Transect from Lake Tahoe, California, to the Pacific Ocean Showing Relationship Between Soils, Physiographic Position, Geology, Climate, Natural Vegetation, and Land Use

Abstract

AbstractThis transect starts on Highway No. 40, near the crest of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, in an area of pine and fir timber. At the beginning of the transect are granitic upland soils of the Holland series; following these are red upland soils of the Aiken series, derived from basic igneous rocks, and next, at a lower elevation, the reddish, grass‐covered Auburn soils. The higher terrace lands of the eastern Sacramento Valley are composed of the cobbly‐hardpan Redding soils, and the gravelly claypan Corning soils; on the lower terraces, the red‐iron hardpan San Joaquin soils with the recent and young alluvial soils of the Columbia and Sacramento series along the Sacramento River; and on the wet‐side alluvial fan, soils dominated by the Yolo series in the vicinity of Davis. Other noncalcic Brown valley, terrace, and upland soils are encountered west of Davis. The western Coast range of higher rainfall gives rise to the lithosolic Maymen series, and the Hugo series having a Douglasfir and redwood cover. The ocean side of the Coast Range, where there is lower rainfall, is represented by the Cayucos and Rohnerville soils having Prairie‐like characteristics.