DRY-FARM SOILS
Important as is the rainfall in making dry-farming successful, it is
not more so than the soils of the dry-farms. On a shallow soil, or
on one penetrated with gravel streaks, crop failures are probable
even under a large rainfall; but a deep soil of uniform texture,
unbroken by gravel or hardpan, in which much water may be stored,
and which furnishes also an abundance of feeding space for the
roots, will yield large crops even under a very small rainfall.
Likewise, an infertile soil, though it be deep, and under a large
precipitation, cannot be depended on for good crops; but a fertile
soil, though not quite so deep, nor under so large a rainfall, will
almost invariably bring large crops to maturity.
A correct understanding of the soil, from the surface to a depth of
ten feet, is almost indispensable before a safe Judgment can be
pronounced upon the full dry-farm possibilities of a district.
Especially is it necessary to know (a) the depth, (b) the uniformity
of structure, and (c) the relative fertility of the soil, in order
to plan an intelligent system of farming that will be rationally
adapted to the rainfall and other climatic factors.
It is a matter of regret that so much of our information concerning
the soils of the dry-farm territory of the United States and other
countries has been obtained according to the methods and for the
needs of humid countries, and that, therefore, the special knowledge
of our arid and semiarid soils needed for the development of
dry-farming is small and fragmentary. What is known to-day
concerning the nature of arid soils and their relation to cultural
processes under a scanty rainfall is due very largely to the
extensive researches and voluminous writings of Dr. E. W. Hilgard,
who for a generation was in charge of the agricultural work of the
state of California. Future students of arid soils must of necessity
rest their investigations upon the pioneer work done by Dr. Hilgard.
The contents of this chapter are in a large part gathered from
Hilgard's writings.
The formation of soils
"Soil is the more or less loose and friable material in which, by
means of their roots, plants may or do find a foothold and
nourishment, as well as other conditions of growth." Soil is formed
by a complex process, broadly known as _weathering, _from the rocks
which constitute the earth's crust. Soil is in fact only pulverized
and altered rock. The forces that produce soil from rocks are of two
distinct classes, _physical and chemical. _The physical agencies of
soil production merely cause a pulverization of the rock; the
chemical agencies, on the other hand, so thoroughly change the
essential nature of the soil particles that they are no longer like
the rock from which they were formed.
Of the physical agencies, _temperature changes _are first in order
of time, and perhaps of first importance. As the heat of the day
increases, the rock expands, and as the cold night approaches,
contracts. This alternate expansion and contraction, in time, cracks
the surfaces of the rocks. Into the tiny crevices thus formed water
enters from the falling snow or rain. When winter comes, the water
in these cracks freezes to ice, and in so doing expands and widens
each of the cracks. As these processes are repeated from day to day,
from year to year, and from generation to generation, the surfaces
of the rocks crumble. The smaller rocks so formed are acted upon by
the same agencies, in the same manner, and thus the process of
pulverization goes on.
It is clear, then, that the second great agency of soil formation,
which always acts in conjunction with temperature changes, is
_freezing water. _The rock particles formed in this manner are often
washed down into the mountain valleys, there caught by great rivers,
ground into finer dust, and at length deposited in the lower
valleys. _Moving water _thus becomes another physical agency of soil
production. Most of the soils covering the great dry-farm territory
of the United States and other countries have been formed in this
way.
In places, glaciers moving slowly down the canons crush and grind
into powder the rock over which they pass and deposit it lower down
as soils. In other places, where strong winds blow with frequent
regularity, sharp soil grains are picked up by the air and hurled
against the rocks, which, under this action, are carved into
fantastic forms. In still other places, the strong winds carry soil
over long distances to be mixed with other soils. Finally, on the
seashore the great waves dashing against the rocks of the coast
line, and rolling the mass of pebbles back and forth, break and
pulverize the rock until soil is formed._ Glaciers, winds, _and
_waves _are also, therefore, physical agencies of soil formation.
It may be noted that the result of the action of all these agencies
is to form a rock powder, each particle of which preserves the
composition that it had while it was a constituent part of the rock.
It may further be noted that the chief of these soil-forming
agencies act more vigorously in arid than in humid sections. Under
the cloudless sky and dry atmosphere of regions of limited rainfall,
the daily and seasonal temperature changes are much greater than in
sections of greater rainfall. Consequently the pulverization of
rocks goes on most rapidly in dry-farm districts. Constant heavy
winds, which as soil formers are second only to temperature changes
and freezing water, are also usually more common in arid than in
humid countries. This is strikingly shown, for instance, on the
Colorado desert and the Great Plains.
The rock powder formed by the processes above described is
continually being acted upon by agencies, the effect of which is to
change its chemical composition. Chief of these agencies is _water,
_which exerts a solvent action on all known substances. Pure water
exerts a strong solvent action, but when it has been rendered impure
by a variety of substances, naturally occurring, its solvent action
is greatly increased.
The most effective water impurity, considering soil formation, is
the gas, _carbon dioxid. _This gas is formed whenever plant or
animal substances decay, and is therefore found, normally, in the
atmosphere and in soils. Rains or flowing water gather the carbon
dioxid from the atmosphere and the soil; few natural waters are free
from it. The hardest rock particles are disintegrated by carbonated
water, while limestones, or rocks containing lime, are readily
dissolved.
The result of the action of carbonated water upon soil particles is
to render soluble, and therefore more available to plants, many of
the important plant-foods. In this way the action of water, holding
in solution carbon dioxid and other substances, tends to make the
soil more fertile.
The second great chemical agency of soil formation is the oxygen of
the air. Oxidation is a process of more or less rapid burning, which
tends to accelerate the disintegration of rocks.
Finally, the _plants _growing in soils are powerful agents of soil
formation. First, the roots forcing their way into the soil exert a
strong pressure which helps to pulverize the soil grains; secondly,
the acids of the plant roots actually dissolve the soil, and third,
in the mass of decaying plants, substances are formed, among them
carbon dioxid, that have the power of making soils more soluble.
It may be noted that moisture, carbon dioxid, and vegetation, the
three chief agents inducing chemical changes in soils, are most
active in humid districts. While, therefore, the physical agencies
of soil formation are most active in arid climates, the same cannot
be said of the chemical agencies. However, whether in arid or humid
climates, the processes of soil formation, above outlined, are
essentially those of the "fallow" or resting-period given to
dry-farm lands. The fallow lasts for a few months or a year, while
the process of soil formation is always going on and has gone on for
ages; the result, in quality though not in quantity, is the
same--the rock particles are pulverized and the plant-foods are
liberated. It must be remembered in this connection that climatic
differences may and usually do influence materially the character of
soils formed from one and the same kind of rock.
Characteristics of arid soils
The net result of the processes above described Is a rock powder
containing a great variety of sizes of soil grains intermingled with
clay. The larger soil grains are called sand; the smaller, silt, and
those that are so small that they do not settle from quiet water
after 24 hours are known as clay.
Clay differs materially from sand and silt, not only in size of
particles, but also in properties and formation. It is said that
clay particles reach a degree of fineness equal to 1/2500 of an
inch. Clay itself, when wet and kneaded, becomes plastic and
adhesive and is thus easily distinguished from sand. Because of
these properties, clay is of great value in holding together the
larger soil grains in relatively large aggregates which give soils
the desired degree of filth. Moreover, clay is very retentive of
water, gases, and soluble plant-foods, which are important factors
in successful agriculture. Soils, in fact, are classified according
to the amount of clay that they contain. Hilgard suggests the
following classification:--
Very sandy soils 0.5 to 3 per cent clay
Ordinary sandy soils 3.0 to 10 per cent clay
Sandy loams 10.0 to 15 per cent clay
Clay loams 15.0 to 25 per cent clay
Clay soils 25.0 to 35 per cent clay
Heavy clay soils 35.0 per cent and over
Clay may be formed from any rock containing some form of _combined
silica _(quartz). Thus, granites and crystalline rocks generally,
volcanic rocks, and shales will produce clay if subjected to the
proper climatic conditions. In the formation of clay, the extremely
fine soil particles are attacked by the soil water and subjected to
deep-going chemical changes. In fact, clay represents the most
finely pulverized and most highly decomposed and hence in a measure
the most valuable portion of the soil. In the formation of clay,
water is the most active agent, and under humid conditions its
formation is most rapid.
It follows that dry-farm soils formed under a more or less rainless
climate contain less clay than do humid soils. This difference is
characteristic, and accounts for the statement frequently made that
heavy clay soils are not the best for dry-farm purposes. The fact
is, that heavy clay soils are very rare in arid regions; if found at
all, they have probably been formed under abnormal conditions, as in
high mountain valleys, or under prehistoric humid climates.
_Sand.--_The sand-forming rocks that are not capable of clay
production usually consist of _uncombined silica _or quartz, which
when pulverized by the soil-forming agencies give a comparatively
barren soil. Thus it has come about that ordinarily a clayey soil is
considered "strong" and a sandy soil "weak." Though this distinction
is true in humid climates where clay formation is rapid, it is not
true in arid climates, where true clay is formed very slowly. Under
conditions of deficient rainfall, soils are naturally less clayey,
but as the sand and silt particles are produced from rocks which
under humid conditions would yield clay, arid soils are not
necessarily less fertile.
Experiment has shown that the fertility in the sandy soils of arid
sections is as large and as available to plants as in the clayey
soils of humid regions. Experience in the arid section of America,
in Egypt, India, and other desert-like regions has further proved
that the sands of the deserts produce excellent crops whenever water
is applied to them. The prospective dry-farmer, therefore, need not
be afraid of a somewhat sandy soil, provided it has been formed
under arid conditions. In truth, a degree of sandiness is
characteristic of dry-farm soils.
The _humus _content forms another characteristic difference between
arid and humid soils. In humid regions plants cover the soil
thickly; in arid regions they are bunched scantily over the surface;
in the former case the decayed remnants of generations of plants
form a large percentage of humus in the upper soil; in the latter,
the scarcity of plant life makes the humus content low. Further,
under an abundant rainfall the organic matter in the soil rots
slowly; whereas in dry warm climates the decay is very complete. The
prevailing forces in all countries of deficient rainfall therefore
tend to yield soils low in humus.
While the total amount of humus in arid soils is very much lower
than in humid soils, repeated investigation has shown that it
contains about 3-1/2 times more nitrogen than is found in humus
formed under an abundant rainfall. Owing to the prevailing sandiness
of dry-farm soils, humus is not needed so much to give the proper
filth to the soil as in the humid countries where the content of
clay is so much higher. Since, for dry-farm purposes, the nitrogen
content is the most important quality of the humus, the difference
between arid and humid soils, based upon the humus content, is not
so great as would appear at first sight.
_Soil and subsoil.--_In countries of abundant rainfall, a great
distinction exists between the soil and the subsoil. The soil is
represented by the upper few inches which are filled with the
remnants of decayed vegetable matter and modified by plowing,
harrowing, and other cultural operations. The subsoil has been
profoundly modified by the action of the heavy rainfall, which, in
soaking through the soil, has carried with it the finest soil
grains, especially the clay, into the lower soil layers.
In time, the subsoil has become more distinctly clayey than the
topsoil. Lime and other soil ingredients have likewise been carried
down by the rains and deposited at different depths in the soil or
wholly washed away. Ultimately, this results in the removal from the
topsoil of the necessary plant-foods and the accumulation in the
subsoil of the fine clay particles which so compact the subsoil as
to make it difficult for roots and even air to penetrate it. The
normal process of weathering or soil disintegration will then go on
most actively in the topsoil and the subsoil will remain unweathered
and raw. This accounts for the well-known fact that in humid
countries any subsoil that may have been plowed up is reduced to a
normal state of fertility and crop production only after several
years of exposure to the elements. The humid farmer, knowing this,
is usually very careful not to let his plow enter the subsoil to any
great depth.
In the arid regions or wherever a deficient rainfall prevails, these
conditions are entirely reversed. The light rainfall seldom
completely fills the soil pores to any considerable depth, but it
rather moves down slowly as a him, enveloping the soil grains. The
soluble materials of the soil are, in part at least, dissolved and
carried down to the lower limit of the rain penetration, but the
clay and other fine soil particles are not moved downward to any
great extent. These conditions leave the soil and subsoil of
approximately equal porosity. Plant roots can then penetrate the
soil deeply, and the air can move up and down through the soil mass
freely and to considerable depths. As a result, arid soils are
weathered and made suitable for plant nutrition to very great
depths. In fact, in dry-farm regions there need be little talk about
soil and subsoil, since the soil is uniform in texture and usually
nearly so in composition, from the top down to a distance of many
feet.
Many soil sections 50 or more feet in depth are exposed in the
dry-farming territory of the United States, and it has often been
demonstrated that the subsoil to any depth is capable of producing,
without further weathering, excellent yields of crops. This
granular, permeable structure, characteristic of arid soils, is
perhaps the most important single quality resulting from rock
disintegration under arid conditions. As Hilgard remarks, it would
seem that the farmer in the arid region owns from three to four
farms, one above the other, as compared with the same acreage in the
eastern states.
This condition is of the greatest importance in developing the
principles upon which successful dry-farming rests. Further, it may
be said that while in the humid East the farmer must be extremely
careful not to turn up with his plow too much of the inert subsoil,
no such fear need possess the western farmer. On the contrary, he
should use his utmost endeavor to plow as deeply as possible in
order to prepare the very best reservoir for the falling waters and
a place for the development of plant roots.
_Gravel seams.--_It need be said, however, that in a number of
localities in the dry-farm territory the soils have been deposited
by the action of running water in such a way that the otherwise
uniform structure of the soil is broken by occasional layers of
loose gravel. While this is not a very serious obstacle to the
downward penetration of roots, it is very serious in dry-farming,
since any break in the continuity of the soil mass prevents the
upward movement of water stored in the lower soil depths. The
dry-farmer should investigate the soil which he intends to use to a
depth of at least 8 to 10 feet to make sure, first of all, that he
has a continuous soil mass, not too clayey in the lower depths, nor
broken by deposits of gravel.
_Hardpan.--_Instead of the heavy clay subsoil of humid regions, the
so-called hardpan occurs in regions of limited rainfall. The annual
rainfall, which is approximately constant, penetrates from year to
year very nearly to the same depth. Some of the lime found so
abundantly in arid soils is dissolved and worked down yearly to the
lower limit of the rainfall and left there to enter into combination
with other soil ingredients. Continued through long periods of time
this results in the formation of a layer of calcareous material at
the average depth to which the rainfall has penetrated the soil. Not
only is the lime thus carried down, but the finer particles are
carried down in like manner. Especially where the soil is poor in
lime is the clay worked down to form a somewhat clayey hardpan. A
hardpan formed in such a manner is frequently a serious obstacle to
the downward movement of the roots, and also prevents the annual
precipitation from moving down far enough to be beyond the influence
of the sunshine and winds. It is fortunate, however, that in the
great majority of instances this hardpan gradually disappears under
the influence of proper methods of dry-farm tillage. Deep plowing
and proper tillage, which allow the rain waters to penetrate the
soil, gradually break up and destroy the hardpan, even when it is 10
feet below the surface. Nevertheless, the farmer should make sure
whether or not the hardpan does exist in the soil and plan his
methods accordingly. If a hardpan is present, the land must be
fallowed more carefully every other year, so that a large quantity
of water may be stored in the soil to open and destroy the hardpan.
Of course, in arid as in humid countries, it often happens that a
soil is underlaid, more or less near the surface, by layers of rock,
marl deposits, and similar impervious or hurtful substances. Such
deposits are not to be classed with the hardpans that occur normally
wherever the rainfall is small.
_Leaching.--_Fully as important as any of the differences above
outlined are those which depend definitely upon the leaching power
of a heavy rainfall. In countries where the rainfall is 30 inches or
over, and in many places where the rainfall is considerably less,
the water drains through the soil into the standing ground water.
There is, therefore, in humid countries, a continuous drainage
through the soil after every rain, and in general there is a steady
downward movement of soil-water throughout the year. As is clearly
shown by the appearance, taste, and chemical composition of drainage
waters, this process leaches out considerable quantities of the
soluble constituents of the soil.
When the soil contains decomposing organic matter, such as roots,
leaves, stalks, the gas carbon dioxid is formed, which, when
dissolved in water, forms a solution of great solvent power. Water
passing through well-cultivated soils containing much humus leaches
out very much more material than pure water could do. A study of the
composition of the drainage waters from soils and the waters of the
great rivers shows that immense quantities of soluble soil
constituents are taken out of the soil in countries of abundant
rainfall. These materials ultimately reach the ocean, where they are
and have been concentrated throughout the ages. In short, the
saltiness of the ocean is due to the substances that have been
washed from the soils in countries of abundant rainfall.
In arid regions, on the other hand, the rainfall penetrates the soil
only a few feet. In time, it is returned to the surface by the
action of plants or sunshine and evaporated into the air. It is true
that under proper methods of tillage even the light rainfall of arid
and semiarid regions may he made to pass to considerable soil
depths, yet there is little if any drainage of water through the
soil into the standing ground water. The arid regions of the world,
therefore, contribute proportionately a small amount of the
substances which make up the salt of the sea.
_Alkali soils.--_Under favorable conditions it sometimes happens
that the soluble materials, which would normally be washed out of
humid soils, accumulate to so large a degree in arid soils as to
make the lands unfitted for agricultural purposes. Such lands are
called alkali lands. Unwise irrigation in arid climates frequently
produces alkali spots, but many occur naturally. Such soils should
not be chosen for dry-farm purposes, for they are likely to give
trouble.
_Plant-food content.--_This condition necessarily leads at once to
the suggestion that the soils from the two regions must differ
greatly in their fertility or power to produce and sustain plant
life. It cannot be believed that the water-washed soils of the East
retain as much fertility as the dry soils of the West. Hilgard has
made a long and elaborate study of this somewhat difficult question
and has constructed a table showing the composition of typical soils
of representative states in the arid and humid regions. The
following table shows a few of the average results obtained by
him:--
Partial Percentage Composition
Source of soil Humid Arid
Number of samples analyzed 696 573
Insoluble residue 84.17 69.16
Soluble silica 4.04 6.71
Alumina 3.66 7.61
Lime 0.13 1.43
Potash 0.21 0.67
Phos. Acid 0.12 0.16
Humus 1.22 1.13
Soil chemists have generally attempted to arrive at a determination
of the fertility of soil by treating a carefully selected and
prepared sample with a certain amount of acid of definite strength.
The portion which dissolves under the influence of acids has been
looked upon as a rough measure of the possible fertility of the
soil.
The column headed "Insoluble Residue" shows the average proportions
of arid and humid soils which remain undissolved by acids. It is
evident at once that the humid soils are much less soluble in acids
than arid soils, the difference being 84 to 69. Since the only
plant-food in soils that may be used for plant production is that
which is soluble, it follows that it is safe to assume that arid
soils are generally more fertile than humid soils. This is borne out
by a study of the constituents of the soil. For instance, potash,
one of the essential plant foods ordinarily present in sufficient
amount, is found in humid soils to the extent of 0.21 per cent,
while in arid soils the quantity present is 0.67 per cent, or over
three times as much. Phosphoric acid, another of the very important
plant-foods, is present in arid soils in only slightly higher
quantities than in humid soils. This explains the somewhat
well-known fact that the first fertilizer ordinarily required by
arid soils is some form of phosphorus:
The difference in the chemical composition of arid and humid soils
is perhaps shown nowhere better than in the lime content. There is
nearly eleven times more lime in arid than in humid soils.
Conditions of aridity favor strongly the formation of lime, and
since there is very little leaching of the soil by rainfall, the
lime accumulates in the soil.
The presence of large quantities of lime in arid soils has a number
of distinct advantages, among which the following are most
important: (1) It prevents the sour condition frequently present in
humid climates, where much organic material is incorporated with the
soil. (2) When other conditions are favorable, it encourages
bacterial life which, as is now a well-known fact, is an important
factor in developing and maintaining soil fertility. (3) By somewhat
subtle chemical changes it makes the relatively small percentages of
other plant-foods notably phosphoric acid and potash, more available
for plant growth. (4) It aids to convert rapidly organic matter into
humus which represents the main portion of the nitrogen content of
the soil.
Of course, an excess of lime in the soil may be hurtful, though less
so in arid than in humid regions. Some authors state that from 8 to
20 per cent of calcium carbonate makes a soil unfitted for plant
growth. There are, however, a great many agricultural soils covering
large areas and yielding very abundant crops which contain very much
larger quantities of calcium carbonate. For instance, in the Sanpete
Valley of Utah, one of the most fertile sections of the Great Basin,
agricultural soils often contain as high as 40 per cent of calcium
carbonate, without injury to their crop-producing power.
In the table are two columns headed "Soluble Silica" and "Alumina,"
in both of which it is evident that a very much larger per cent is
found in the arid than in the humid soils. These soil constituents
indicate the condition of the soil with reference to the
availability of its fertility for plant use. The higher the
percentage of soluble silica and alumina, the more thoroughly
decomposed, in all probability, is the soil as a whole and the more
readily can plants secure their nutriment from the soil. It will be
observed from the table, as previously stated, that more humus is
found in humid than in arid soils, though the difference is not so
large as might be expected. It should be recalled, however, that the
nitrogen content of humus formed under rainless conditions is many
times larger than that of humus formed in rainy countries, and that
the smaller per cent of humus in dry-farming countries is thereby
offset.
All in all, the composition of arid soils is very much more
favorable to plant growth than that of humid soils. As will be shown
in Chapter IX, the greater fertility of arid soils is one of the
chief reasons for dry-farming success. Depth of the soil alone does
not suffice. There must be a large amount of high fertility
available for plants in order that the small amount of water can be
fully utilized in plant growth.
_Summary of characteristics.--_Arid soils differ from humid soils in
that they contain: less clay; more sand, but of fertile nature
because it is derived from rocks that in humid countries would
produce clay; less humus, but that of a kind which contains about
3-1/2 times more nitrogen than the humus of humid soils; more lime,
which helps in a variety of ways to improve the agricultural value
of soils; more of all the essential plant-foods, because the
leaching by downward drainage is very small in countries of limited
rainfall.
Further, arid soils show no real difference between soil and
subsoil; they are deeper and more permeable; they are more uniform
in structure; they have hardpans instead of clay subsoil, which,
however, disappear under the influence of cultivation; their
subsoils to a depth of ten feet or more are as fertile as the
topsoil, and the availability of the fertility is greater. The
failure to recognize these characteristic differences between arid
and humid soils has been the chief cause for many crop failures in
the more or less rainless regions of the world.
This brief review shows that, everything considered, arid soils are
superior to humid soils. In ease of handling, productivity,
certainty of crop-lasting quality, they far surpass the soils of the
countries in which scientific agriculture was founded. As Hilgard
has suggested, the historical datum that the majority of the most
populous and powerful historical peoples of the world have been
located on soils that thirst for water, may find its explanation in
the intrinsic value of arid soils. From Babylon to the United States
is a far cry; but it is one that shouts to the world the superlative
merits of the soil that begs for water. To learn how to use the
"desert" is to make it "blossom like the rose."
Soil divisions
The dry-farm territory of the United States may be divided roughly
into five great soil districts, each of which includes a great
variety of soil types, most of which are poorly known and mapped.
These districts are:--
1. Great Plains district.
2. Columbia River district
3. Great Basin district.
4. Colorado River district.
5. California district.
_Great Plains district.--_On the eastern slope of the Rocky
Mountains, extending eastward to the extreme boundary of the
dry-farm territory, are the soils of the High Plains and the Great
Plains. This vast soil district belongs to the drainage basin of the
Missouri, and includes North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas,
Oklahoma, and parts of Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico,
Texas, and Minnesota. The soils of this district are usually of high
fertility. They have good lasting power, though the effect of the
higher rainfall is evident in their composition. Many of the
distinct types of the plains soils have been determined with
considerable care by Snyder and Lyon, and may be found described in
Bailey's "Cyclopedia of American Agriculture," Vol. I.
_Columbia River district.--_The second great soil district of the
dry-farming territory is located in the drainage basin of the
Columbia River, and includes Idaho and the eastern two thirds of
Washington and Oregon. The high plains of this soil district are
often spoken of as the Palouse country. The soils of the western
part of this district are of basaltic origin; over the southern part
of Idaho the soils have been made from a somewhat recent lava flow
which in many places is only a few feet below the surface. The soils
of this district are generally of volcanic origin and very much
alike. They are characterized by the properties which normally
belong to volcanic soils; somewhat poor in lime, but rich in potash
and phosphoric acid. They last well under ordinary methods of
tillage.
_The Great Basin.--_The third great soil district is included in the
Great Basin, which covers nearly all of Nevada, half of Utah, and
takes small portions out of Idaho, Oregon, and southern California.
This basin has no outlet to the sea. Its rivers empty into great
saline inland lakes, the chief of which is the Great Salt Lake. The
sizes of these interior lakes are determined by the amounts of water
flowing into them and the rates of evaporation of the water into the
dry air of the region.
In recent geological times, the Great Basin was filled with water,
forming a vast fresh-water lake known as Lake Bonneville, which
drained into the Columbia River. During the existence of this lake,
soil materials were washed from the mountains into the lake and
deposited on the lake bottom. When at length, the lake disappeared,
the lake bottom was exposed and is now the farming lands of the
Great Basin district. The soils of this district are characterized
by great depth and uniformity, an abundance of lime, and all the
essential plant-foods with the exception of phosphoric acid, which,
while present in normal quantities, is not unusually abundant. The
Great Basin soils are among the most fertile on the American
Continent.
_Colorado River district.--_The fourth soil district lies in the
drainage basin of the Colorado River It includes much of the
southern part of Utah, the eastern part of Colorado, part of New
Mexico, nearly all of Arizona, and part of southern California. This
district, in its northern part, is often spoken of as the High
Plateaus. The soils are formed from the easily disintegrated rocks
of comparatively recent geological origin, which themselves are said
to have been formed from deposits in a shallow interior sea which
covered a large part of the West. The rivers running through this
district have cut immense canons with perpendicular walls which make
much of this country difficult to traverse. Some of the soils are of
an extremely fine nature, settling firmly and requiring considerable
tillage before they are brought to a proper condition of tilth. In
many places the soils are heavily charged with calcium sulfate, or
crystals of the ordinary land plaster. The fertility of the soils,
however, is high, and when they are properly cultivated, they yield
large and excellent crops.
_California district.--_The fifth soil district lies in California
in the basin of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers. The soils are
of the typical arid kind of high fertility and great lasting powers.
They represent some of the most valuable dry-farm districts of the
West. These soils have been studied in detail by Hilgard.
_Dry-farming in the five districts.--_It is interesting to note that
in all of these five great soil districts dry-farming has been tried
with great success. Even in the Great Basin and the Colorado River
districts, where extreme desert conditions often prevail and where
the rainfall is slight, it has been found possible to produce
profitable crops without irrigation. It is unfortunate that the
study of the dry-farming territory of the United States has not
progressed far enough to permit a comprehensive and correct mapping
of its soils. Our knowledge of this subject is, at the best,
fragmentary. We know, however, with certainty that the properties
which characterize arid soils, as described in this chapter' are
possessed by the soils of the dry-farming territory, including the
five great districts just enumerated. The characteristics of arid id
soils increase as the rainfall decreases and other conditions of
aridity increase. They are less marked as we go eastward or westward
toward the regions of more abundant rainfall; that is to say, the
most highly developed arid soils are found in the Great Basin and
Colorado River districts. The least developed are on the eastern
edge of the Great Plains.
The judging of soils
A chemical analysis of a soil, unless accompanied by a large amount
of other information, is of little value to the farmer. The main
points in judging a prospective dry-farm are: the depth of the soil,
the uniformity of the soil to a depth of at least 10 feet, the
native vegetation, the climatic conditions as relating to early and
late frosts, the total annual rainfall and its distribution, and the
kinds and yields of crops that have been grown in the neighborhood.
The depth of the soil is best determined by the use of an auger. A
simple soil auger is made from the ordinary carpenter's auger, 1-1/2
to 2 inches in diameter, by lengthening its shaft to 3 feet or more.
Where it is not desirable to carry sectional augers, it is often
advisable to have three augers made: one 3 feet, the other 6, and
the third 9 or 10 feet in length. The short auger is used first and
the others afterwards as the depth of the boring increases. The
boring should he made in a large number of average
places--preferably one boring or more on each acre if time and
circumstances permit--and the results entered on a map of the farm.
The uniformity of the soil is observed as the boring progresses. If
gravel layers exist, they will necessarily stop the progress of the
boring. Hardpans of any kind will also be revealed by such an
examination.
The climatic information must be gathered from the local weather
bureau and from older residents of the section.
The native vegetation is always an excellent index of dry-farm
possibilities. If a good stand of native grasses exists, there can
scarcely be any doubt about the ultimate success of dry-farming
under proper cultural methods. A healthy crop of sagebrush is an
almost absolutely certain indication that farming without irrigation
is feasible. The rabbit brush of the drier regions is also usually a
good indication, though it frequently indicates a soil not easily
handled. Greasewood, shadscale, and other related plants ordinarily
indicate heavy clay soils frequently charged with alkali. Such soils
should be the last choice for dry-farming purposes, though they
usually give good satisfaction under systems of irrigation. If the
native cedar or other native trees grow in profusion, it is another
indication of good dry-farm possibilities.