LOCATION QUINTANA NMEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Calciustepts
TYPICAL PEDON: Quintana very gravelly loam, woodland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
A1--0 to 2 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) very gravelly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak thin platy structure parting to weak fine granular; soft, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine and fine roots; many very fine and fine interstitial pores; 55 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (2 to 3 inches thick)
A2--2 to 6 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; soft, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; common very fine and fine tubular pores; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); clear smooth boundary. (2 to 5 inches thick)
Bw--6 to 13 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) clay loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; weak fine and medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, firm, sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine, few medium roots; common very fine tubular pores; calcareous; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); clear smooth boundary. (7 to 10 inches thick)
Bk1--13 to 19 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) clay loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; common very fine and fine tubular pores; 5 percent gravel; calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear wavy boundary. (4 to 10 inches thick)
Bk2--19 to 33 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) sandy clay loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine and fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; 10 percent gravel; calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); gradual wavy boundary. (10 to 20 inches thick)
C1--33 to 41 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/4) sandy loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots; common very fine and fine interstitial pores; 10 percent gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); gradual wavy boundary. (5 to 15 inches thick)
C2--41 to 60 inches; yellow (10YR 8/6) very gravelly sandy loam, very pale brown (10YR 8/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine interstitial pores; 50 percent gravel; calcareous; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0).
TYPE LOCATION: San Miguel County, New Mexico; 1.25 miles southeast of Quintana Spring on Forest Service road 45; NE1/4 NE1/4 section 7, R.16E., T.12N.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Gravel content above depth of 40 inches ranges from 10 to 35 percent.
A calcic horizon occurs at depths of 15 to 28 inches. Some pedons are calcareous throughout.
A horizon has hue of 10YR or 7.5YR, value of 4 through 6 and chroma of 2 through 4. It is loam, sandy loam or silt loam, gravelly or very gravelly counterparts.
Bw horizon has hue of 10YR through 5YR, value of 4 through 8 and chroma of 2 through 4. It is clay loam, loam or sandy clay loam and contains 0 to 10 percent gravel by volume.
Bk and C horizons have value of 7 or 8 and chroma of 2 through 4. It ranges from sandy loam to clay loam. Below depths of 40 inches gravel content ranges from 10 to 60 percent.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the La Fonda, Harvey, Tapia, and Penistaja series in other families. These soils have an aridic moisture regime. Also, Penistaja and Tapia soils have an argillic horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Quintana soils are on uplands and have slopes of 0 to 20 percent. They formed on limestone, soft calcareous sandstone and on shale. Elevations are from 5,500 to 7,000 feet. The soils have a semiarid continental climate. The mean annual precipitation is about 14 to 18 inches; about 75 percent of the moisture comes as showers between May and September. The mean annual temperature is about 50 to 54 degrees F. The frost free season is about 135 to 160 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Anton, Sombordoro, and Teco soils. Sombordoro soils are less than 20 inches deep. Taco soils have an argillic horizon. Anton soils contain more than 35 percent coarse fragments in the control section.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for wood production and livestock grazing. Vegetation is oneseed juniper with pinyon pine, fourwing saltbush, blue grama, black grama, sideoats grama, and sand dropseed.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mesas and foothills in Northern New Mexico and Arizona. The series is moderately extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: San Miguel Soil Survey Area, San Miguel County, New Mexico, 1977.
REMARKS:In October 2000, taxonomic classification was converted to the closest match found in Soil Taxonomy, Second Edition 1999. Some update was made to horizon nomenclature, competing series section, etc. Other placements may be more appropriate after a complete update.