LOCATION NOMAZU                  NV+CA

Established Series
Rev. SES/JBF/TM/JVC
01/2020

NOMAZU SERIES

The Nomazu series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in volcanic ash and alluvium derived from volcanic and tuffaceous sedimentary rocks. Nomazu soils are on alluvial flats, inset fans, alluvial plains, fan skirts, and basin floor remnants. Slopes are 0 to 4 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 180 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 7 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Ashy, glassy, mesic Durinodic Haplocalcids

TYPICAL PEDON: Nomazu ashy very fine sandy loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A1--0 to 5 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) ashy very fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; strong thick platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; few very fine and common fine tubular pores; strongly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 10 cm thick)

A2--5 to 18 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) ashy very fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; strong very thick platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; many very fine and fine vesicular pores; strongly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt wavy boundary. (8 to 13 cm thick)

Bqk1--18 to 25 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) ashy very fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; strong fine and medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine roots; common very fine and fine tubular pores; 15 percent 10 to 30 mm hard durinodes; 2 percent 1 to 2 mm masses of secondary carbonates; strongly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 15 cm thick)

Bqk2--25 to 33 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) ashy fine sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; strong medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; slightly hard and hard, very friable, moderately sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine through medium roots; common very fine and few fine tubular pores; 20 percent 5 to 30 mm hard durinodes; 5 percent 1 to 5 mm masses of secondary carbonates; strongly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt wavy boundary. (15 to 40 cm thick)

Bqk3--33 to 74 cm; pale yellow (2.5Y 8/2) ashy very fine sandy loam, light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/3) moist; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine, common fine, few medium and coarse roots; common very fine tubular pores; 40 percent 10 to 40 mm hard durinodes; 10 percent 0.5 to 1.0 mm masses of secondary carbonates; violently effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 9.0); clear wavy boundary. (25 to 50 cm thick)

Bqk4--74 to 97 cm; light gray (2.5Y 7/2) ashy fine sandy loam, light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3) moist; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine, common fine and medium, few coarse roots; common very fine tubular pores; 20 percent 5 to 20 mm hard durinodes; 3 percent 0.5 mm masses of secondary carbonates; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear wavy boundary. (25 to 38 cm thick)

2Bqky1--97 to 122 cm; pale yellow (2.5Y 8/2) very paragravelly ashy fine sandy loam, light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3) moist; moderate thick platy structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine and common fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; 35 percent paragravel; 20 percent weakly silica-cemented nodules; 2 percent 0.5 mm masses of secondary carbonates; few 1 to 2 mm masses of gypsum crystals; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear irregular boundary. (0 to 30 cm thick)

2Bqky2--122 to 165 cm; pale yellow (5Y 8/2) very paragravelly ashy fine sandy loam, light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3) moist; strong very thick platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; 2 percent very dark gray (10YR 3/1) moist masses of iron-manganese accumulation; 45 percent paragravel; 5 percent weakly silica-cemented nodules; 1 percent 0.5 mm masses of secondary carbonates; few 1 to 2 mm masses of gypsum crystals; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0).

TYPE LOCATION: Washoe County, Nevada; on the northeast side of Duck Flat; approximately 1,900 feet east and 2,200 feet south of the northwest corner of section 16, T. 36 N., R. 20 E.; USGS Lost Creek Pass 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 41 degrees 00 minutes 4.1 seconds N and longitude 119 degrees 44 minutes 36.7 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 41.0011389 latitude, -119.7435278 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry; moist in winter and spring, dry late May through November; typic aridic soil moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature; 8 to 12 degrees C.
Depth to horizons with durinodes: 13 to 38 cm.
Volcanic glass content: 60 to 80 percent in coarse silt through fine sand fractions.
Other features: These soils are normally slightly saline and sodium-affected throughout the profile, but some pedons are moderately or strongly affected in the upper horizons.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 10 to 15 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 5 percent gravel.

A horizons
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y.
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Effervescence: Slightly effervescent or strongly effervescent.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 1 to 5 percent.

Bqk horizons
Hue: 10YR through 5Y.
Value: 6 through 8 dry, 4 through 7 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Ashy fine sandy loam, ashy very fine sandy loam, or ashy sandy loam.
Structure: Platy or subangular blocky.
Reaction: Strongly alkaline to very strongly alkaline.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 10 to 25 percent, but always exceeds 15 percent in some subhorizon more than 15 cm thick.
Durinodes: 20 to 50 percent, thin subhorizons in the upper part have 10 to 20 percent in most pedons.

2Bqky horizons
Value: 7 or 8 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Texture: Ashy fine sandy loam, ashy very fine sandy loam, paragravelly ashy fine sandy loam, or very paragravelly ashy fine sandy loam.
Pararock fragments: 0 to 45 percent paragravel of ashy lacustrine sediments.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 25 percent, decreasing with depth.
Gypsum content: Few (< 1 percent) fine masses or filaments.

COMPETING SERIES: There are currently no other series in this family.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Nomazu soils are on alluvial flats, inset fans, alluvial plains, fan skirts, and basin floor remnants. These soils formed in volcanic ash and alluvium derived from volcanic and tuffaceous sedimentary rocks. Slopes are 0 to 4 percent. Elevations range from 1,365 to 1,750 meters. The climate is arid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 150 to 200 mm, the mean annual temperature is 7 to 10 degrees C, and the frost-free period is 100 to 120 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: This is the Macnot soil. Macnot soils are ashy-skeletal.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: Nomazu soils are used for rangeland and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly shadscale, bud sagebrush, and Indian ricegrass.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northwestern Nevada and northeastern California. These soils are not extensive with about 4,000 acres of the series mapped to date. MLRA 23.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Surprise Valley-Home Camp Area, California and Nevada, 2006.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 18 cm (A1 and A2 horizons).
Calcic horizon - The zone from 25 to 122 cm (Bqk1, Bqk2, Bqk3, Bqk4 and Bqky1 horizons).
Durinodes - The zone from 18 to 97 cm (Bqk1, Bqk2, Bqk3, and Bqk4 horizons).
Particle-size control section and ashy substitute class with glassy mineralogy - The zone from 25 to 100 cm (Bkq2, Bkq3, and Bkq4 horizons and part of the 2Bqky1 horizon).

ADDITIONAL DATA: Volcanic glass content determined locally by optical grain counts using a polarizing petrographic microscope.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.