LOCATION VALATIER                NV

Established Series
LJL/TM/ET
12/2015

VALATIER SERIES

The Valatier series consists of moderately deep to a duripan, well drained soils that formed in alluvium from gneiss and schist. Valatier soils are on fan remnants. Slope ranges from 2 to 8 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 8 inches and the mean annual air temperature is about 55 degrees F.

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

TYPICAL PEDON: Valatier extremely gravelly sandy loam, rangeland and wildlife habitat. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered by approximately 65 percent pebbles, 2 percent cobbles and 2 percent stones.

A--0 to 2 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/4) extremely gravelly sandy loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/4) moist; moderate thick platy structure parting to fine subangular blocky; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; common very fine and few fine roots; few very fine and fine tubular pores; 65 percent pebbles, 2 percent cobbles and 2 percent stones; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)

Bt1--2 to 12 inches; reddish brown (2.5YR 4/4) very gravelly loam, dark reddish brown (2.5YR 3/4) moist; moderate medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, very friable, slightly sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine, fine, medium and few coarse roots; common very fine and few fine tubular pores; 60 percent continuous, distinct, dark reddish brown (2.5YR 3/4) clay films on rock fragments, faces of peds and lining pores; 35 percent pebbles, 3 percent cobbles and 2 percent stones; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); clear wavy boundary.

Bt2--12 to 21 inches; red (2.5YR 4/6) very gravelly coarse sandy loam, dark red (2.5YR 3/6) moist; massive; moderately hard, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; common very fine and few fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; 50 percent continuous, distinct, dark reddish brown (2.5YR 3/4) clay films on rock fragments and bridging sand grains; 45 percent pebbles, 3 percent cobbles and 2 percent stones; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); gradual wavy boundary. (The combined thickness of the argillic horizon is 13 to 27 inches.)

Bt3--21 to 33 inches; yellowish red (5YR 4/6) very gravelly loamy coarse sand, dark reddish brown (5YR 3/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and few fine roots; common very fine and few fine interstitial and tubular pores; 10 percent patchy, faint, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) clay films on rock fragments and bridging sand grains; 45 percent pebbles, 3 percent cobbles and 2 percent stones; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (10 to 24 inches thick)

2Bkqm--33 to 60 inches; white (10YR 8/1) stratified very strongly cemented to moderately cemented occurs throughout with indurated 2 to 5 millimeter laminar cap, light gray (10YR 7/2) moist; massive; very rigid to very hard, rigid to extremely firm, brittle; violently effervescent.

TYPE LOCATION: Clark County, Nevada; about 36 miles south and 9 miles west of Mesquite, Nevada; approximately 1/4 mile west of Bills Spring; 2240 feet north and 1350 feet east of the projected southwest corner of section 10, T. 19 S., R. 70 E.; USGS Gold Butte, NV 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; 36 degrees, 17 minutes, 44.9 seconds north latitude and 114 degrees, 10 minutes, 04.1 seconds west longitude; USGS Gold Butte, Nev. 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; UTM 11S, 754334e 4020482n; NAD 83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil moisture - Usually dry, moist in some part during winter and spring and intermittingly moist in the upper part following summer convection storms; typic aridic soil moisture regime.

Soil temperature: 56 to 58 degrees F.

Depth to argillic horizon: 1 to 3 inches.

Depth to base of argillic horizon: 14 to 30 inches.

Depth to indurated duripan: 30 to 40 inches.

Control section - Rock fragments: 35 to 50 percent, mainly gravel.
Clay content: 10 to 18 percent.

A horizon - Value: 4 or 5 dry.
Chroma: 4 through 6 dry or moist.
Organic matter: 0.5 to 1.0 percent.
Consistence: Nonsticky or slightly sticky.
Rock fragments: 60 to 75 percent, mainly gravel.


Bt1 and Bt2 horizons - Hue: 2.5YR, 5YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Organic matter: 0.1 to 0.5 percent.
Texture: Loam, sandy loam or coarse sandy loam.
Structure: Moderate or strong, fine through coarse, subangular blocky through massive.
Consistence: Moderately hard or hard, very friable or friable, nonplastic through moderately plastic.


Bt3 horizon - Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR or 10YR.
Value: 4 or 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Organic matter: 0.1 to 0.5 percent.
Texture: Loamy coarse sand and coarse sand.
Consistence: Slightly hard or moderately hard.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent, mainly gravel.
Effervescence: Noneffervescent through violently effervescent.
Other features: Some pedons have thin discontinuous layers of sandy loam or coarse sandy loam.

Bkqm horizon - Cementation: Indurated in some part with moderately to very strongly cemented layers throughout..

COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Valatier soils are on fan remnants. Slope ranges from 2 to 8 percent. These soils formed in alluvium from gneiss and schist. Elevations are 3,000 to 4,000 feet. The climate is low-latitude desert, with mild winters and very hot summers. Precipitation is greatest in the winter with a lesser secondary peak in summer, typical of the Mojave Desert. The mean annual precipitation is 7 to 9 inches; mean annual air temperature is 54 to 57 degrees F., and the frost-free season is 130 to 180 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are Goldbutte soils. Goldbutte soils are shallow to bedrock.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderate permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for rangeland and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly blackbrush, banana yucca and Joshua tree.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mojave Desert of southern Nevada; MLRA 30. These soils are not extensive.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: PHOENIX, ARIZONA

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Clark County Area, Nevada, 2006. Proposed in Clark County, Nevada, Soil Survey Area, 2002. The name is from Valatier Wash.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in the profile are:
Ochric epipedon - 0 to 2 inches (A horizon).
Argillic horizon - 2 to 21 inches (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons).
Duripan horizon- 33 to 60 inches (2Bkqm horizon).
Particle-size control section - 2 to 21 inches (Bt1 and Bt2 horizons).

Responsibility for this series was transferred from Davis to Phoenix 12/2015. The last revision to the series was 7/2006. ET

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.