LOCATION TIPPIPAH                NV

Established Series
Rev. LNL/LR/LCL/JBF
07/2016

TIPPIPAH SERIES

The Tippipah series consists very deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from ignimbrite and basalt. Tippipah soils are on alluvial fans and fan skirts. Slopes are 0 to 2 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 175 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 12 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy over sandy or sandy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic Durinodic Natrargids

TYPICAL PEDON: Tippipah sandy loam - rangeland. (Colors for dry conditions unless otherwise noted.)

A--0 to 10 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) sandy loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; weak thick platy structure; soft, but the surface 0.3 to 0.6 cm is slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; many medium and fine vesicular pores; noneffervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.5); abrupt wavy boundary, (5 to 13 cm thick)

AB--10 to 20 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) loam with a sprinkling of light gray (10YR 7/2) bleached sand and silt particles brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak medium columnar structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine and very fine roots; many very fine and fine vesicular pores in the topmost 3 cm, below which are common very fine and fine interstitial pores; few faint patchy clay films on ped faces and lining pores; noneffervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.5); abrupt slightly wavy boundary. (8 to 18 cm thick)

Btn--20 to 46 cm; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) sandy clay loam, brown (7.5YR 5/4) moist; strong medium prismatic structure; hard to very hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few medium, and many very fine and fine roots; many very fine vesicular pores in upper part and common very fine interstitial pores in the lower part; many faint and few distinct clay films on ped faces; noneffervescent but strongly effervescent where few fine and medium faint very pale brown (10YR 8/2) carbonate filaments occur; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); clear wavy boundary. (20 to 36 cm thick)

Btnk--46 to 61 cm; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) gravelly sandy clay loam , brown (7.5YR 5/4) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine and fine roots; many very fine interstitial, and few fine tubular pores; common faint clay films on ped faces and in pores; 25 percent gravel; noneffervescent but strongly effervescent where few medium distinct very pale brown (10YR 8/2) carbonate filaments occur and where carbonate coats the underside of gravel; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); clear wavy boundary. (13 to 20 cm thick)

2Btnk--61 to 71 cm; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) very gravelly loamy coarse sand, brown (7.5YR 5/4) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; many very fine and fine roots; many very fine interstitial pores; few faint clay bridges between sand grains; 40 percent gravel; noneffervescent matrix, but strongly effervescent where few medium distinct very pale brown (10YR 8/2) carbonate filaments occur and where carbonate forms thin coats on gravel; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); clear wavy boundary. (8 to 15 cm thick.)

2Bqk--71 to 112 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very gravelly loamy coarse sand, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many fine roots; many very fine and fine interstitial pores; 45 percent gravel; few discontinuous, very thin (0.3 cm thick) strongly silica cemented strata; violently effervescent, with moderately thick silica and carbonate crust on under sides of gravel and a small amount of segregated carbonate throughout this material; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt wavy boundary. (30 to 48 cm thick)

3C--112 to 124 cm very pale brown (10YR 8/2) extremely gravelly loamy coarse sand, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) moist; massive; hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; many very fine and fine interstitial pores; 65 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt wavy boundary. (10 to 25 cm thick)

3Cqk--124 to 140 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) extremely gravelly coarse sand, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; many very fine and fine interstitial pores; 75 percent gravel; violently effervescent where few thin silica and carbonate cemented lenses occur, slightly effervescent matrix; strongly alkaline (pH 8.7); abrupt wavy boundary. (13 to 30 cm thick.)

3C'--140 to 165 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) extremely gravelly coarse sand, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; devoid of roots; many very fine and fine interstitial pores; 75 percent gravel; noneffervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.5).

TYPE LOCATION: Lincoln County, Nevada. About 400 feet east and 450 feet south of the NW corner of Sec. 31, T. 3 S., R. 55 E., Mount Diablo base line and meridian; USGS White Blotch Springs NE 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 37 degrees 38 minutes 55 seconds N and longitude 115 degrees 50 minutes 33 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 37.6486111 latitude, -115.8425000 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist in some part for short periods during winter and early spring months, and intermittently moist in some part for 10 to 20 days cumulative between July and October due to convection storms; typic aridic soil moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature: 12 to 15 degrees C.
Depth to 2C horizon: 75 to 150 cm.

Particle-size control section: - Clay content: 25 to 35 percent in the upper part and 2 to 8 percent in the lower part.
Rock fragments: 0 to 25 percent in the upper part and 35 to 60 percent in the lower part.

A horizon
Value: 6 or 7 dry and 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: of 2 or 3.
Structure: Weak or moderate, medium or thick platy, or is massive.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Other features: In the AB or A2 common to many bleached sand and silt grains are present.

Btn and Btnk1 horizons
Hue: 10YR and 7.5YR.
Value: 5 or 6 dry and 4 or 5 moist.
Chromas: 3 or 4.
Texture: Loam, sandy clay loam or clay loam.
Rock fragments: 0 to 25 percent.
Structure: Strong or moderate, medium or fine, columnar; the lower part includes weak or moderate, medium or fine, subangular blocky or prismatic
Reaction: Moderately alkaline through very strongly alkaline.
Sodium absorption ratio (SAR): 13 to 45.
Effervescence: Noneffervescent through strongly effervescent.
Other features: In the Btn1 horizon, common to many bleached sand and silt grains are present.

2Btnk2 and 2Bqk horizons
Hue: 10YR and 7.5YR.
Value: 5 through 7 dry and 4 or 5 moist.
Chromas: 3 or 4.
Structure: Weak or moderate, medium or fine, subangular blocky or massive.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Sodium absorption ratio (SAR): 13 to 45.
Effervescence: Noneffervescent through violently effervescent.

3C, and 3Cqk horizons
Value: 6 to 8 dry and 4 to 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 to 3.
Texture: Stratified extremely gravelly loamy coarse sand to extremely gravelly coarse sand.
Rock fragments: 65 to 85 percent
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Sodium absorption ratio (SAR): 13 to 45.
Effervescence: Noneffervescent through violently effervescent decreasing with depth.
Other features: Very thin discontinuous lenses of silica-cemented lenses occur in the C horizons above 100 cm. These range from few to common and are randomly oriented. They range in consistence from hard or very hard, firm or very firm.

COMPETING SERIES: There are no series this family.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Tippipah soils are on smooth or slightly convex, nearly level alluvial fans with slope gradient of 0 to 2 percent. Tippipah soils developed in loamy alluvium derived mainly from ignimbrite and basalt. These soils occur at an elevation of 1,520 to 1,590 meters in a cool, semi-arid climate with a mean annual precipitation of 150 to 200 mm. The mean annual temperature is 11 to 14 degrees C and the frost-free period is 130 to 150 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Fang and Papoose soils. Fang soils have coarse-loamy particle-size control sections. Papoose soils have sandy clay loam or sandy loam argillic horizons and lack silica cementation.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; very slow runoff; moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used for livestock grazing, but could be cultivated to climatically adapted crops if irrigation water were available. At a typical site about 4 to 6 percent of the soil surface is covered by vegetation. The dominant vegetation consists of shadscale, bud sagebrush, winterfat and galleta.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: South-central Nevada, the soil is inextensive. MLRA 29.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Lincoln County, Nevada, Pahranagat and Penoyer Valleys, 1965. Tippipah is the name of a local spring.

REMARKS: These soils were formerly classified as Desert soils.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 20 cm (A and AB horizon).
Argillic horizon - The zone from 20 to 71 cm (Btn, Btnk1 and Btnk2 horizons).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 20 to 70 cm (Btn, Btnk1, and part of Btnk2 horizons).

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.