LOCATION SAEMO AZEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic Ustic Haplargids
TYPICAL PEDON: Saemo extremely gravelly sandy loam - woodland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A--0 to 2 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) extremely gravelly sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine roots; many very fine irregular pores; 65 percent gravel, 3 percent cobble, and 2 percent stones as surface lag layer: noneffervescent; neutral (pH 6.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)
Bt1--2 to 16 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/4) very gravelly sandy clay loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; weak medium prismatic structure; very hard, firm, sticky and plastic; common very fine and fine, few medium and coarse roots; common very fine and fine tubular pores; 40 percent gravel and 5 percent cobble; common faint and distinct clay films in pores and on faces of ped ; noneffervescent; neutral (ph 6.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (6 to 15 inches thick)
Bt2--16 to 26 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) very gravelly coarse sandy loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and few fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; 40 percent gravel and 10 percent cobble; few faint clay films bridging sand grains; noneffervescent; neutral (pH 6.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 20 inches thick)
2C1--26 to 34 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) extremely cobbly loamy coarse sand, strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine and fine roots; few fine irregular pores; 50 percent cobble and 30 percent gravel; noneffervescent; neutral (pH 7.0); clear wavy boundary. (8 to 20 inches thick)
2C2--34 to 60 inches; strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) extremely cobbly coarse sand, strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine roots; common very fine irregular pores; 35 percent cobble and 40 percent gravel; few thin calcium carbonate coatings on undersides of rock fragments; noneffervescent matrix with slight effervescence on calcium carbonate features; neutral (pH 7.2).
TYPE LOCATION: Mohave County, Arizona; on the Hualapai Indian Reservation; approximately 700 feet east and 1700 feet north of the southwest corner of section 10, T. 25 N., R. 11 W.; along the powerline road in upper Peach Springs Canyon.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil Moisture: Intermittently moist in some part of the soil moisture control section during December - March and July - September. Driest during May and June. Ustic aridic soil moisture regime.
Soil Temperature: 54 to 58 degrees F.
Rock fragments: Averages 35 to 50 percent in the control section, dominantly gravel
Clay content: ranges from 18 to 35 percent in the control section
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 0 to 10 percent in the lower subsoil and substratum
Depth to calcium carbonate: greater than 30 inches
A horizon
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma: 3 through 4, dry or moist
Rock fragments: 65 to 90 percent as surface lag layer, dominantly gravel
Bt horizon
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma: 3 through 6, dry or moist
Texture: coarse sandy loam, sandy loam, sandy clay loam
C horizon
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 4 through 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist
Chroma: 4 through 6, dry or moist
Texture: loamy coarse sand, coarse sand
Clay content: ranges from 5 to 15 percent
Rock fragments: 40 to 80 percent gravel and cobble
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Elements (AZ), Romberg (MT), Sed (NV), and Tacan (UT) soils. Elements soils contain less than 18 percent clay in the control section. Romberg soils have free carbonate in the B horizon. Sed soils are moderately deep to bedrock. Tacan soils are calcareous below 40 inches and have hue of 2.5YR or 5YR in the Bt horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Saemo soils are on fan terraces. They formed in alluvium derived from mixed sources. Slopes range from 2 to 45 percent. Elevation is 4000 to 4800 feet. The mean annual precipitation is 10 to 12 inches. The mean annual air temperature is 52 to 56 degrees F. The frost-free period is 135 to 175 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: This is the Winona series. Winona soils are shallow to bedrock.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderately slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Saemo soils are used primarily for grazeable woodland, fuelwood gathering, and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is Utah juniper, singleleaf pinyon, black grama, sideoats grama, desert needlegrass, and desert ceanothus.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northwestern Arizona. The Saemo series is not extensive. MLRA 35
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Mohave County, Arizona; Soil survey of Hualapai-Havasupai Area, Parts of Coconino, Mohave and Yavapai Counties; 1993.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from 0 to 2 inches (A horizon)
Argillic horizon - The zone from 2 to 26 inches (Bt1, Bt2 horizons)