LOCATION NOMRAH NM+UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Calcidic Haplustalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Nomrah fine sandy loam -- woodland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted. When described, the profile was dry throughout.)
A--0 to 3 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/2) fine sandy loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist; moderate very coarse platy structure parting to moderate medium granular; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; few fine and common very fine roots; few very fine irregularly shaped pores; neutral (pH 6.8); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 4 inches thick)
Bt1--3 to 8 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/3) sandy clay loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) moist; weak thick platy structure parting to moderate coarse subangular blocky; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine and very fine roots; few fine and very fine tubular pores; very few thin clay films on faces of peds and lining pores, few thin clay films bridging sand grains; neutral (pH 6.8); gradual smooth boundary. (5 to 15 inches thick)
Bt2-- 8 to 23 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/4) sandy clay loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) moist; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few coarse and medium and common fine and very fine roots; few fine and very fine tubular pores; few thin clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; neutral (pH 7.0); clear smooth boundary. (6 to 15 inches thick)
Bt3--23 to 32 inches; yellowish red (5YR 5/6) sandy clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to moderate coarse angular blocky; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common fine and few medium and very fine roots; few medium to very fine tubular pores; few thin and moderately thick clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; 5 percent gravel; very slightly effervescent, secondary calcium carbonates segregated as very few fine filaments; neutral (pH 7.0); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 14 inches thick)
Btk1--32 to 43 inches; light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) sandy clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 5/4) moist; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few medium to very fine roots; few medium and fine and common very fine tubular pores; very few thin clay films on faces of peds; 5 percent gravel; violently effervescent, secondary calcium carbonates segregated as many fine and medium irregularly shaped accumulations on faces of peds and on rock fragments; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); gradual smooth boundary. (7 to 15 inches thick)
Btk2--43 to 58 inches; light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) sandy clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 5/4) moist; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and very fine roots; few fine and common very fine tubular pores; very few thin clay films on faces of peds; 10 percent gravel; violently effervescent, secondary calcium carbonates segregated as many fine and medium irregularly shaped accumulations on faces of peds and on rock fragments; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear wavy boundary. (6 to 18 inches thick)
BC--58 to 62 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) fine sandy loam, strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) moist; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; few fine and very fine roots; few fine and very fine tubular pores; 5 percent gravel; very slightly effervescent, secondary calcium carbonates segregated as very few fine irregularly shaped accumulations on rock fragments; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8).
TYPE LOCATION: San Juan County, New Mexico; on the Navajo Indian Reservation about 6 miles southwest of Sheep Springs; 1,000 feet north and 1,150 feet east of the southwest corner of section 30, T.22N., R.18W.; Latitude 36 degrees 6 minutes 25 seconds N and Longitude 108 degrees 48 minutes 18 seconds W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - Intermittently moist in some part of the soil moisture control section during July through October and is moist in some or all parts during December through March. The soil is driest during May and June. Aridic ustic soil moisture regime.
Soil temperature: 47 to 53 degrees F.
Soil depth: greater than 60 inches
Depth to base of argillic horizon: 40 to 60 inches
Depth to top of calcic horizon: 25 to 40 inches
Silicate clay content, control section weighted average: 20 to 35 percent
Reaction: neutral to moderately alkaline
A horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 4 to 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6, dry or moist
Organic carbon content: 0.6 to 1.2 percent
Bt horizons
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 4 to 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma: 3 to 6, dry or moist
Organic carbon content: 0.3 to 0.6 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 5 percent gravel
Btk and Bk horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 6 to 8 dry, 4 to 7 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6, dry or moist
Organic carbon content: 0.1 to 0.3 percent
Texture: sandy clay loam, fine sandy loam, loam
Calcium carbonate equivalence: 15 to 30 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 10 percent gravel with individual horizon ranging as high as 25 percent
BC horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6, dry or moist
Calcium carbonate equivalence: 0 to 5 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 5 percent gravel
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Alire (T) (NM), Banquito (NM), Brumley (CO), Goesling (NM), Maia (NM), Pollow (T) (CO,) and Todest (NM) series. Alire soils contain volcanic glass in the coarse silt and very fine sand fractions. Pollow and Todest soils are moderately deep to bedrock. Brumley, Goesling, and Maia soils are 40 inches or less to the base of the argillic horizon and the calcic horizon does not include the argillic. In addition, Maia soils have more than 15 percent rock fragments. Banquito soils are inactive.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Nomrah soils are on stream terraces and footslopes of stable landslides. They formed in eolian material and alluvium derived from sandstone. Slopes are 2 to 15 percent. Elevation ranges from 5,800 to 7,800 feet. The mean annual precipitation is 12 to 18 inches with about half falling as winter snow and half falling as rain from high-intensity convective thunderstorms between July and September. The mean annual air temperature is 45 to 51 degrees F. The average frost-free period is 100 to 160 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Iwela soil and the Vosburg soil. Iwela soils lack calcic horizons and have skeletal substrata. Vosburg soils have mollic epipedon and occur on adjacent toeslopes.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Nomrah soils are used for livestock grazing and fuelwood production. Present vegetation is pinyon, Utah juniper, muttongrass, blue grama, bottlebrush squirreltail, Wyoming big sagebrush, and black sagebrush.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: These soils occur in northwest New Mexico and southeastern Utah. MLRA 35 and 36, LRR-D. Nomrah soils are of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Shiprock Area, Parts of San Juan County, New Mexico and Apache County, Arizona; 1993.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - the zone from 0 to 3 inches (A horizon)
Argillic horizon - the zone from 3 to 58 inches. (Bt1, Bt2, Bt3, Btk1, and Btk2 horizons)
Calcic horizon - the zone from 32 to 58 inches (Btk1 and Btk2 horizons)
ADDITIONAL DATA: Calcium carbonate equivalence was determined with a field volume calcimeter. Organic carbon values are estimated.
Classified according to Soil Taxonomy, Second Edition, 1999; Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Tenth Edition, 2006.
Updated and revised for the correlation of Ft. Defiance Area AZ715 2/08 DWD
Updated and revised for the correlation of Natural Bridges National Monument (UT638) 8 Dec 2008 CEM