LOCATION STRAWBCREK NV

Established Series
Rev. CWL/JBF
08/2012

STRAWBCREK SERIES

The Strawbcrek series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in colluvium derived from granitic rocks. Strawbcrek soils are on mountains. Slopes are 30 to 75 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 600 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 5 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy-skeletal, mixed Lamellic Haplocryepts

TYPICAL PEDON: Strawbcrek very bouldery coarse sandy loam--forestland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered with approximately 35 percent pebbles, 5 percent cobbles, 5 percent stones, and 3 percent boulders.

Oi--0 to 5 cm; slightly decomposed plant material composed of conifer needles; abrupt smooth boundary. (3 to 8 cm thick)

A--5 to 8 cm; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) very bouldery coarse sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine roots; common very fine tubular and interstitial pores; 25 percent gravel, 5 percent cobbles, 5 percent stones, and 5 percent boulders; slightly acid (pH 6.5); abrupt smooth boundary. (3 to 5 cm thick)

E1--8 to 28 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) extremely gravelly coarse sandy loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine through coarse roots; common very fine tubular and interstitial pores; common medium distinct dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist masses of iron accumulation; 50 percent gravel, 10 percent cobbles, and 5 percent stones; slightly acid (pH 6.4); clear wavy boundary. (5 to 20 cm thick)

E2--28 to 66 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) extremely gravelly coarse sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine through coarse roots; common very fine tubular and interstitial pores; 50 percent gravel, 20 percent cobbles, and 5 percent stones; moderately acid (pH 5.9); clear wavy boundary. (30 to 50 cm thick)

E and Bt--66 to 157 cm; 90 percent light gray (10YR 7/2) extremely cobbly loamy coarse sand, brown (10YR 5/3) moist (E part), with 10 percent yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist lamellae of coarse sandy loam (Bt part); massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine through coarse roots; common very fine tubular and interstitial pores; common distinct clay films lining pores and bridging sand grains in lamellae; 40 percent gravel, 30 percent cobbles, and 5 percent stones; moderately acid (pH 5.6).

TYPE LOCATION: White Pine County, Nevada; in Great Basin National Park about 1 mile southeast of the Baker Creek trailhead and 1,500 feet southeast of Timber Creek; USGS Wheeler Peak 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 38 degrees 57 minutes 42 seconds N and longitude 114 degrees 15 minutes 06 seconds W; UTM Zone 11N, 738131e, 4316110n, NAD83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually moist in the moisture control section in winter, spring, and early summer, dry in all parts at least 45 consecutive days following the summer solstice (July and August), but intermittently moist in the upper part for 10 to 20 days cumulative due to convection storms between July and September; snow covered from November through April; upper part is saturated for about 15 to 20 consecutive days during snowmelt in April and/or May; xeric soil moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature: 4 to 7 degrees C.
Mean summer soil temperature: 7 to 8 degrees C.
Ochric epipedon thickness: 41 to 66 cm, includes the Oi, A, E1, and E2 horizons.
Depth to top of albic horizon: 3 to 5 cm measured from the mineral soil surface at the top of the A horizon.
Depth to base of cambic horizon: More than 150 cm measured from the mineral soil surface at the top of the A horizon.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 2 to 8 percent.
Sand content: 60 to 80 percent, with 30 to 40 percent total coarse sand and very coarse sand fractions.
Rock fragments: 60 to 80 percent, with 2 to 5 mm diameter gravel dominating the gravel fraction. Lithology of fragments is granitic rocks.

A horizon
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist.

E horizons
Value 5 through 7 dry.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Rock fragments: 60 to 80 percent, with 2 to 5 mm graveldominating the gravel fraction.
Reaction: Sightly acid through strongly acid.
Base saturation: 60 to 80 percent.

E and Bt horizon
Value 5 through 7 dry.
Chroma: 2 through 4 moist.
Rock fragments: 60 to 80 percent, with 2 to 5 mm graveldominating the gravel fraction.
Reaction: Moderately acid or strongly acid.
Base saturation: 60 to 80 percent.
Lamellae: 1 mm to 10 mm thick lamellae of coarse sandy loam to sandy clay loam are present with cumulative thickness of less than 15 cm.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Meadowlake and Newcomb series. Meadow lake soils are moderatrely deep.Newcomb soils have a udic moisure regime.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Strawbcrek soils are on mountains. They typically occur on backslope positions. These soils formed in colluvium derived from granitic rocks. Slopes are 30 to 75 percent. Elevations range from 2,560 to 3,665 meters. The climate is moist-subhumid with cold wet winters and warm dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 450 to 700 mm, mean annual temperature is 3 to 6 degrees C, and the frost-free period is 40 to 60 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: This is the Ceebee soil. Ceebee soils are sandy-skeletal and have argillic horizons composed of lamellae.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; medium surface runoff; high saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Strawbcrek soils are used for recreation, watershed, and wildlife habitat. The potential native vegetation is mainly a forest canopy of white fir, Douglas-fir, limber pine, Engelmann's spruce, and quaking aspen. This site is correlated to Ecological Site F28AY080NV, Rocky Mountain White Fir-Rocky Mountain Douglas-Fir-creeping barberry-mountain snowberry\bluegrass-Ross' sedge.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Eastern Nevada. These soils are not extensive. MLRA 28A.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona.

SERIES ESTABLISHED: White Pine County, Great Basin National Park, Nevada, 2009.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Organic soil material - The zone from the soil surface to 5 cm (Oi horizon).
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 66 cm (Oi, A, E1, and E2 horizons).
Albic horizon - The zone from 8 to 66 cm (E1 and E2 horizons).
Cambic horizon - The zone from 8 to 66 cm (E1 and E2 horizons).
Lamellae - The zone from 66 to 157 cm (E and Bt horizon).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 25 to 100 cm measured from the mineral soil surface at the top of the A horizon (lower part of the E1, E2 and upper part of the E and Bt horizon).

The revision of December 2008 changed the classification to sandy-skeletal based on lab data for the type location.

The revision of March 2008 changed the temperature regime from frigid.

A revision in March 2001 updated the taxonomic classification from Loamy-skeletal, mixed, nonacid, frigid Typic Xerorthents, adjusted all horizon depths for the Oi horizon as the soil surface, and verified the presence of the cambic horizon.

ADDITIONAL DATA: The typical pedon at the series type location is reference sampled for the Soil Survey Laboratory (SSL), Lincoln, NE, as soil survey sample number S91NV-033-005 (pedon # 92P0147).

Previous authors and editors include: EWR-IJR-WED-JVC.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.