LOCATION TINPAN NV

Established Series
Rev. SES-JBF-TM-JVC
01/2020

TINPAN SERIES

Tinpan series consists of moderately deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from basalt, andesite, and tuff. Tinpan soils are on plateaus. Slopes are 0 to 8 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 360 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 7 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Very-fine, smectitic, frigid Vertic Palexerolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Tinpan extremely cobbly loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is partially covered by 40 percent cobbles and 20 percent gravel.

A1--0 to 5 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) extremely cobbly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate thin and medium platy structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine roots; many very fine and common fine vesicular pores; 5 percent stones, 40 percent cobbles, and 20 percent gravel; neutral (pH 6.8); clear wavy boundary. (3 or 5 cm thick)

A2--5 to 13 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) silty clay loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate very fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine and common fine roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 10 percent gravel; neutral (pH 6.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 13 cm thick)

Btss1--13 to 30 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) clay, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; strong medium prismatic structure; extremely hard, extremely firm, very sticky and very plastic; common very fine, fine and medium roots between peds; common fine tubular pores; many distinct clay films on faces of peds; common light gray (10YR 7/2) uncoated sand grains, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist on tops of prisms; vertical cracks 5 to 15 millimeters wide and 5 to 10 cm apart extend through horizon; few slickensides; neutral (pH 7.0); clear wavy boundary. (13 to 20 cm thick)

Btss2--30 to 46 cm; brown (7.5YR 5/4) clay, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium and coarse prismatic structure parting to strong medium and coarse angular blocky; extremely hard, extremely firm, very sticky and very plastic; common very fine, fine and medium roots between peds; common very fine tubular pores; many distinct and prominent clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; vertical cracks 5 to 15 millimeters wide and 5 to 10 cm apart extend to base of horizon; common slickensides bounding wedge-shaped peds tilted 30 degrees from horizontal; neutral (pH 7.2); clear smooth boundary. (13 to 20 cm thick)

Btss3--46 to 71 cm; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) clay, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium and coarse prismatic structure parting to strong medium and coarse angular blocky; very hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine, fine and medium roots between peds; common very fine tubular pores; many distinct clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; many slickensides bounding coarse wedge-shaped peds tilted 30 degrees from horizontal; slightly alkaline (pH 7.5); clear smooth boundary. (18 to 30 cm thick)

Btkss--71 to 91 cm; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) clay, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; strong medium and coarse angular blocky structure; very hard, friable, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; many distinct and prominent clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; few slickensides bounding wedge-shaped peds tilted 30 degrees from horizontal; secondary carbonates segregated as 3 percent medium and large white (10YR 8/1) masses; slightly effervescent matrix; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 30 cm thick)

R--91 cm; hard vesicular basalt; few coats of secondary carbonates at the boundary and in some fractures.

TYPE LOCATION: Washoe County, Nevada; about 2.6 miles northeast of the Barrel Springs Road; approximately 1,500 feet west and 2,200 feet north of the southeast corner of section 9, T. 46 N., R. 19 E.; USGS Little Coleman Canyon 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 41 degrees 55 minutes 18 seconds N and longitude 119 degrees 51 minutes 14 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 41.9215279 latitude, -119.8549347 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Moist in winter and spring; dry in summer and fall; aridic soil moisture regime that borders on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 7 to 8 degrees C.
Mean summer soil temperature: 16 to 18 degrees C.
Mollic epipedon thickness: 25 to 40 cm; includes the Btss1 horizon.
Depth to horizon with identifiable secondary carbonates: 64 to 90 cm.
Depth to bedrock: 50 to 100 cm to a lithic contact.
Other features: An abrupt horizon boundary is normally present between the A2 and Btss1 horizons accompanied by an abrupt increase in clay content of at least 20 percent.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 60 to 70 percent.

A1 horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 2 or 3 moist; Uncoated sand grains with value of 6 or 7 dry.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Organic matter content: 2 or 3 percent.

A2 horizon
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Clay content: 27 to 35 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent, mainly gravel.
Organic matter content: 1 to 3 percent.

Btss1 horizon
Clay content: 60 to 70 percent.
Organic matter content: 1 or 2 percent.
Slickensides and other vertic features: Few to many slickensides often bounding wedge-shaped peds; vertical cracks 5 to 25 mm wide.
Reaction: Neutral or slightly alkaline.

Btss2 and Btss3 horizons - Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 4 through 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4, dry or moist.
Structure: Strong, medium and coarse prismatic and angular blocky with few to many wedges.
Reaction: Neutral or slightly alkaline.
Slickensides and other vertic features: Few to many slickensides bounding wedge-shaped peds; vertical cracks 5 to 25 millimeters wide in Btss2 horizon.

Btkss horizon (when present)
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Structure: Strong, medium and coarse angular blocky with few wedges.
Slickensides and other vertic features: Few or common slickensides bounding wedge-shaped peds.
Reaction: Slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline
Identifiable secondary carbonates: Few to many fine to coarse masses.
Effervescence: Slightly effervescent or strongly effervescent in matrix.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 1 to 5 percent.

COMPETING SERIES: There are currently no other series in this family.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Tinpan soils are on plateaus. They formed in alluvium derived from basalt, andesite, and tuff. Slopes are 0 to 8 percent. Elevations range from 1,740 to 2,105 meters. The climate is semiarid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 330 to 380 meters, the mean annual temperature is 6 to 8 degrees C, and the frost-free period is 60 to 80 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Karlo, Madeline, and Ninemile soils.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: Tinpan soils are used for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly low sagebrush, Sandberg's bluegrass, bottlebrush squirreltail, Nevada bluegrass, Idaho fescue, and bluebunch wheatgrass.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northwestern Nevada. These soils are moderately extensive. MLRA 23.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California.

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Washoe County, Nevada (North Part), 1995.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 30 cm (A1, A2 and Btss1 horizons).
Palexerolls great group feature - The abrupt clay increase of more than 20 percent at 13 cm (The boundary between the A2 and Btss1 horizons).
Argillic horizon - The zone from 13 to 91 cm (Btss1, Btss2, Btss3 and Btkss horizons).
Slickensides and other vertic features - The zone from 13 to 91 cm (Btss1, Btss2, Btss3 and Btkss horizons).
Identifiable secondary carbonates - The zone from 71 to 91 cm (Btkss horizon).
Lithic contact - The boundary at 91 cm to underlying hard bedrock (R layer).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 13 to 63 cm (Btss1 and Btss2 horizons and part of the Btss3 horizon).

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.