LOCATION WREDAH                  NV

Established Series
Rev. SBK-RLB-JBF
12/2016

WREDAH SERIES

The Wredah series consists of very deep, well drained soils formed in alluvium derived from mixed rocks. Wredah soils are on hills and fan piedmonts remnants. Slopes are 4 to 15 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 275 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 8 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Argiduridic Argixerolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Wredah gravelly sandy loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The surface is partially covered with approximately 30 percent gravel and 2 percent cobbles.

A--0 to 13 cm; brown (10YR 4/3) gravelly sandy loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine and fine roots; common fine tubular pores; 15 percent gravel and 3 percent cobbles; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 20 cm thick)

Bt--13 to 43 cm; brown (10YR 4/3) gravelly sandy clay loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine and fine roots; few fine tubular pores; few faint clay films on ped faces; 25 percent gravel and 3 percent cobbles; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); gradual wavy boundary. (20 to 50 cm thick)

Bk--43 to 86 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) very gravelly sandy loam; pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; few fine tubular pores; 50 percent gravel and 3 percent cobbles; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear smooth boundary. (25 to 60 cm thick)

Bqk--86 to 152 cm; very pale brown (10YR 7/3) extremely gravelly sandy loam, pale brown (10YR 6/3) moist; massive; hard, firm and brittle matrix, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; few very fine tubular pores; 60 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; weak continuous carbonate and silica cementation; common fine carbonate coats on gravel and cobbles; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4)

TYPE LOCATION: White Pine County, Nevada; Cave Valley, approximately 25 feet east of Cave Valley road 1/2 mile south of Bullwhack Summit; about 2000 feet east and 2000 feet south of the projected northwest corner of section 7, T. 11 N., and R. 64 E.; USGS Bullwhack Summit 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 38 degrees 49 minutes 51 seconds N and longitude 114 degrees 49 minutes 46 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 38.8308333 latitude, -114.8294444 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist in winter and spring, dry summer and fall; aridic soil moisture regime bordering on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 11 degrees C.
Mollic epipedon thickness: 25 to 50 cm.
Depth to carbonate and base of the argillic: 30 to 60 cm.
Depth to weak continuous carbonate and silica cementation: 60 to 90 cm.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 25 to 35 percent.
Rock fragments: 15 to 35 percent, dominantly gravel.

A horizon
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry.
Structure: Weak to moderate, fine to medium subangular blocky, or thin to moderately thick platy.

Bt horizon
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.
Structure: Subangular or angular blocky.

Bk and Bqk horizons
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 5 or 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4.
Texture: Very gravelly sandy loam or extremely gravelly sandy loam.
Clay content: 5 to 15 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 80 percent, dominantly gravel.
Structure: Weak or moderate, fine or medium subangular blocky, or it is massive.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Other features: Some pedons contain up to 25 percent durinodes.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Charlebois and Galeppi series.

Charlebois soils have mean annual soil temperatures of 11 to 12 degrees C. and lack gravelly sandy clay loam textures in the argillic horizon. Galeppi soils also are noncalcareous throughout, and have 0 to 20 percent rock fragments in the argillic horizon that consist mostly of cobblestones.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Wredah soils are on hills and fan piedmonts remnants. These soils formed in alluvium derived from mixed rocks. Slopes are 4 to 8 percent. Elevations are 2,140 to 2,490 meters. The climate is cool, semiarid with warm, dry summers and cool, moist winters. The mean annual precipitation is 250 to 300 mm. The mean annual temperature is about 7 to 9 degrees C.; and the frost-free season is 100 to 120 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Selti and Tulase series. Selti soils lack continuous weak silica cementation and have more than 35 percent rock fragments in the particle-size control section. Tulase soils lack mollic epipedons and have coarse-silty families.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderately slow permeability; moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used mainly for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is Wyoming big sagebrush, rubber rabbitbrush and Indian ricegrass.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Eastern Nevada. These soils are of small extent. MLRA 28B.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California

SERIES ESTABLISHED: White Pine County, Nevada, 1980.

REMARKS: The name is coined. The series was reclassified from frigid to mesic in 1988 to better reflect current data.

Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon area:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from the surface to about 43 cm (A and Bt horizons)
Argillic horizon - The zone from about 13 to 43 cm (Bt horizon).
Duric feature - continuous weak cementation from 86 to 152 cm. (Bqk horizon)
Aridic feature - The soil has an aridic soil moisture regime bordering on Xeric.
Particle-size control section - The zone from 13 to 43 cm (Bt horizon).

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.