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Description. The US Geological Survey is currently completing a soil survey of San <br /> Joaquin County and will be taking test borings from Buckeye Ranch. <br /> According to the San Joaquin County Soil Survey (1990), the Soil Conservation Service <br /> has identified five soil types at the site (Muick 1991). These include the Columbia Fine <br /> Sandy Soil Loam; Bruellan Sandy Loam, Xerofluvents, San Joaquin Loam, and Kimball <br /> Loam. The soils at the Buckeye Ranch are characterized by low permeability, the presence <br /> of an underlying hardpan (and usually a claypan) in much of the area, and low erosion <br /> potential. <br /> These soils formed over millennia by deposition of floodwaters of the Mokelumne River, <br /> Jahant Slough, and to a lesser extent Dry Creek. The Columbia, Bruellan Sandy Loam, <br /> and Kimball loams are very deep and loam textured. The origin of these soils has been <br /> influenced by major flooding events of the Mokelumne River. The deeper and more <br /> productive soils are found at lower elevations. These include, in order of increasing <br /> elevation, the Columbia Fine Sandy Loam, the Bruella Sandy Loam, and the Kimball <br /> loam. The more productive Columbia Fine Sandy Loam and the Bruella soils, found at the <br /> lower elevations, support the live oak woodland habitat. The Columbia and Bruellan <br /> Sandy Loam soils are prime farm land soils. <br /> The San Joaquin loams are found on more than one half of the Ranch on higher terraces of <br /> the property. San Joaquin soils form a complex of gently sloping hummocks and <br /> depressions that support oak-buckeye savanna, grassland, and vernal pool habitats. These <br /> soils are well-drained on the surface, but the presence of an underlying hardpan reduces <br /> downward permeability. Effective rooting depth is shallower than the other soils at the <br /> Ranch. <br /> Buckeye Ranch Resource Plan (November, 1993) <br /> 24 <br />