The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-09-03
SO|L SURVEY IF
 AUTAUGA COUNTY Bureau of Soils Issues Sum- mary In Advance Sheets THREE MAIN DIVISIONS PhysiographicaIly Alabama Is Divided Into Flood Plains, Alabama
 River Terraces and the
 Broken UpIands.

Washington, September 2.-(Special.) )- The bureau of soils, United States de- partment of agriculture, has just issued advance sheets of the soil survey of Au- tauga county, Alabama, by L. A. Hurst of the bureau of soils and c. S. Waldrop of the Alabama department of agriculture and industries of which the following is an interesting summary:
 'Autauga county (area 595 square miles) is located near the center of Alabama, and lies wholly within the coastal plain region. It is characterized by three dis tinct photographic divisions. The flood plains, the Alabama river terraces, and the broken uplands. The drainage waters of the area eventually reach the Gulf of Mexico through the Alabama river.
 The early settlers came largely from Georgia and the Carolinas, and the pres ent white population is made up almost entirely of the descendants of these set tiers. There is large negro population. which forms the chief source of labor.
 The County Seat.
 "Prattville is the county seat and the largest. town. Autaugaville, Billingsley, Vida, Spur, Jones and Marlborough are iourishing villages.
 ''The Louisville and Nashville, Mobile and Ohio, and Southern and Alabama Central railroads and the Alabama river furnish transportation facilities to the principal markets, including Montgomery, Mobile, New Orleans, Birmingham Selma and points in the north
 ''The climate is moderate and is suited to a wide range of crops. The mean an- nual temperature Is about 60 degrees, and the precipitation about 50 inches. The average growing season is from March 10 to November 8.
 tIncluding swamp and meadow, g soil types were mapped in the area. The meadow is not under cultivation, but Is used extensively for pasture The kalmia sand, sandy loam, and fine sandy loam. and Norfolk sandy loam and fine sandy loam are generally used for cotton and corn, but are naturally better adapted to trucking. Sumatra wrapper tobacco has been found in other areas to be especially adapted to the finer textured soils of the Norfolk series, with sandy, clay sub soil at a depth of 15 or 20 inches.
 Fine Sandy Loam.
 ''The Cahaba fine sandy loam and silt loam are best adapted to corn, cotton and forage. The Myatt sandy foam is well adapted to cabbage, turnips, beets, corn and hay, including Bermuda and Johnson grass. The Huntington loam is subject Tn sons are favorable very large yields of corn are obtained.
 'The Houston chalk. Houston clay, and Oktibbeha clay loam are residual soils derived from materials of Cretaccous age. The Houston chalk is badly eroded and has little present agricultural walue The Houston clay and Oktibbeha clay loam well adapted to Bermuda and Johnson grass and alfalfa
 orangeburg Clay.
 ''The Orangeburg clay, the Orangeburg sandy loam, and the Orangeburg fine. sandy loam are better adapted to cotton than to corn. The sandy loam soils are also well suited to peaches A fair grade of filler tobacco has been grown upon these soils in other areas. The Greenville sandy loam and fine sandy loam are best suited to cotton, but with proper manage ment can be made to produce good yields of corn, oats and forage crops The Orangeburg sand, Norfolk loamy sand. and Guin gravelly sandy loam are rather light for general farming purposes but are well adapted to peaches, grapes and other fruits. The Orangeburg, Greenville and Guin soils are derived from weather ing of the pebbly loam, sands and clays of the Lafayette formation.
 Cotton Is the chief money crop in the county. Corn is important product, but none is grown for shipment Oats, cowpeas and peanuts are grown chiefly for forage. Truck crops. such as pota- toes, cabbage. tomatoes, watermelons, cantaloupes, etc, are grown on com paratively small scale, while some fruits are grown for the local markets