LOCATION VONTRIGGER CA

Established Series
SR/GMW/CAH/ET
02/2025

VONTRIGGER SERIES

The Vontrigger series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from granitoid. The Vontrigger soils are on fan remnants. Slopes range from 1 to 8 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 150 mm, and the mean annual temperature is about 15 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, thermic Typic Haplargids

TYPICAL PEDON: Vontrigger sandy loam, on an east facing, , 5 percent slope under rangeland at an elevation of 1276 meters. (Colors are for dry soils unless otherwise noted. 5/1/2012 actual site observation date.) The soil surface is covered by approximately 13 percent fine gravel, 7 percent medium and coarse gravel.

A--0 to 3 cm (0 to 1 inches); brown (10YR 5/3) sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3), moist; moderate thick platy structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; many very fine roots; common very fine irregular pores; 4 percent fine gravel, 1 percent medium and coarse gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.5); abrupt smooth boundary. (2 to 6 cm thick)

BA--3 to 14 cm (1 to 6 inches); brown (7.5YR 5/3) sandy loam, brown (7.5YR 4/3), moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; common very fine roots; common very fine irregular pores; 4 percent fine gravel, 1 percent medium and coarse gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 12 cm thick)

Bt1--14 to 47 cm (6 to 19 inches); brown (7.5YR 4/4) loam, brown (7.5YR 4/3), moist; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, friable, very sticky and moderately plastic; few fine roots throughout and few medium roots throughout and few very fine roots throughout; common very fine dendritic tubular pores; 10 percent faint brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on rock fragments and 15 percent faint brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay bridges between sand grains; 6 percent fine gravel, 2 percent medium and coarse gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.5); clear wavy boundary.

Bt2--47 to 79 cm (19 to 31 inches); brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay loam, strong brown (7.5YR 5/6), moist; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, very sticky and very plastic; few very fine roots; common very fine dendritic tubular pores; 10 percent prominent brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on all faces of peds and 40 percent prominent brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay bridges between sand grains; 5 percent fine gravel, 5 percent medium and coarse gravel; slight effervescence; moderately alkaline (pH 8.1); clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the Bt horizons is 50 to 90 cm.)

BC--79 to 97 cm (31 to 38 inches); brown (7.5YR 4/4) gravelly loamy sand, brown (7.5YR 4/4), moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; common very fine irregular pores; 20 percent fine gravel, 10 percent medium and coarse gravel; strong effervescence; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear smooth boundary.

Cq--97 to 170 cm (38 to 67 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) gravelly coarse sand, brown (7.5YR 4/4), moist; single grain; loose, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; common fine interstitial pores; 30 percent prominent light gray (10YR 7/2) silica coats on bottom surfaces of rock fragments; 23 percent fine gravel, 10 percent medium and coarse gravel; slight effervescence; strongly alkaline (pH 8.5). (Combined thickness of the BC and Cq horizons is 50 to 100 cm.)

TYPE LOCATION: San Bernardino County, California; located about 16 miles northwest of Goffs, CA in Lanfair Valley; approximately 1970 feet west and 140 feet south of the northeast corner of section 27, T. 12 N., R. 16 E., San Bernardino Baseline and Meridian; USGS Hackberry Mountain, California 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; 35 degrees, 5 minutes, 54.75 seconds north latitude and 115 degrees, 14 minutes, 41.88 seconds west longitude; UTM zone 11 659951e, 3885388n, NAD83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: usually dry, moist in some part for short periods during winter and early spring and for 10 to 20 days cumulative between July and September following summer convection storms; typic aridic moisture regime.

15 to 22 degrees C (59 to 72 degrees F).
Depth to sandy substratum: 65 to 125 centimeters.

Control section
Clay content: averages 18 to 27 percent.
Rock fragments: averages 5 to 20 percent gravel.
Depth to argillic horizon: 5 to 15 centimeters.
Depth to base of argillic horizon: 65 to 125 centimeters.

A horizon
Value: 3 or 4, moist.
Clay content: 5 to 12 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent, gravel.
Reaction: slightly acid to slightly alkaline.

BA or Bw horizon (when present)
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR.
Value: 3 or 4, moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry.
Texture of the fine earth fraction: sandy loam or fine sandy loam.
Clay content: 6 to 12 percent.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent, gravel.
Reaction: slightly acid to slightly alkaline.

Bt or Btk horizons
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR.
Value: 4 or 5, dry; 3 through 5, moist.
Chroma: 3 through 6 moist.
Texture of the fine earth fraction: clay loam, sandy clay loam, loam, fine sandy loam, and sandy loam.
Clay content: 15 to 35 percent.
Rock fragments: 3 to 30 percent, mainly gravel.
Effervescence: noneffervescent to slightly effervescent.
Calcium carbonate equivalence of the fine earth fraction: 0 to 5 percent.
Reaction: neutral through moderately alkaline.
Visible secondary calcium carbonate: 0 to 90 percent coats on bottoms of rock fragments.

BC(tk) or C(k or q)
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 4 to 6, dry; 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 4 or 6 dry; 3 to 6 moist.
Texture of the fine earth fraction: coarse sand, sand, loamy sand, and loamy coarse sand.
Clay content: 1 to 8 percent.
Rock fragments: 15 to 50 percent, mainly gravel.
Effervescence: noneffervescent to strongly effervescent.
Calcium carbonate equivalence of the fine earth fraction: 0 to 5 percent.
Reaction: slightly alkaline to strongly alkaline.
Visible secondary calcium carbonate: 0 to 70 percent on bottoms of rock fragments.
Visible silica: 0 to 30 percent coats on rock fragments.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Anway (AZ), Avenal (CA), Bigred (T CA), Bryman (CA), Bucklebar (NM), Contactmine (CA), Dutchflat (AZ), Garlock (CA), Hi Vista (CA), Milham (CA), Neuralia (CA) and Palomas (NM) series. Anway, Avenal, Bigred, Bucklebar, Contactmine, Dutchflat, Hi Vista, Milham, Palomas series do not have a sandy substratum below the argillic horizon. Anway soils have less than 5 percent rock fragments described, base of the argillic horizon is less than 65 centimeters and is in MLRA 40. Avenal soils have 27 to 35 percent clay in the control section, total sand in the profile ranges from 25 to 35 percent, formed from sedimentary parent material, and is located on the westside of the San Joaquin Valley, California. Avenal, Bryman, Garlock, Milham and Neuralia soils do not receive appreciable summer precipitation and are dry in the soil moisture control section during summer. Bigred soils do not have an osd. Anway, Bucklebar and Palomas soils are moist in the soil moisture control section for more than 20 cumulative days between July and September. Contactmine soils have a paralithic contact between 50 and 100 centimeters (20 and 40 inches). Dutchflat soils contain 5 to 10 percent calcium carbonate equivalence below 75 centimeters (30 inches). Hi Vista soils are 50 to 100 centimeters (20 to 40 inches) to lithic contact. Milham soils are in MLRA 17. Palomas soils are dry in the soil moisture control section during the winter and located in MLRA 42.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Vontrigger soils are on fan remnants. Slopes range from 1 to 8 percent. The soils formed in alluvium derived from granitoid. Elevation ranges from 890 to 1400 meters. The mean annual precipitation is 125 to 175 mm. The mean annual air temperature is about 13 to 17 degrees C. The frost-free period is 210 to 320 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Caruthers, Jumborox and Morongo soils. Caruthers and Jumborox soils are found on similar landforms. Caruthers soils are deep to a petrocalcic horizon and Jumborox soils have a coarse-loamy particle-size control section. Morongo soils are on nearby fan aprons and are sandy throughout the particle-size control section.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: well drained; high runoff; saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately low in the upper part and high in the lower part.

USE AND VEGETATION: Vontrigger soils are used for recreation and wildlife habitat. Native vegetation is Cooper's goldenbush, blackbrush, burrobush, creosotebush, Nevada jointfir, big galleta and Mojave yucca.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mojave Basin and Range of California, U.S.A.; MLRA 30. The series is of moderate extent.

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California.

SERIES PROPOSED: San Bernardino County, California, Soil Survey of Mojave National Preserve Area, California, 2023. The name is from Vontrigger Hills.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features in this pedon include:

Ochric epipedon - the zone from 0 to 14 cm. (A and BA horizons)
Argillic horizon - the zone from 14 to 79 cm. (Bt and Btk horizons)
Particle size control section - the zone from 14 to 64 cm. (Bt and upper part of the Btk horizons)

ADDITIONAL DATA: NASIS User/Pedon Site ID: 2012CA071077.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.