LOCATION SUWANEE NM+UTEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, calcareous, mesic Ustic Torrifluvents
TYPICAL PEDON: Suwanee silty clay loam. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A--0 to 3 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) silty clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, friable, sticky and plastic; few fine and medium roots; few very fine irregular pores; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (2 to 5 inches thick)
C1--3 to 16 inches; yellowish red (5YR 5/6) silty clay loam, yellowish red (5YR 4/6) moist; massive; slightly hard, firm, sticky and plastic; few fine and medium roots; few very fine irregular pores; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (10 to 25 inches thick)
C2--16 to 21 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) silt loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and medium roots; few very fine irregular pores; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (3 to 20 inches thick)
C3--21 to 27 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) silty clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; massive; hard, firm, sticky and plastic; few fine and medium roots; few very fine irregular pores; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 10 inches thick)
C4--27 to 32 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/4) sandy loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few fine and medium roots; few fine irregular pores; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (1 to 8 inches thick)
C5--32 to 35 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) silty clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; massive; hard, firm, sticky and plastic; few fine and medium roots; few very fine irregular pores; violently effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 5 inches thick)
C6--35 to 38 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/4) loamy fine sand, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine and medium roots; few fine irregular pores; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick)
C7--38 to 46 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) silt loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine, fine and medium roots; few very fine irregular pores; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 12 inches thick)
C8--46 to 60 inches; reddish brown (5YR 4/4) silty clay, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) moist; massive; hard, firm, sticky and plastic; few very fine, fine and medium roots; few very fine irregular pores; violently effervescent; slightly alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Valencia County, New Mexico; about 4 miles south of Highway 6, U.S. Interstate 40 Intersection, about 1,320 feet east and 1,056 feet north of the southwest corner of section 19, T. 8 N., R. 3 W.; 107 degrees, 10 minutes, 50 seconds west longitude; 34 degrees, 54 minutes, 00 seconds north latitude.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil Moisture: The soil moisture control section is moist in some part, periodically, during the peak moisture period of July, August and September and is dry in all parts of the majority of the time during April, May and June. It is dry in all parts 50 to 75 percent of the time the soil temperature is above 41 degrees F. Ustic aridic moisture regime.
Soil Temperature: 47 to 57 degrees F.
A horizon:
Hue: 2.5YR to 7.5YR.
Value: 4 to 6 dry, 3 to 5 moist.
Chroma: 3 to 6.
Texture: silty loam, silty clay loam, loam, clay loam, or clay.
C horizon:
Hue: 2.5YR to 2.5Y
Value: 4 to 7 dry, 3 to 6 moist.
Chroma: 3 to 6.
Texture: Stratified silty clay to loamy fine sand.
Clay content: weighted average is 18 to 35 percent.
Reaction: slightly alkaline to strongly alkaline.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Barnum (WY),
Hamburn (NM),
Haverdad (WY),
Haversid T(CO),
Manikan (AZ),
Panitchen (CO) and
San Mateo (NM) series.
Barnum soils have a mean annual soil temperature range of 47 to 53 degrees F., and the soil moisture control section is moist in some part of the majority of the time during the peak moisture period of April,
May and June.
Hamburn, Haversid, and San Mateo soils have hues of 10YR or yellower.
Haverdad soils have a mean annual soil temperature range of 48 to 53 degrees F. and are moist for 60 consecutive days in spring and early summer.
Manikan soils have calcium carbonate accumulations.
Panitchen soils have gypsum accumulations.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Suwanee soils are on valley floors, flood plains and alluvial fans. Slopes are 0 to 5 percent. Elevation is 4,300 to 6,500 feet. Mean annual temperature is 45 to 56 degrees F. mean annual precipitation is typically 5 to 10 inches but ranges to 12 inches. Areas with low precipitation receive an additional 2 to 5 inches of additional run-on moisture from summer flooding. Frost-free period is 120 to 160 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Bond, Hagerman, Mack, Navajo, and Shiprock series. The Bond, Hagerman, Mack and Shiprock soils have argillic horizons. Navajo soils are fine textured.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderately rapid to slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for livestock grazing. Present vegetation is alkali sacaton, fourwing saltbush, western wheatgrass, and bottlebrush squirreltail.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: West central New Mexico and southeastern Utah. The series is of moderate extent. MLRA 35.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Established Central San Juan Area, Utah, 1985.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Fluventic features: the zone from the surface of the soil to a depth of 60 inches, has stratification and an irregular decrease in organic matter (A, C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, C6, C7 and C8 horizons).
Classified according to Soil Taxonomy Ninth Edition, 2003.