy loam occur in some pedons.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 2 to 8 percent.
Rock fragments: 10 to 30 percent dominantly fine gravel (2 to 5 mm in diameter); subhorizons containing greater than 35 percent rock fragments are present. Lithology of fragments is mixed.

A horizon
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.

C horizons
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.
Texture: Loamy sand, sand, or coarse sand with thin strata of sandy loam. Averages loamy sand or sand.
Rock fragments: 10 to 30 percent dominantly fine gravel (2 to 5 mm in diameter).
Structure: Massive, subangular blocky or is single grain.
Consistence: Loose or soft to slightly hard dry, loose or very friable to friable, nonsticky to slightly sticky and nonplastic to slightly plastic.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Aneth, Shumbegay, Soda Lake, Soolake, and Yerington series.

Aneth and Shumbegay soils have hue of 2.5YR or 5YR. Soda Lake and Soolake soils have Bw and Ck or Bk horizons and do not have very gravelly strata in the particle-size control section. Yerington soils have buried B horizons with identifiable secondary carbonates and durinodes and average less than 15 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Luning soils are on fan aprons, fan skirts, fan piedmonts, inset fans, alluvial fans, alluvial flats, sand sheets, and beach plains. They formed in alluvium or eolian sand over alluvium derived from mixed rocks. Slopes are 0 to 8 percent. Elevations range from 1,220 to 1,867 meters. The climate is cool-arid with cool, moist winters and hot, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 75 to 125 mm, the mean annual temperature is 10 to 12 degrees C, and the frost-free period is 130 to 160 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Cirac, Gynelle, Izo and Sundown soils. Cirac soils are coarse-loamy and highly stratified. Gynelle and Izo soils are sandy-skeletal. Sundown soils are sandy and do not have horizons with more than 35 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: Luning soils are used for rangeland and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly Cooper wolfberry, Bailey greasewood, fourwing saltbush, Nevada dalea, shadscale, and Russian-thistle.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southern and Western Nevada. These soils are moderately extensive. MLRAs 27, 28A, and 29.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Esmeralda County Area, Nevada, 1984.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 18 cm (A and C1 horizons).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 25 to 100 cm (part of the C2, C3, and C4 horizons).

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.