LOCATION NODHILL CAEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, thermic Typic Haploxeralfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Nodhill loam on a northwest facing slope of 26 percent under soft chess, red brome, pine bluegrass, ripgut brome, filaree, ephedra, narrowleaf goldenbush and snakeweed. The elevation is 2,040 feet. (Color for dry soil unless otherwise stated. (When described November 5, 1985 the soil was dry throughout).
A1--0 to 6 inches; light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) loam, olive brown (2.5Y 4/4) moist; strong medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine, few fine and medium roots; many very fine, fine tubular and interstitial pores; violently effervescent, carbonates segregated as few fine and medium soft masses and concretions; 2 percent gravel, 3/4 to 1 1/4 inches in size; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear wavy boundary. (4 to 7 inches thick)
A2--6 to 10 inches light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) loam, light olive brown (2.5Y 5/4) moist; moderate medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few very fine, fine and medium roots; common very fine, few fine tubular and interstitial pores; few thin clay films staining and bridging mineral grains; violently effervescent, carbonates segregated as few fine and medium soft masses and concretions; 2 percent gravel, 3/4 to 1 1/4 inches in size; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); clear wavy boundary. (3 to 5 inches thick)
Btk--10 to 17 inches; light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) loam, olive brown (2.5Y 4/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few very fine and medium roots; common very fine and fine tubular and interstitial pores; common thin clay films staining and bridging mineral grains; violently effervescent, carbonates segregated as common medium seams, soft masses and concretions; 7 percent gravel, 1/2 to 1 1/2 inches in size; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2). (5 to 11 inches thick)
Bk--17 to 28 inches; light yellowish brown (2.5Y 6/4) gravelly loam, light olive brown 2.5Y 5/4) moist; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few very fine and fine roots; few very fine and fine interstitial pores; violently effervescent, carbonates segregated as many moderate seams, soft masses and concretions; 20 percent gravel, 3/4 to 2 1/2 inches in size; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2).(8 to 17 inches thick)
2Cr--28 to 38 inches; sediments of dense unconsolidated, calcareous, sandstone and shale gravel with some thin laminar capping.
TYPE LOCATION: Fresno County, California; approximately 3.25 miles east of Mercey Hot Springs, 2.5 miles southwest of Panoche Mountain and 200 feet south of the BLM access road; approximately 380 feet north and 250 feet west of the southeast section corner of section 18, T. 14 S., R. 11 E., MDB&M; Latitude 36 degrees, 42 minutes, 17 seconds north and Longitude 120 degrees, 48 minutes, 00 seconds west; USGS Mercey Hot Springs Topographic Quadrangle, NAD 27.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to a paralithic contact of sediments of dense unconsolidated, calcareous, sandstone and shale gravelis 20 to 40 inches. The moisture control section of 7 to 23 inches is moist from January 1 to May 1 and dry from June 1 to October 15 in most years. The soil temperature is above 47 degrees F. from February 15 to December 15. The mean annual soil temperature is 62 to 65 degrees F.
The A horizon has color of 10YR 6/3, 6/4; 2.5Y 5/4 or 6/4. Moist color is 10YR 4/4; 2.5Y 4/4, 4/6, 5/3 or 5/4. Organic matter content is 1 to 2 percent. Clay content is 18 to 27 percent. Calcium carbonate equivalent is 2 to 5 percent and it is strongly effervescent or violently effervescent. Gravel content is 0 to 10 percent.
The Btk horizon has color of 7.5YR 6/4; 10YR 7/4; 2.5Y 5/6 or 6/4. Moist color is 7.5YR 4/4; 10YR 5/6; 2.5Y 4/4, 4/6 or 5/4. Organic matter content is 0.4 to 0.8 percent. Texture is loam, or clay loam. Clay content is 24 to 35 percent but is always more than 1.2 times greater than the A horizon. Calcium carbonate equivalent is 5 to 14 percent and it is violently effervescent, however some pedons do not have concretions. Gravel content is 0 to 10 percent.
The Bk horizon has color of 7.5YR 5/4; 10 YR 6/6; 2.5Y 5/6, 6/4, 7/2, 7/4 or 7/6. Moist color is 7.5YR 4/4; 10YR 5/6; 2.5Y 5/4, 5/6 or 6/4. Organic matter content is 0.1 to 0.5 percent. Texture is gravelly loam, loam or clay loam. Clay content is 18 to 32 percent. Calcium carbonate equivalent is 5 to 14 percent. Gravel content is 0 to 30 percent.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Arbuckle, Blasingame, Boga (T), Esparto (I), Loemstone (T), Pinspring (T), Sesame and Snelling series. Arbuckle soils (MLRA 14, 15, 17, 19), on low terraces, are very deep and have slightly acid or neutral reaction. Blasingame soils (MLRA 18, 20), on foothills and uplands, weathered from basic igneous rocks, have moderately acid to slightly alkaline reaction and are not calcareous. Boga soils (MLRA 17), on river terraces, are very deep and have slightly acid to neutral reaction in the Ap and Bt horizons. Esparto soils (MLRA 14, 15, 17), on nearly level flood plains and alluvial fans, are very deep soils with mean annual precipitation of 16 to 35 inches. Loemstone soils (MLRA 17), on river terraces, are 20 to 40 inches to a densic contact, have a fluctuating perched water table with episaturation and have slightly acid to neutral reaction in the Ap and Bt horizons. Pinspring soils (MLRA 17), on alluvial plains with slope of 0 to 5 percent, have a 2Btq horizon with weakly silica cemented sandy loam texture that occurs at a depth of 25 to 40 inches. Sesame soils (MLRA 15, 18, 20), on foothills and mountainous uplands, weathered from granitic rocks, have moderately acid to neutral reaction and are not calcareous. Snelling soils (MLRA 14, 17), on terraces, are very deep, have slightly acid to slightly alkaline reaction in the A and Bt horizons and are not calcareous.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Nodhill soils are on erosional fan remnants on mountains. Slope is 5 to 30 percent. These soils formed in deposits derived from materials weathered from dense unconsolidated, calcareous gravelly sediments of the Tulare Formation. They are underlain by soft calcareous sandstone and shale of the Panoche Formation at depths greater than 60 inches. Elevation is 640 to 2,580 feet. The climate is subhumid with hot dry summers and cool moist winters. The mean annual precipitation is 9 to 13 inches. The mean July temperature is 81 degrees F.; the mean January temperature is 46 degrees F. The mean annual temperature is 60 to 63 degrees F. The frost-free season is 230 to 260 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Exclose and Grazer soils. Exclose soils, on mountains, are very deep and do not have an argillic horizon. Grazer soils, on hills and mountains, are deep and have a fine particle-size control section. Both the Exclose and Grazer soils are in a lower physiographic position than Nodhill soils and were formed in the Panoche Formation which is below the Tulare Formation.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; high runoff; moderate permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The vegetation is soft chess, red brome, pine bluegrass, filaree, narrowleaf goldenbush, snakeweed, ephedra and atriplex.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: These soils are in the eastern edge of the Diablo Range, near the Panoche Hills in the California Coast Ranges. They are not extensive. MLRA-15.
MLRA OFFICE RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Fresno County, California, 2002. Name coined from Nonada Hill which is a nearby summit.
REMARKS: These soils were formerly mapped as Mercey in the unpublished report, Soil Survey of Western Fresno Area, California. The Nodhill soils are being differentiated by having a Xeric moisture regime and slopes that are less than 30 percent. Nodhill is on dense unconsolidated, sediments of the Tulare formation. Mercey is on Panoche sandstone and shales.