LOCATION TULARE CAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic, calcareous, thermic Fluvaquentic Vertic Endoaquolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Tulare clay, on slopes of less than 1 percent under barley at 180 feet elevation. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated. When described on 7/2/58 the soil was moist below 6 inches and had a water table at 72 inches.)
Ap1--0 to 0.25 inch; gray (10YR 5/1) clay, very dark gray (10YR 3/1) moist; strong fine granular structure; very hard, friable, sticky and plastic; many very fine tubular pores; violently effervescent (16 percent calcium carbonate, disseminated); moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); abrupt smooth boundary. (0.25 to 0.5 inch thick)
Ap2--0.25 to 16 inch; gray (10YR 5/1) clay, very dark gray (10YR 3/1) moist; common fine faint light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) mottles, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) moist; strong very coarse prismatic structure parting to strong, coarse subangular blocky; very hard, friable, sticky and plastic; many very fine and common fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; violently effervescent (18 percent calcium carbonate, disseminated); moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); abrupt smooth boundary. (14 to 25 inches thick)
C1--16 to 31 inches; light gray (5Y 7/2) clay, dark gray (N 4/0) moist; common fine distinct olive brown (2.5Y 4/4) dry and moist mottles; strong very coarse prismatic structure; hard, friable, sticky and plastic; common pressure faces; common very fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; violently effervescent (19 percent calcium carbonate, disseminated); moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); abrupt smooth boundary. (10 to 15 inches thick)
C2ca--31 to 48 inches; light olive gray (5Y 6/2) clay, olive gray (5Y 5/2) moist; common fine distinct olive brown (2.5Y 4/4) dry and moist mottles; massive; hard, friable, sticky and plastic; common pressure faces; common very fine and few fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; violently effervescent (21 percent calcium carbonate, disseminated and as shell fragments); moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (15 to 18 inches thick)
C3--48 to 60 inches; grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) clay, very dark grayish brown (2.5Y 3/2) moist; massive; hard, friable, sticky and plastic; pressure faces; few very fine tubular pores; violently effervescent (15 percent calcium carbonate, disseminated and as shell fragments); moderately alkaline (pH 8.0).
TYPE LOCATION: Kings County, California; about five miles southwest of Corcoran; approximately 1/2 mile west of 10th Avenue and 100 feet north of Redding Avenue in sec. 12, T.22S., R. 21E., MDB&M.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: The soil is 60 inches or more deep. The mean annual soil temperature is 60 degrees to 63 degrees F. The soil is saturated in a reduced state at some time of the year. The A horizon or mollic epipedon is 14 to 25 inches thick. Organic matter is 2 to 3 percent in the surface horizon and decreases irregularly with increasing depth. Calcium carbonate is 15 to 25 percent throughout the profile and is dominantly disseminated although thin layers of decomposed shell fragments occur at random depths. When the soil is dry in late summer, vertical cracks extend from the surface to a depth of 25 to 50 inches and are 2 to 5 inches wide. Pressure faces occur at a depth of 25 to 40 inches. There are no intersecting slickensides.
The A horizon has dry color of 10YR 4/1, 5/1; 5Y 4/1 or 5/1 and moist color of 10YR 3/1, 3/2; or 5Y 3/1. It has mottles in the lower part that have color of 10YR 3/1, 5/2; 5YR 4/2 or 4/3. This horizon is dominantly clay and less commonly silty clay.
The C horizon has dry color of 2.5Y 5/2; 5Y 5/1, 5/3, 6/1, 6/2, 7/1 or 7/2 and moist color of 2.5Y 3/2, 4/2; 5Y 4/1, 4/2, 4/3, 5/2, 5/3 or N 4/0. It has mottles that have color of 2.5Y 4/4; 5Y 2.5/2, 4/2 or 4/3. This horizon is dominantly clay or silty clay and averages 40 to 60 percent clay.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Dospalos, Gepford and Tinn series in the same family and the Iberia, Omni, and Zaca series. Dospalos and Gepford soils have less than 15 percent calcium carbonate. Tinn soils have mean annual soil temperatures of 66 degrees to 71 degrees F. and have and A horizon 25 to 70 inches thick. Iberia soils have mean soil temperature warmer than 66 degrees F., are not calcareous, and have a B2g horizon. Omni soils have a B2g horizon and do not have cracks that are 1 cm. or more wide at a depth of 50 cm., that are at least 30 cm. long, and that extend upward to the surface. Zaca soils are well drained and have a xeric moisture regime.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Tulare soils are in concave basins. Slopes are 0 to 1 percent. The soils formed in alluvium from igneous and sedimentary rocks. Elevations are 175 to 195 feet. The climate is semiarid and has hot dry summers and cool moist winters. Average annual precipitation is 6 to 7 inches. Mean January temperature is about 45 degrees F.; mean July temperature is about 82 degrees F.; mean annual temperature is 64 degrees F. Frost-free season is 250 to 275 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Grangeville, Houser, Lethent, and Pitco soils. Grangeville soils have a coarse-loamy particle-size control section. Houser soils lack a mollic epipedon. Lethent soils have a natric horizon and have an ochric epipedon. Pitco soils are noneffervescent.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat poorly drained; very slow runoff or ponded; very slow permeability. The soils are occasionally flooded for very long periods between January and March. A perched water table occurs at a depth of 48 to 72 inches from January through March. The soil is wet from the first part of December to the end of March. The soil remains moist below 6 inches from April through November.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used primarily for irrigated crops such as alfalfa, barley, cotton, safflower, sorghum, sugar beets, and wheat.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: San Joaquin Valley. The series is extensive.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Reconniassance Soil Survey of the Upper San Joaquin Valley, California, 1917.
REMARKS: Portions of the Reconnaissance Soil Survey of the Upper San Joaquin Valley (1917) where Tulare clay was previously mapped and established are in Kings County and those areas are now mapped as Tulare. This is a classification change from Typic Haplaquents to Vertic Haplaquolls.