LOCATION MAGOFFIN AZEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, thermic Aridic Lithic Haplustolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Magoffin gravelly sandy loam - rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) Typically the surface is covered with 50 percent gravel, 30 percent cobble and 5 percent stones.
A1--0 to 2 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) gravelly sandy loam, very dark brown (7.5YR 2.5/2) moist; single grain structure to massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; common very fine and fine roots; few fine irregular pores; 20 percent gravel; noneffervescent; moderately acid (pH 6.0); clear smooth boundary.
A2--2 to 10 inches; dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) sandy loam, very dark brown (7.5YR 2.5/3) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, friable slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine roots; few fine tubular pores; 10 percent gravel; noneffervescent; slightly acid (pH 6.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the A horizons is 5 to 20 inches)
R--10 inches; unweathered rhyolite.
TYPE LOCATION: Cochise County, Arizona; located at a latitude of 31 degrees, 24 minutes, 15 seconds North and longitude of 109 degrees, 5 minutes, 10 seconds West; Section 21, Township 23 south, Range 32 east.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Intermittently moist in some part of the soil moisture control section during July - September and December - February. Driest during May and June. Aridic ustic soil moisture regime.
Soil Temperature: 59 to 64 degrees F.
Rock fragments: 0 to 20 percent
Reaction: moderately acid to neutral
Clay content: 5 to 18 percent
Organic matter: 1 to 3 percent
Depth to bedrock: 5 to 20 inches
A horizon
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 2 through 5 dry, 2 through 3 moist
Chroma: 1 through 3, dry or moist
Texture: sandy loam, loam
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Magoffin soils are on hills and mountains at elevations of 4,600 to 6,500 feet. Slopes range from 0 to 70 percent. These soils formed in slope alluvium and residuum from andesite, rhyolite, basalt and felsic volcanic breccia. The mean annual precipitation is 16 to 20 inches and occurs as thunderstorms during July to September and as gentle rains during December and January. The mean annual air temperature is 57 to 62 degrees F. The frost-free period is 160 to 210 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Cherrycow, Budlamp, and Woodcutter soils. Cherrycow soils are moderately deep. Budlamp and Woodcutter soils have more than 35 percent rock fragments.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; very rapid runoff; moderately rapid permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. Vegetation includes false mesquite, sideoats grama, bullgrass, mesquite, blue grama, wolftail, cane beardgrass, agave, plains lovegrass, sotol, black grama, buckwheat, and beargrass.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southeastern Arizona. Magoffin soils are of moderate extent. MLRA is 41.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Cochise County, Arizona. Soil Survey of Cochise County, Douglas-Tombstone Part; 1998.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from 0 to 10 inches (A horizons)
Lithic contact - The boundary at 10 inches (R horizon)
This series was reclassified as Aridic Lithic in 2006.
Classified according to Soil Taxonomy, Second Edition, 1999; Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Tenth Edition, 2006.