LOCATION PENITENTE               NM

Established Series
Rev. JAW/JBC/KLS
11/2022

PENITENTE SERIES

The Penitente series consists of deep, well drained soils that formed in material derived from granite, gneiss, and schist. Penitente soils are on mountain tops above timberline and have slopes of 0 to 60 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 1200 mm and the mean annual air temperature is about minus 1 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, isotic Typic Humicryepts

TYPICAL PEDON: Penitente cobbly loam, above timberline. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

Oe--0 to 3 cm; organic mat of undecomposed and partially decomposed plant remains of roots and leafy parts of kobresia. (0 to 3 cm thick)

A1--3 to 28 cm; very dark gray (10YR 3/1) cobbly loam, black (10YR 2/1) moist; strong fine granular structure; soft, very friable; many fine roots; many fine and very fine pores; approximately 20 percent cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.2); clear smooth boundary.

A2--28 to 36 cm; dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) very cobbly loam, very dark brown (7.5YR 2/2) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure that separates to strong fine granular; soft, very friable; common fine roots; many fine and very fine pores; approximately 40 percent cobbles; strongly acid (pH 5.1); clear smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of A horizons - 20 to 50 cm)

Bs--36 to 64 cm; brown (7.5YR 4/4) extremely cobbly sandy loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable; common fine roots; many medium pores; approximately 70 percent cobbles and stones; many stones have iron stains of reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; very strongly acid (pH 5.0); gradual smooth boundary. (20 to 40 cm thick)

C--64 to 155 cm; brown (7.5YR 5/4) extremely cobbly sandy loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable; approximately 70 percent cobbles and stones; few medium roots; many medium pores; very strongly acid (pH 5.0).

TYPE LOCATION: Santa Fe County, New Mexico; SW1/4 NE1/4 section 10, T.18N., R.11E

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean annual soil temperature--less than 0 degrees C
Umbric horizon thickness--25 to 50 cm
Solum thickness--40 to 65 cm

Particle-size control section:
Rock fragment content--40 to 80 percent
Reaction--pH 4.4 or 5.5

A horizon
Hue--10YR or 7.5YR
Value--3 or 4 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Chroma--neutral through 2

Bs horizon
Hue--7.5YR or 5YR
Value--4 through 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist
Chroma--2 through 4
Texture--sandy loam
Clay content--5 to 25 percent
Silt content--10 to 40 percent
Sand content--40 to 75 percent

C horizon
Hue--10YR or 7.5YR
Texture--sandy loam
Clay content--5 to 25 percent
Silt content--10 to 40 percent
Sand content--40 to 75 percent
Reaction--pH 4.6 to 5.8

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Bross, Buell, Goodlow, Gramm, Hummington, Meredith, Mirror and Ptarmigan series. Bross soils have an E horizon and lack a Bs horizon. Buell, Goodlow, Gramm and Hummington soils have a mean annual soil temperature above 0 degrees C. Meredith soils have fragmental substrata. Mirror and Ptarmigan soils have a lithic contact at depths of less than 100 cm. Ptarmigan soils are nonskeletal.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Landform--mountain tops above timberline
Elevation--3650 to 3950 meters
Slope--5 to 60 percent
Parent material--granite, gneiss and schist
Mean annual precipitation--890 to 1400 mm
Mean annual air temperature--minus 2 to -1 degrees C
Frost free--30 to 50 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: None listed

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; rapid runoff; moderately rapid permeability

USE AND VEGETATION: Watershed and wildlife are the principle land uses. Kobresia, timberline bluegrass, shrubby cinquefoil, and carex are the chief plants.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Penitente soils are moderately extensive above timberline in the mountains of northern New Mexico; MLRAs 48A and 48B.

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Santa Fe County (Santa Fe Area), New Mexico, 1970

REMARKS: Riverside Laboratory S70NM-26-94 and S70NM-26-95

Converted to metric, updated formatting, and O horizons were updated to start at zero. Competing series section was not updated. 11/2022

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.