LOCATION WILLARD NMEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Ustic Haplocalcids
TYPICAL PEDON: Willard loam with a concave slope to 0 to 1 percent on lake terraces. (All colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
A--0 to 7 inches; pale brown (10YR6/3) loam, dark brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine roots; many very fine interstitial and tubular pores; moderately effervescent, calcium carbonate is disseminated; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary (4 to 9 inches thick).
Bw--7 to 16 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) clay loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) moist; very weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, sticky, and plastic; many very fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; strongly effervescent, calcium carbonate is segregated in fine and medium irregular masses; many fine distinct light olive brown (2.5Y 5/6) moist, masses of iron accumulation in the lower part; moderately alkaline; clear irregular boundary (4 to 15 inches thick).
Bk--16 to 65 inches; pale yellow (2.5Y 8/2) clay loam, light gray (2.5Y 7/2) moist; massive; hard, friable, very sticky and very sticky; strongly effervescent, calcium carbonate is disseminated, and in occasional fine soft masses; some gypsum and salt crystals scattered throughout the soil mass; common, medium distinct light olive brown (2.5Y 5/6) moist masses of iron accumulation; strongly alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Torrance County, New Mexico. one-half mile north of the Estancia High School, NW10, NW40, NW160 of sec. 12, T. 6 N., R 8 E.; 34 degrees, 46 minutes, 04 seconds north latitude; 106 degrees, 03 minutes, 28 seconds west longitude.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil Moisture: Usually dry, but is intermittently moist in some part of the soil moisture control section April through October. The soil is driest during November and March.
Soil Temperature: 48 to 50 degrees F.
Particle-size Control Section - less than 15 percent sand coarser than very fine and 28 to 35 percent clay.
Calcium carbonate - 15 to 40 percent in the B horizons.
Gypsum- less than 10 percent in the lower Bk horizon.
A horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR, 2.5Y.
Value: 6 to 7 dry, 4 to 6 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4.
Texture: loam, fine sandy loam or very fine sandy loam
Salinity: slightly saline or moderately saline
B horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y.
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 3.5 to 6 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: clay loam or silty clay loam.
Salinity: moderately saline or strongly saline
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series in the same family. A very similar soils is the Threadgill series. Threadgill soils are in the active cation exchange activity class, and are formed in calcareous alluvium derived from limestone. They also do not have gypsum and relic redoximorphic features in the lower part.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: The Willard soils are on level to nearly level lacustrine terraces. The soils formed in stratified, moderately fine textured lacustrine deposits from mixed alluvium. Slope ranges 0 to 1 percent. Average annual precipitation ranges from 11 to 13 inches with most being received during the summer months. Average annual temperature ranges from 52 to 54 degrees F. Frost free season ranges from 120 to 140 days. Elevation ranges from 5,400 to 7000 feet.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Harvey, Ildefonso, Pedrick, Manzano and Witt series. Harvey soils have fine-loamy textures, Ildefonso have greater than 30 percent course fragments in its control section. Manzano soils have a mollic epipedon. Witt soils have an argillic horizon.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderately slow. Runoff is low.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used mainly as native rangeland, recreation, wildlife and some localities are irrigated with some success. Native vegetation mainly black grama, western wheatgrass, sideoats grama, and fourwing saltbush. Alkali sacaton, giant sacaton and inland saltgrass may also occur on the saline phases.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The series is limited to east central New Mexico. The series is of minor extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Torrance County, New Mexico. In the Eastern New Mexico Reconnaissance Survey, of 1936. Concept revised 8/13/62.
REMARKS: Redoximorphic features are relict.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon: 0 to 7 inches. ( A horizon)
Cambic horizon: 7 to 16 inches (Bw horizon)
Calcic horizon: the zone from about 12 inches to about 40 inches (the lower part of the Bw horizon and the Bk horizon)