LOCATION HIKO PEAK UT NVEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, active, mesic Xeric Haplocalcids
TYPICAL PEDON: Hiko Peak cobbly loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A--0 to 5 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) cobbly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; weak thin platy structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; common fine vesicular pores; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 10 cm thick)
Bw--5 to 23 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to weak fine subangular blocky; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine, medium and few large roots; few fine tubular pores; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (13 to 20 cm thick)
Bk1--23 to 50 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) very gravelly loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) moist; massive; extremely hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common fine and few medium roots; common fine tubular pores; violently effervescent; discontinuous weakly cemented secondary calcium carbonate; strongly alkaline (pH 8.5); clear smooth boundary. (20 to 50 cm thick)
Bk2--50 to 85 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly sandy loam, brown (10YR 5/3) moist; massive; hard, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; common fine and few medium roots; few fine tubular pores; violently effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt smooth boundary.(33 to 83 cm thick)
2C--85 to 150 cm; gray (10YR 5/1) very gravelly loamy coarse sand, dark gray (10YR 4/1) moist; single grain; loose; few fine roots; interstitial pores; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4).
TYPE LOCATION: Beaver County, Utah; 1 mile south of Rocky Ford Dam, east of road; section 12, T. 30 S., R. 9 W.; USGS Minersville Reservoir 7.5 minute quadrangle; lat. 38 degrees 13 minutes 6 seconds N. and long. 112 degrees 49 minutes 10 seconds West, NAD 27.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry; moist in winter and spring and for brief periods in late summer due to convection storms. (Aridic bordering on xeric soil moisture regime.)
Mean annual soil temperature: 8.5 to 12 degrees C
Mean summer soil temperature: 19 to 21.5 degrees C
Depth to calcic horizon: 18 to 50 cm
Calcic horizon thickness: 50 to 125 cm
Stage 3 calcium carbonate accumulation.
Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay content: 5 to 18 percent
Rock fragments: 35 to 70 percent, dominantly gravel
A horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 3 to 5 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4, dry or moist
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 3 to 30 percent
Bw horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 3 to 5 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4, dry or moist
Reaction: Slightly alkaline to strongly alkaline
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 3 to 30 percent
Bk horizons:
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR
Value: 6 to 8 dry, 4 to 7 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6, dry or moist
Texture: Loam or sandy loam
Rock fragments: 35 to 70 percent, mainly gravel and cobbles
Reaction: Moderately alkaline to strongly alkaline
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 40 percent
C horizon: (when present)
Texture: Loam or sandy loam
Rock fragments: 35 to 70 percent, mainly gravel and cobbles
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 3 to 30 percent.
2C horizon: (when present)
Texture: Loamy sand or loamy coarse sand
Rock fragments: 35 to 75 percent, mainly gravel and cobbles
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Hiko Peak soils occur on alluvial fans, fan remnants, and hills. These soils formed in alluvium and colluvium derived dominantly from basic igneous rocks, limestone, and quartzite. Slopes are 0 to 60 percent. Elevations range from 1,341 to 2,286 m. The climate is semiarid and the mean annual precipitation is 200 to 350 mm. June is usually the driest month. The mean annual temperature is 7 to 10.5 degrees C. and the mean summer temperature is about 18 to 20.5 degrees C. The frost-free period is 100 to 150 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Annabella, Dixie, Red Butte, and Taylorsflat soils. Annabella soils do not have calcic horizons. Dixie and Red Butte soils have argillic horizons with more than 18 percent clay. Taylorsflat soils have less than 15 percent gravel.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; low to high surface runoff; moderate or moderately rapid permeability; moderately high or high saturated hydraulic conductivity.
USE AND VEGETATION: Hiko Peak soils are used mainly for rangeland and wildlife habitat. The potential vegetation is Wyoming big sagebrush and Indian ricegrass. These soils are correlated to Semidesert ecological sites in Utah.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Western Utah. These soils are extensive with about 450,000 acres of the series mapped to date. MLRA 28A.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Reno, Nevada.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Beaver County (Beaver-Cove Fort Area), Utah, 1977.
REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle-size control section: The zone from 25 to 100 cm. (Bk2 and parts of the Bk1 and 2C horizons)
Ochric epipedon: The zone from 0 to 15 cm. (A horizon and part of the Bw horizon)
Calcic horizon: The zone from 23 to 85 cm. (Bk1 and Bk2 horizons)
The active cation exchange activity class was added to the taxonomic classification in January 2003 based in part on soil property data.
The taxonomic classification was changed from Xerollic Calciorthids to Xeric Haplocalcids in September of 1994.
ADDITIONAL DATA: A pedon of Hiko Peak from Iron County, Utah has full characterization by the Soil Survey Laboratory (SSL), Lincoln, NE, as soil survey sample number S85UT-021-001 (pedon # 85P0932).