LOCATION TOMEL                   NV

Established Series
Rev. JBF/WED
07/2016

TOMEL SERIES

The Tomel series consists of shallow over an indurated duripan, well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from shale, siltstone, limestone, chert, and interbedded quartz. Tomel soils are on fan remnants, fan piedmonts and alluvial fans. Slopes are 0 to 35 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 150 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 12 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic, shallow Typic Argidurids

TYPICAL PEDON: Tomel very gravelly sandy loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A--0 to 5 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) very gravelly sandy loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; common medium roots; many very fine and fine vesicular pores; 40 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (5 to 20 cm thick)

BA--5 to 8 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) gravelly clay loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak thin platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common medium roots; many very fine vesicular and few very fine tubular pores; 20 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 5 cm thick)

Bt1--8 to 18 cm; brown (10YR 5/3) gravelly clay loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; weak medium prismatic and weak very fine and fine angular and subangular blocky structure; hard, very friable, very sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine, and few fine and medium roots; few very fine tubular pores; 25 percent gravel; common distinct clay films on ped faces and in pores; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); clear smooth boundary. (8 to 15 cm thick)

Bt2--18 to 23 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) extremely gravelly clay loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine and few fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; 60 percent gravel; few faint clay films bridging and coating sand grains; slightly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 15 cm thick)

Bk--23 to 30 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very gravelly sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; 55 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; gravel have white (10YR 8/1) carbonate coatings that are violently effervescent and very pale brown (10YR 7/4) silica coatings on the underside; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 20 cm thick)

Bqkm--30 to 69 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very gravelly indurated duripan, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; with very pale brown (10YR 7/4) pendants and 2 to 5 mm thick continuous laminae on rocks and capping the duripan; massive; very hard and extremely hard, extremely firm; few very fine roots in cracks; violently effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 9.0); clear smooth boundary. (15 to 46 cm thick)

2Bkq--69 to 152 cm; gray (10YR 6/1) very gravelly sand, dark gray (10YR 4/1) moist; white (10YR 8/1) carbonate and very pale brown (10YR 7/4) silica coating the underside of gravel; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 55 percent gravel; violently effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 9.0).

TYPE LOCATION: Nye County, Nevada; approximately 470 feet north of the southeast corner of Section 30, T. 8 N., R. 43 E.; USGS Seyler Peak 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 38 degrees 31 minutes 1 seconds N and longitude 117 degrees 11 minutes 10 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 38.5170556 latitude, -117.1858333 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist in some part for short periods during winter and early spring months and for 10 to 20 days cumulative between July and September and October due to convection storms; typic aridic soil moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature: 12 to 15 degrees C.
Depth to duripan: 25 to 50 cm.
Effervescence: Noneffervescent through violently effervescent.
Other features: Some pedons have thin Bkq horizons immediately above the duripan.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: Averages 20 to 30 percent.
Rock fragments: Averages 35 to 50 percent. mainly gravel.

A horizon
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.

BA horizon (when present)
Value: 7 or 8 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.

Bt1 horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4.
Structure: Prismatic or blocky.
Texture: Clay loam or sandy clay loam, when mixed.
Rock fragments: 10 to 35 percent mainly gravel.

Bt2 horizon
Structure: Massive or subangular blocky.
Texture: Clay loam or sandy clay loam, when mixed.
Rock fragments: 40 to 65 percent mainly gravel.

2Bkq horizon
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 1 through 3.
Rock fragments: 50 to 75 percent mainly gravel.

Bqkm horizon
Value: 6 through 8 dry, 4 through 7 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Lyda, Maggie, Silverbow, Stingdorn and Tokoper series.

Lyda soils have heavy clay loam or light clay subhorizons in the Bt horizon that are 15 to 25 cm thick. Maggie soils have bedrock at a depth of 50 to 100 cm. Silverbow soils have 50 to 70 percent rock fragments, dominantly stones and cobbles, and Bt horizons that are calcareous throughout. Stingdorn and Tokoper soils have bedrock at a depth of 20 to 50 cm.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Tomel soils are on alluvial fans and fan piedmonts. Slopes are 0 to 35 percent. Elevations are 1,278 to 2,091 meters. These soils formed in alluvium derived from shale, limestone, chert and interbedded quartz. The climate is warm, arid with a mean annual precipitation of 125 to 200 mm. The mean annual temperature is 11 to 14 degrees C. The frost-free season is 100 to 140 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Laxal and Penelas soils. Laxal soils lack an argillic horizon and a duripan. Penelas soils lack a duripan and are shallow over shale.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; medium or rapid runoff; moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity above the duripan.

USE AND VEGETATION: Livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The vegetation is principally Bailey greasewood, shadscale, bud sagebrush, galleta, King desertgrass, kochia, Nevada ephedra, Indian ricegrass, and sand dropseed.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: South-central Nevada. These soils are inextensive. MLRA 29.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Nye County (Big Smoky Valley Area), Nevada, 1972.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 8 cm. (A horizon)
Argillic horizon - The zone from about 8 to 23 cm (Bt1 and Bt2 horizon).
Indurated Duripan - The zone(from 30 to 69 cm (Bqkm horizon).
Particle-size control section - The zone from surface to 30 cm (A, BA, Bt and Bk horizons).

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.