LOCATION PICO CAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, thermic Fluventic Haploxerolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Pico sandy loam, cultivated, fallow. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
Ap--0 to 4 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak fine granular structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine roots; many very fine interstitial pores; slightly effervescent with disseminated lime; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (4 to 8 inches thick)
A12--4 to 14 inches; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; slightly effervescent with disseminated lime; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt wavy boundary. (6 to 11 inches thick)
C1--14 to 17 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; violently effervescent with disseminated lime; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt broken boundary. (0 to 4 inches thick)
C2--17 to 28 inches, light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) sandy loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; slightly effervescent with disseminated lime; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); gradual smooth boundary. (8 to 15 inches thick)
C3--28 to 54 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) sandy loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; strongly effervescent with lime disseminated and segregated in filaments; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (10 to 24 inches thick)
IIC4--54 to 60 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) gravelly coarse sand, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; single grained; loose; few very fine roots; many very fine interstitial pores; strongly effervescent with disseminated lime; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0).
TYPE LOCATION: Ventura County, California; approximately 1,400 feet north and 900 feet east of the SE corner sec. 34, T.3N., R.19W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The mean annual soil temperature at a depth of 20 inches is 59 degrees to 64 degrees F., and the soil temperature rarely if ever is below 47 degrees F. Soil between the depths of about 8 to 24 inches usually is dry all the time from May until mid-November or early December and usually is moist in some or all parts all the rest of the year. The 10- to 40-inch control section is dominantly sandy loam, fine sandy loam or light loam and averages about 14 to 18 percent clay. There is a slight to distinct stratification in some part of the soil profile. Rock fragments range in volume from about 1 to 20 percent, but in most pedons are less than 5 percent. After cultivation the soils are weakly to strongly effervescent in all parts. Few to common fine lime segregations are present in some or most parts between depths of about 25 to 45 inches.
The A horizon is gray, brown, grayish brown or dark grayish brown and the hue is 10YR or 2.5Y. It has weak or moderate structure or the horizon is massive and slightly hard. Organic matter content ranges from 1 1/2 to 4 percent and below plow depth decreases irregularly to less than 1 percent at a depth of 20 inches.
The C horizon is grayish brown, light brownish gray, pale brown, very pale brown or light gray and the hue is 10YR or 2.5Y.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Arroyo Seco and Goleta series in the same family and the Agueda, Anacapa, Elder, Hanford, Honcut, Mocho, Reiff, San Emigdio, Sorrento, and Vina series. Arroyo Seco and Elder soils are not calcareous in any part. Goleta soils are calcareous below about 36 inches. Agueda soils have more than 18 percent clay and a mollic epipedon more than 20 inches thick. Anacapa soils are not calcareous in the A horizon. Hanford, Honcut, and San Emigdio soils have ochric epipedons with less than 1 percent organic matter to a depth of 7 inches. Mocho soils have more than 18 percent clay. Reiff soils have hard and massive ochric epipedons. Sorrento and Vina soils have more than 18 percent clay and are not calcareous in the A horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Pico soils are on floodplains and alluvial fans at elevations of 10 to 1,500 feet. Slopes are 0 to 9 percent. They formed in alkaline, moderately coarse textured alluvium derived mostly from sedimentary formations. The climate is subhumid mesothermal with warm dry summers and cool moist winters. The mean annual precipitation is 10 to 20 inches. Average January temperature is about 53 degrees F., average July temperature is about 66 degrees F., and annual temperature is about 58 degrees to 62 degrees F. The freeze-free season is about 200 to 300 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the competing Mocho and Sorrento soils and the Cropley, Metz, and Salinas soils. Cropley soils are clays with intersecting slickensides. Metz soils are stratified sandy soils. Salinas soils have noncalcareous mollic epipedons more than 20 inches thick.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; slow to medium runoff; moderately rapid permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used primarily for growing row crops, citrus, grain, and pasture, and there is increasing urban use. Vegetation is annual grasses and forbs in uncultivated areas.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Coastal valleys and southern and central California. The soils are of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Monterey County, California, 1972.
REMARKS: The Pico soils are in a coarse-loamy family and represent the equivalent of the Mocho series in the fine-loamy family.
The activity class was added to the classification in February of 2003. Competing series were not checked at that time. - ET
OSED scanned by SSQA. Last revised by state on 3/77.