The Elbert County tribune., 1902-12-25
FARMING MATTERS.
Remedy for AIkali Soils.

The following is from the Denver
Republican of December 22nd;
The United States Department OF Ag-
riculture has recently completed the
first OF a series OF Investigations which
is expected to be OF great value to
Colorado farmers. The department has
had a force of experts from the Bureau
OF Soils at work in the Arkansas valley
for the last eight months. making an
examination of the character OF the
soil OF that section. with general view
to determining what crops can best be
raised in such soil. and with special
reference to alkali and the best meth
DDS OF getting rid OF It.
The force in the field was composed
of five men, in charge OF Macy II.
Lapham of Washington. They COM
menced work last April and completed
1t only last week.
I'VE started in above Rocky Ford
early in the spring said Mr. lap
ham. 1T is the first investigation OF
the sort ever undertaken by the De-
partment in Colorado. The Bureau OF
Soils was organized In 1900 though the
department had done some good work
of the kind previously. The object OF
the work is to examine types OF soils
and send samples to the department for
further analysis, so that the best re-
suits from tillage might be obtained.
and to determine the amount of alkali
and the underground water supply. The
latter was perhaps the special object of
our work In the Arkansas valley. our
Investigations embraced a territory
about four miles wide along the Ar
kansas river including practically all
the irrigated and irrlgable land of the
valley We carried special apparatus
for boring into the soils and made our
tests to an average depth of six feet;
though deeper borings were made to
determine the condition of sub-soils.
"As a whole the soils we found are
especially well adapted TO agricultural
purposes. We classified about dozen
types in fact the types seem to be
pretty well mixed in that section. We
did not find an alarming amount OF al
kali except in places where seepago
was considerable. The drainage ques-
tion is the important one in connection
with the alkali evil. Other temporary
remedies have been tried. but where
there is much alkali or where II is Ii
able to be brought out. owing to the
proximity of the water table to the sur
face, the installation of a thorough
system OF tile drains is the only effect
i've remedy"
This sort of drainage system had
been little used so far. said Mr.. lap
ham. The American Beet Sugar Com
pany had utilized It on its lands and
alkali and seepage difficulties had been
Immediately overcome. The experts
found that there was quite a good deal
of alkali in the sub-soils. and as the
water table throughout the valley Is
within three feet of the surface. this
made the danger of bringing the alkali
to the surface all the greater. Maps
were made on the scale of one inch to
the mile. of the entire area covered by
the Investigations. The first map in
cludes the general typographical fea-
tures of the country. and designates
the soil types and their locality. The
work took more time for the reason
that no base map of the region could be
secured. and the experts had to make
one of their own, working slowly and
carefully TO get the basis on which
to make their special maps of soils.
eto.. The second map is an alkali map,
showing the areas where alkali exists.
and indicating specially the danger
spots. There is also an underground
water map. showing the depth and ex-
tent of the underground flow. seepage
conditions. etc. This feature of the in
vestigations was made only with refer
ence to soil conditions. as the workers
have nothing to do with the govern
ment's irrigation work proper.
Mr.. Lapham and an assistant expect
to leave about January 1st for similar
investigation of the upper ella valley.
Arizona, while the remaining members
of the party go to eastern Texas on o
like mission.