IDENTIFIERS

  • Current Taxon Name (Soil Name): Los Osos
  • OSD
  • Series Extent
  • User Site ID: S2018CA111002
  • User Pedon ID: S2018CA111002
  • Lab Information:
  • Certified Lab Pedon Description - no
  • Lab Source ID - KSSL
  • Lab Pedon # - 18N1799
  • User Project ID: 2018-TEM-MLRA-001
  • Project Name: MLRA 20 - Los Osos soils in MLRA 20 and the southern central coast; southern part
  • Print Date: 12/6/2025

    • LOCATION

  • Location In Web Soil Survey
  • AOI is roughly a square mile and pedon is marked in the center.
  • Location in SoilWeb
  • Location in Google Maps
  • Std. Latitude: 34.2337800
  • Std. Longitude: -118.8007900
  • Datum: WGS84
  • Location Description: West Canyon Ridge Trail mid slope on west side of 2nd knob
  • Map Unit: LoF—Los Osos clay loam, warm, 20 to 50 percent slopes
  • State: California
  • County: CA111—Ventura
  • MLRA: 20—Southern California Mountains
  • Regional Office: SW—Southwest
  • MLRA Soil Survey Area: SW-TEM—Templeton, California
  • Non-MLRA Soil Survey Area: CA674—Ventura Area, California
  • 7.5 Minute USGS Quad: 34118-B7—Thousand Oaks, California

    • PEDON

  • Describers Name: Randy L. Riddle
  • Current Taxonomic Class: Fine, smectitic, thermic Typic Argixerolls
  • Current Taxon Kind: series
  • Pedon Type: classifies to current taxon name, full description
  • Pedon Purpose: laboratory sampling site
  • Pedon Record Orgin: NASIS
  • Sampled As Information:
  • Soil Name - Los Osos
  • Taxonomic Class - Fine, smectitic, thermic Typic Argixerolls
  • Taxon Kind - series
  • PSC - 22 to 72 cm.
  • Classificaton Date - 3/6/2018
  • Classifier - Randy L. Riddle
  • Soil Taxonomic Edition - twelfth edition
  • Moisture SUBClass - typic
  • Dynamic Soil Properties:
  • Pedoderm Loose Cover Indicator - no
  • Hydric: no


    • SITE

  • Parent Material: residuum weathered from sandstone
  • Landscape: foothills
  • Landform: hill
  • Geomorphic Component Hills: side slope
  • Hill Slope Profile: backslope
  • Slope Position: upper third
  • Slope Complexity: complex
  • Slope Shape Across: convex
  • Slope Shape Down: linear
  • Runoff: very high
  • Drainage Class: well
  • Flooding: none flooding
  • Ponding: none ponding
  • Bedrock: moderately coherent sandstone, unspecified at 95cm with 10 to <45
  • Geology: Sandstone member of the Llajas formation.
  • Surface Fragments:
  • Benchmark Soil?: no

    • VEGETATION

    SITE OBSERVATION

  • Observation Date: 5/31/2018 (actual site observation date)
  • Data Collector: Randy L. Riddle
  • Surface Cover Properties:
  • Site Obs. Cover Kind 1 - grass/herbaceous cover
  • Site Obs. Cover Kind 2 - rangeland, grassland
  • Pedoderm Loose Cover Indicator - no
  • Drained? - no
  • Bedded Soil? - no
  • Forest Plantation? - no
    • Pedon Restrictions
    Kind Hardness Restriction Depth L-H Restriction Thickness L-RV-H
    cm

    bedrock, paralithic

    moderately coherent

    95 - 120

    - 25 -

    Pedon Diagnostic Features
    Feature Kind Feature Depth L-H Feature Thickness L-RV-H
    cm

    mollic epipedon

    argillic horizon

    paralithic contact

    paralithic materials

    0—43

    22—95

    95—95

    95—120

    —43—

    —73—

    —0—

    —25—
    Setting and Climate
    Slope Slope Length USLE Upslope Length Elev. Corr. Elev Aspect MAP REAP FFD MAAT MSAT MWAT MAST MSST MWST MFFP PE Index Climate Station ID Climate Station Name Climate Station Type
    % m degrees mm mm C mm

    55

    —

    —

    371

    —

    280

    —

    —

    —

    —

    —

    —

    —

    —

    —

    —

    —

    —

    —

    —
    A—0 to 22 centimeters (0.0 to 8.7 inches); brown (10YR 5/3), very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2), moist; loam; strong medium subangular blocky parts to strong fine granular structure; hard, friable, moderately sticky, moderately plastic; common (2.0) very fine roots; many (6.0) very fine tubular pores; 5 percent distinct clay films on all faces of peds; fragments; slightly acid, pH 6.5; clear wavy boundary. Lab sample # 18N05256
    Bt1—22 to 43 centimeters (8.7 to 16.9 inches); brown (10YR 5/3), very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2), moist; clay loam; moderate very coarse prismatic parts to strong medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, friable, very sticky, very plastic; common (2.0) very fine roots; many (8.0) very fine tubular pores; 55 percent distinct clay films on all faces of peds; 1 percent by volume flat angular strongly coherent cemented 2-40-150 millimeter sandstone, unspecified fragments; neutral, pH 6.7; clear wavy boundary. Lab sample # 18N05257
    Bt2—43 to 75 centimeters (16.9 to 29.5 inches); pale brown (10YR 6/3), brown (10YR 4/3), moist; clay loam; moderate very coarse prismatic parts to moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, very sticky, very plastic; many (5.0) very fine tubular and few (0.5) medium tubular pores; 65 percent distinct clay films on all faces of peds; 1 percent by volume nonflat angular strongly coherent cemented 2-40-75 millimeter sandstone, unspecified fragments; neutral, pH 6.8; clear wavy boundary. Lab sample # 18N05258
    Bt3—75 to 95 centimeters (29.5 to 37.4 inches); pale brown (10YR 6/3), brown (10YR 4/3), moist; clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, very sticky, very plastic; many (5.0) very fine tubular pores; 65 percent distinct clay films on all faces of peds; 8 percent by volume nonflat angular strongly coherent cemented 2-40-75 millimeter sandstone, unspecified fragments; neutral, pH 6.8; gradual wavy boundary. Lab sample # 18N05259
    Cr—95 to 120 centimeters (37.4 to 47.2 inches); bedrock; fragments.