LOCATION SANDOVAL NM+UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, calcareous, mesic, shallow Ustic Torriorthents
TYPICAL PEDON: Sandoval fine sandy loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A1--0 to 2 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) fine sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine and very fine roots; slightly effervescent; strongly alkaline; abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 4 inches thick)
A2--2 to 6 inches; light gray (2.5Y 7/2) clay loam, light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common fine and very fine roots; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (3 to 8 inches thick)
C1--6 to 10 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) clay loam, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist; massive; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common fine and very fine and few medium roots; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (3 to 7 inches thick)
C2--10 to 15 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) clay loam, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; massive; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few fine roots; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 3 inches thick)
Cr--15 to 25 inches; soft calcareous shale.
TYPE LOCATION: Sandoval County, New Mexico; about 5 miles south of Alamo Ranch headquarters, 1,100 feet south and 2,700 feet east of the northwest corner of sec. 4, T., 13 N., R. 1 W.; Collier Draw USGS quadrangle; latitude 35 degrees 23 minutes 14 seconds N, longitude 106 degrees 56 minutes 50 seconds W; NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil Moisture: Dry in all parts of the soil moisture control section 50 to 75 percent of the time that the soil temperature is above 41 degrees F. Moist in some part periodically July through September and December and January. Driest periods are May and June. Aridic regime bordering ustic.
Mean annual soil temperature: 52 to 57 degrees F.
Depth to paralithic contact: 10 to 20 inches
Reaction: moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline
Particle-size control section (weighted average)
Clay content: 18 to 35 percent
Rock fragment content: 0 to 15 percent
A horizon
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 5 through 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2 through 6
Texture: loam, clay loam, silty clay loam, fine sandy loam, gravelly sandy loam, gravelly clay loam, very gravelly very fine sandy loam
Rock fragment content: 0 to 40 percent
C horizon
Hue: 2.5Y or 5Y
Value: 5 through 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2 through 4
Texture: loam, clay loam, and silty clay loam including gravelly and extremely paragravelly modifiers
Pararock fragment content: 40 to 80 percent
Rock fragment content: 0 to 15 percent
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Canyon,
Dulce,
Epping,
Eslendo,
Gerst,
Picante,
Quarteles,
Redarrow,
Remorris,
Shingle,
Taluce, and
Tassel series.
Canyon and Gerst soils have 15 to 35 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section.
Dulce and Tassel soils have less than 18 percent clay.
Epping soils contain significant amounts of glass shards.
Eslendo soils are moist for longer periods of time during January through March.
Redarrow and Remorris soils have hues redder than 10YR.
Picante soils are dry for a shorter period of time before July (a better distinguishing feature must be determined).
Quarteles soils are less than 10 inches to a paralithic contact.
Shingle soils have more than 12 inches of precipitation distributed more evenly throughout the growing season.
Taluce soils have soil temperatures less than 52 degrees F. and less than 18 percent clay.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Sandoval soils are on undulating to moderately steep ridges, hills, and escarpments with slopes of 1 to 45 percent. Elevations are 5200 to 7000 feet. The soils formed in slope alluvium derived from sandstone and shale over residuum derived from shale. The mean annual precipitation is about 9 to 14 inches, and the mean annual temperature is about 49 to 54 degrees F. The frost-free season is about 120 to 170 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Querencia and Skyvillage soils. Querencia soils are deep, and Skyvillage soils are shallow to a lithic contact.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderately slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Sandoval soils are used for grazing. The present vegetation is galleta, alkali sacaton, and bottlebrush squirreltail.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northcentral New Mexico. The series is of moderate extent. MLRAs 34A, 36.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Sandoval County, New Mexico, 1980.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon: The zone from 0 to 6 inches. (A horizons)
Paralithic contact: Soft shale at 15 inches.
Particle-size control section: the zone from 10 to 15 inches (C2 horizon).
Series control section: the zone from 0 to 25 inches (entire soil and upper 10 inches of the paralithic material).
Some pedons have Bw horizons that extend deeper than 10 inches.
The 12/2007 revision adds parafragments to the concept of the series to include soils in the Santa Fe Area; it is assumed an amount of shale parafragments was present but not described in the original pedon descriptions.
Taxonomic version: Classified according to Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Tenth Edition, 2006.