LOCATION VEGASTORM               NV

Established Series
Rev. LJL/TM/RB
12/2015

VEGASTORM SERIES

The Vegastorm series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in mixed alluvium over lacustrine sediments. Vegastorm soils are on alluvial flats. Slope ranges from 0 to 4 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 6 inches and the mean annual temperature is about 60 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, carbonatic, thermic Petronodic Haplocalcids

TYPICAL PEDON: Vegastorm gravelly fine sandy loam, rangeland and wildlife habitat. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered by approximately 30 percent pebbles, consisting of mainly calcium carbonate nodules.

A--0 to 3 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly fine sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium and thick platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; few very fine and fine tubular and interstitial pores; 30 percent pebbles; violently effervescent (18 percent calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction); moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (2 to 4 inches thick)

Bk1--3 to 12 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly sandy loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine, medium and coarse roots; common very fine and few fine interstitial pores; disseminated calcium carbonate throughout; 30 percent pebbles; violently effervescent (35 percent calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction); moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt wavy boundary. (6 to 12 inches thick)

Bk2--12 to 20 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4); massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine and medium roots; common very fine and few fine and medium tubular pores; disseminated calcium carbonate throughout; 10 percent pebbles; violently effervescent (25 percent calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction); strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt wavy boundary. (6 to 12 inches thick)

2Bk3--20 to 26 inches; pale yellow (5Y 7/3) silt loam, pale olive (5Y 6/3) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to moderate angular blocky; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine roots; common very fine and few fine tubular pores; few fine irregular soft masses and soft seams of calcium carbonate; slightly effervescent (20 percent calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction); strongly alkaline (pH 9.0); clear wavy boundary. (3 to 10 inches thick)

3Bkq1--26 to 42 inches; pale yellow (5Y 8/2) gravelly sandy loam, light gray (5Y 7/2) moist; moderate medium platy structure; moderately hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; common very fine and few fine interstitial pores; 40 percent weakly cemented, thin, discontinuous lenses; 25 percent contorted calcium carbonate and silica nodules (rigid, rigid, very strongly cemented); violently effervescent (50 percent calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction); moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear wavy boundary. (12 to 20 inches thick)

3Bkq2--42 to 60 inches; pale yellow (5Y 8/2) loam, light gray (5Y 7/2) moist; massive; moderately hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine interstitial pores; 20 percent weakly cemented thin, discontinuous lenses; 10 percent irregularly shaped calcium carbonate and silica nodules (rigid, rigid, very strongly cemented); violently effervescent (55 percent calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction); strongly alkaline (pH 8.6).

TYPE LOCATION: Clark County, Nevada; approximately 4 miles southeast of Hidden Hills Ranch or 1.1 miles southeast of Stump Springs in the southeast end of Pahrump Valley; about 120 feet north and 350 feet west of the southeast corner of section 5, T. 23 S., R. 55 E.; USGS Stump Spring, NV 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; 35 degrees, 58 minutes, 14 seconds north latitude and 115 degrees, 48 minutes, 56 seconds west longitude; UTM zone 11, 606794e, 3981331n, NAD83.

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 - 59 to 65 degrees F.

Depth to petronodic layer - 20 to 30 inches.

Depth to lacustrine sediments - 15 to 27 inches.

Control section - Percent clay: Averages 10 to 18 percent.

Rock fragments: Averages 10 to 30 percent.

Calcium carbonate equivalent in the less than 20 millimeter fraction: Averages 40 to 60 percent.

Other features: Some pedons have up to 1 percent gypsum.


A horizon - Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4 dry and moist.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction: 10 to 30 percent.


Bk horizons - Value: 6 or 7 dry and 4 or 5 moist.
Clay content: 8 to 15 percent.
Rock fragments: Averages 10 to 30 percent, mainly calcium carbonate nodules and pan fragments that are not pedogenic.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction: 25 to 40 percent.


2Bk3 horizon - Chroma: 2 or 3 dry and moist.
Clay content: Averages 10 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent contorted calcium carbonate nodules.
Effervescence: Slightly effervescent or strongly effervescent.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction: 15 to 30 percent.
Other features: Some pedons have thin bands of fine sandy loam to clay loam textures with relict mottling. Mottles consists of few or common, fine through large, irregular iron and manganese stains (7.5YR 5/8).


3Bkq horizons - Value: 6 or 7 moist.
Chroma: 1 through 3 dry and moist.
Texture: Sandy loam, fine sandy loam, or loam.
Clay content: 10 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments: 20 to 35 percent hard irregularly shaped pedogenic calcium carbonate nodules.
Effervescence: Strongly effervescent or violently effervescent.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Calcium carbonate equivalent in the fine earth fraction: 40 to 65 percent.
Other features: 10 to 40 percent weakly cemented discontinuous calcium carbonate and silica lenses.

COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series. Kurstan (NV) series is similar. Kurstan soils have less than 40 percent calcium carbonate in the control section and lack lacustrine sediments.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Vegastorm soils are on alluvial flats. These soils formed in mixed alluvium over lacustrine sediments. Slope ranges from 0 to 4 percent. Elevations are 2,400 to 3,100 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 5 to 7 inches; mean annual air temperature is 57 to 63 degrees F., and the frost-free season is 180 to 240 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Pahrump and Wodavar soils. Wodavar soils have indurated petrocalcic horizons and a loamy-skeletal control section. Pahrump soils are loamy-skeletal.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for rangeland and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly white bursage, shadscale, creosotebush, range ratany and Indian ricegrass.

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, 1994. The name is coined.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:

Ochric epipedon - 0 to 3 inches (A horizon).

Calcic horizons - 3 to 20 inches (Bk1 and Bk2 horizons) and 26 to 60 inches (3Bkq1 and 3Bkq2 horizons).

Petronodic layer - 26 to 60 inches (3Bkq1 and 3Bkq2 horizons).

Particle-size control section - 10 to 40 inches (Part of the Bk1, Bk2, 2Bk3 and part of the 3Bkq1 horizons).

Responsibility for this series was transferred from Davis to Phoenix 12/2015. The last revision to the series was 8/2006. ET

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.