LOCATION PENALTO NMEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, carbonatic, mesic, shallow Petrocalcic Calciustolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Penalto very gravelly loam - rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated).
Ak1--0 to 6 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/3) crushed, very gravelly loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) crushed, moist; 22 percent clay; moderate fine granular structure; very friable, soft, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common very fine roots; discontinuous prominent carbonate coats on rock fragments; 5 percent subrounded 0.1- to 3-inch calcrete fragments and 15 percent subrounded 3- to 10-inch limestone fragments and 25 percent subrounded 0.1- to 3-inch limestone fragments; violently effervescent, by HCl, 3 normal; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (3 to 8 inches thick)
Ak2--6 to 16 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/3) crushed, very cobbly loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) crushed, moist; 22 percent clay; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; very friable, slightly hard, slightly sticky, moderately plastic; common very fine roots; discontinuous prominent carbonate coats on rock fragments; 10 percent subrounded 0.1- to 3-inch calcrete fragments and 20 percent subrounded 3- to 10-inch limestone fragments and 25 percent subrounded 0.1- to 3-inch limestone fragments; violently effervescent, by HCL, 3 normal; moderately alkaline; abrupt smooth boundary. (7 to 13 inches thick)
Bkm1--16 to 20 inches; pinkish gray (7.5YR 7/2) broken face, light brown (7.5YR 6/3) broken face, moist; massive, indurated; 10 percent subrounded 3.0- to 10-inch limestone fragments and 30 percent subrounded 0.1- to 3-inch limestone fragments; violently effervescent, by HCl, 3 normal; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (2 to 7 inches thick)
Bkm2--20 to 39 inches; pinkish gray (7.5YR 7/2) broken face, very gravelly loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/3) broken face, moist; 20 percent clay; massive, moderately cemented; discontinuous prominent carbonate coats on rock fragments; 10 percent subrounded 3.0- to 10-inch limestone fragments and 40 percent subrounded 0.1- to 3-inch limestone fragments; violently effervescent, by HCl, 3 normal; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (12 to 25 inches thick)
Bkm3--39 to 80 inches; pink (7.5YR 7/3) broken face, very gravelly loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/3) broken face, moist; 20 percent clay; massive, moderately cemented; discontinuous prominent carbonate coats on rock fragments; 15 percent subrounded 3.0- to 10-inch limestone fragments and 40 percent subrounded 0.1- to 3-inch limestone fragments; violently effervescent, by HCl, 3 normal; moderately alklaine.
TYPE LOCATION: Otero County, New Mexico; approximately 3.4 miles south and 1.8 miles west of Timberon; 2,200 feet east and 100 feet north of the southwest corner of sec. 4, T. 20 S., R. 12 E. USGS El Paso Canyon topographic quadrangle; latitude 32 degrees 35 minutes 27.22 seconds north and longitude 105 degrees 43 minutes 15.52 seconds west. UTM zone 13S, 3605973N, 432338E, NAD 27.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil Moisture: Aridic ustic soil moisture regime. The moisture control section is usually dry in some or all parts six-tenths or more of the time that the soil temperature exceeds 41 degrees F.
Mean annual soil temperature: 55 to 59 degrees F.
Thickness of the mollic epipedon: 10 to 20 inches
Depth to petrocalcic horizon: 10 to 20 inches
Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay content: 18 to 27 percent
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 40 to 60 percent (<20 mm fraction)
Coarse fragment content: 35 to 60 percent
Ak horizons
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist
Coarse fragments: limestone fragments; 35 to 60 percent total fragments; 20 to 30 percent gravel; 15 to 30 percent cobbles
Bkm horizon
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 6 to 8 dry, 5 or 6 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry, 2 to 4 moist
Coarse fragments: limestone fragments; 35 to 60 percent total fragments; 25 to 40 percent gravel; 10 to 25 percent cobbles
COMPETING SERIES: This is the
Penasco (NM) series. Similar soils are the
Cuate (NM), and
Pena (NM) series.
Penasco soils: occur in a treeless vegetative zone at lower elevations and have a calcic horizon above the petrocalcic horizon.
Cuate soils: moderately deep and do not have a petrocalcic horizon.
Pena soils: do not have a petrocalcic horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: gravelly slope alluvium
Landform: hills
Slope: 5 to 65 percent
Mean annual temperature: 54 to 58 degrees
Mean annual precipitation: 14 to 16 inches
Precipitation pattern: precipitation falls mostly during the months of July through September. The driest months are March and April. Precipitation during the months of January, February, and March is less than 13 percent of the total.
Frost-free period: 130 to 170 days
Elevation: 5,500 to 6,800 feet
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Deama and
Modeama series.
The Deama soils are shallow to bedrock and are on similar positions.
The Modeama soils are moderately deep to bedrock and are on similar positions.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderate above the petrocalcic horizon. Runoff is very high.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for livestock grazing. Vegetation is of the pinyon-juniper savannah type consisting of pinyon, oneseed juniper, alligator juniper, algertia, oak, mountain mahogany, hairy grama, sideoats grama, wolftail, curlyleaf muhly, pinyon ricegrass, beargrass, and prickly pear cactus.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southern New Mexico; LRR G, MLRA 70. The series is of minor extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Otero County, New Mexico, 2001.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle-size control section: the zone from 10 to 16 inches. (Ak2 horizon)
Mollic epipedon - 0 to 16 inches. (Ak1 and Ak2 horizons).
Petrocalcic horizon - 16 to 80 inches. (Bkm horizons)