LOCATION MESCAL AZEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, calcareous, thermic Typic Torriorthents
TYPICAL PEDON: Mescal fine sandy loam - rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A--0 to 2 inches; light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) fine sandy loam; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; weak fine platy structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic that is moderately vesicular; roots plentiful; calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); weak digestion with H202; clear smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick.)
C--2 to 6 inches; light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) loam; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) moist; massive; soft, friable, moderately sticky, moderately plastic; roots plentiful; calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); moderate digestion with H202; clear wavy boundary.
Ck--6 to 24 inches; light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) loam; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) moist; massive; soft, friable, moderately sticky, moderately plastic ; roots plentiful to about 15 inches; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); few lime concretions; slight digestion with H2O2
R--24 inches; limestone
TYPE LOCATION: In southern Arizona associated with the Verde formation. SW 1/4, sec. 4, T. 14 N., R. 6 E., Yavapai County, Arizona.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - Intermittently moist in some part of the soil moisture control section during July-September and December-February. Driest during May and June. Typic aridic soil moisture regime.
C horizon
Texture: loam or clay loam
Hue: 7.5YR to 5YR
Some sites may have A1, AC, C profile but most areas appear to have an A1, C profile.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Panor (NV) and Wessly (NM) series. Panor soils are in the Mohave Desert (MLRA 30), receive mostly winter precipitation and are usually dry from April through November. Wessly soils have Bk horizons.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Mescal soils are developed under a continental climate with an average annual precipitation of about 13 inches. March, April, May, June, October and November are the driest months, each with less than 1 inch per month. January average temperature is about 41 degrees F., July average about 78 degrees F., and the average annual temperature is about 60 degrees F. The average frost-free period is about 200 days. These soils occupy gently rolling uplands (5-25 percent slopes) at an elevation of about 4,000 feet.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are Courthouse, Karro, Penthouse, Retriever, and Stagecoach soils. Courthouse soils have redder color. Karro and Penthouse soils are very deep and have calcic horizons. Retriever soils are shallow and have carbonatic mineralogy. Stagecoach soils have redder color, lack cobbles and are from more uniform parent material.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well-drained, moderate permeability, moderate infiltration, medium runoff and moderate erosion.
USE AND VEGETATION: Dominantly snakeweed and juniper with a small amount of grass. A very high percent of the surface is barren. Winter range for livestock end wildlife.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southern Arizona. This soil occurs in LRR-D, MLRA 38. Approximately 940 acres of the Mescal soils have been mapped to-date.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Beaver Creek Area, Arizona 1965.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from 0 to 2 inches (A horizon)
Entisol feature - The absence of diagnostic subsurface horizons
Classified according to Soil Taxonomy Second Edition, 1999.