LOCATION VERNIA TXEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, active, thermic Grossarenic Paleustalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Vernia very gravelly sand - rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
A--0 to 14 inches; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly sand, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; single grained; loose; few fine roots; an estimated 60 percent by volume of siliceous pebbles that are 1/4 inch to 3 inches in diameter; few 3 to 5 inch cobbles; neutral; gradual smooth boundary. (10 to 19 inches thick)
E--14 to 44 inches; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very gravelly sand, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; single grained; loose; few fine roots; an estimated 80 percent by volume of siliceous pebbles that are 1/4 to 3 inches in diameter; thin coatings of very fine sand and silt on the upper and lower surfaces of pebbles; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (28 to 70 inches thick)
Btg1--44 to 56 inches; light gray (10YR 7/1) very gravelly sandy clay loam, gray (10YR 6/1) moist; common medium prominent red mottles; weak fine subangular blocky structure; extremely hard, very firm, slightly sticky; an estimated 70 percent by volume of siliceous pebbles mostly less than 1 inch in diameter; few thin clay films on surfaces of peds and pebbles; few FeMn concretions; strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary. (7 to 20 inches thick)
Btg2--56 to 66 inches; prominently and coarsely mottled light gray (2.5Y 7/2) and red (2.5YR 5/8) gravelly sandy clay loam; weak fine subangular blocky structure; extremely hard, very firm, slightly sticky; an estimated 35 percent by volume of siliceous pebbles mostly less than 1 inch in diameter; few thin clay films on surfaces of peds and pebbles; few FeMn concretions; very strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary. (6 to 16 inches thick)
Bt3--66 to 72 inches; prominently and coarsely mottled very pale brown (10YR 7/3), brownish yellow (10YR 6/8), and yellowish red (5YR 5/8) gravelly sandy clay loam; weak medium blocky structure; extremely hard, very firm, slightly sticky; an estimated 20 percent by volume of siliceous pebbles mostly less than 1 inch in diameter; few clay films on peds and pebbles; few FeMn concretions; very strongly acid; gradual smooth boundary. (6 to 16 inches thick)
C--72 to 80 inches; reddish yellow (7.5YR 6/6) gravelly sandy loam, strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) moist; common medium distinct light gray, red and yellow mottles; massive; very hard, firm, nonsticky; an estimated 40 percent by volume of siliceous pebbles mostly less than 1 inch in diameter; few FeMn concretions; very strongly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Guadalupe County, Texas. 4 miles northeast of Kingbury on county road and 400 feet southeast of small cemetery. Kingbury is 8 miles east of Seguin on U.S. Highway 90.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Solum thickness is 60 to 110 inches.
Thickness of the epipedon is 40 to 80 inches. It is very gravelly sand or very gravelly loamy sand or their gravelly counterparts. It is slightly acid through mildly alkaline. The A horizon is brown (7.5YR 5/2, 5/4; 10YR 5/3), pale brown (10YR 6/3), grayish brown (10YR 5/2), or light brownish gray (10YR 6/2). Siliceous pebbles and cobbles comprise 40 to 85 percent by volume.
The E horizon is 1 to 2 units of value higher than the A horizon.
The dominant color in the matrix of the Bt horizon is light gray (10YR 7/1, 7/2), light brownish gray (10YR 6/2), pale brown (10YR 6/3), brown (10YR 5/3), yellowish red (5YR 5/6, 4/6), or red (2.5YR 4/6, 4/8, 5/6, 5/8) with mottles or a mottled matrix in shades of red, gray, yellow, and brown. It is very gravelly sandy loam, very gravelly sandy clay loam or their extremely gravelly counterparts. The upper 20 inches of the Bt horizon contains 18 to 32 percent clay in the fine-earth fraction and 35 to 80 percent pebbles and cobbles. It is medium acid through very strongly acid.
The C horizon is mottled red, gray and yellow gravelly sandy loam, very gravelly sandy loam, gravelly sandy clay loam, or very gravelly sandy clay loam. Red acid sandstone with a hardness of 2 to 3 on the Moh's scale occurs at depths of 7 to 10 feet in some pedons.
COMPETING SERIES: There are no series in the same family. Similar soils included are the Arenosa, Boy, Desan, Hornsby, Nimrod, Patilo, and Sarita series. All these soils except Hornsby have less than 35 percent coarse fragments in the control section. In addition, Arenosa soils lack Bt horizons, Boy soils are not dry in any part of the moisture control section for 90 cumulative days in most years, Nimrod soils have a sandy epipedon less than 40 inches thick, Patilo soils are more than 90 percent by weight of silica minerals, and Sarita soils have a mean average soil temperature more than 72 degrees F. Hornsby soils have an epipedon less than 20 inches thick.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Vernia soils are on gently sloping to sloping uplands. Slope gradients are mainly 1 to 3 percent, but range to 10 percent. The soils were formed on ancient stream terraces in thick beds of sand and gravel which contained thin strata of finer material. Climate is subhumid. Annual precipitation is 28 to 40 inches, Thornthwaite P-E indices range from 40 to 55, mean average temperature is 67 to 70 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the similar Desan, Hornsby, and Patilo series and the Bonti, Crockett, and Demona soils. Bonti, Crockett, and Demona soils have epipedons less than 40 inches thick, clayey Bt horizons, and less than 35 percent coarse fragments in the control section. In addition, Bonti soils have sandstone within 40 inches of the surface. The soils occur at lower elevations.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; little or no runoff; rapid permeability in the surface layer and moderate in the subsoil.
USE AND VEGETATION: Mainly used as rangeland and is mined and used as roadfill. Native vegetation includes post oak, blackjack oak, and hickory trees with an understory of bluestems, panicums and threeawns. Loblolly pine and red cedar have encroached onto these soils in some areas.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mainly in south central Texas. Series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Temple, Texas
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Wilson County, Texas; 1972.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - 0 to 44 inches.
Albic horizon - 14 to 44 inches.
Argillic horizon - 44 to 72 inches.
OSED scanned by SSQA. Last revised by state on 1/86.