Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1913-02-03
VALLEY LAND is BEST
Rogue River Valley Lands Not Eas-
lily Worn Out, Says Profess
sOr O'Gara.
(By Prof. p. ]. O'Gara. }

(By Prof. p. ]. O'Gara.)
Press reports regarding the dan
ger which confronts farming on arid
lands have caused people to wonder
if the statements that have been
made have any bearing on the Rogue
river valley. 1t may be stated en-
phatically that the reports sent out
| by the Department of Agriculture
| have no reference to this district,
but rather to the arid intermoun-
tain and other districts, principally
where large reclamation projects
have been under way for some time.
In these districts the difficulty all
lies in the fact that alkali is the
real menace. Besides wearing OUT
of the soils by 'saturation" is due to
the character of the soils and sub
soils.
The soils in question are what is
usually called volcanic ash" con-
tanning practically no humus and
only small quantity of nitrogen.
The mineral salts, though sufficient
for the needs of agriculture for a
number of years, are largely in the
available form and are easily ear
ried away by the use of too much
water. In many cases the subsoils
are sandy or are underlaid with
coarse gravel, hence percolation OF
the water from the soil carries away
plant food. Once the water from
the surface soil reaches the gravel
it cannot be brought back by capil-
larity, hence the plant food carried
in it is lost.
OF course, alkal is, after all, the
great soil poison" Wherever it is
present, sooner or later, all lands
lying at lower levels are ruined by
it, due to the seepage and washing
which takes place, unless sufficient
drainage is secured. In the earlier
days of reclamation only the lower
levels were irrigated; now the high
er benches are being covered with
water, with the result that all lands
lying below are being more or less
injured. The more alkali in a re-
g1on the more the ultimate damage.
The people of the Rogue river val
ley little realize the heritage they
have. Here we have a district of
more than quarter of a million
acres OF available agricultural lands,
and when these acres have been set
tied upon there will be fully another
quarter of million acres which may
be opened up.
But the most wonderful and inter-
esting thing is that in the entire val
ley there is no alkali. The country
does not belong to the "aI'id class"
or even the semi-arid class, so Tar as
its soils are concerned. The soils
are varied, there being about eight
general types, and about 54 varie-
ties. all of which are aerable.
The soils are not OF the type
which will readily wear out The
structure of the soils and subsoils is
such that wearing OUT by satura-
tion will not be so likely. The irri-
cation of the higher levels cannot
affect the lower levels by adding or
bringing down deleterious salts, be-
cause alkali is unknown in Rogue
river valley. The rational use Of
water could therefore only produce
good,
There Is an old adage which says
"a lime country is a rich country"
II this is true, the Rogue river valley
has wealth beyond the dreams of a
Croesus. A rational system of agri-
culture would make this country
richer and more productive % years
from now than it is today. In the
orchards the growing of cover crops, !
which may be so easily accc
plished, will provide for hu' 1
nitrogen; the additio~ 8, -
fertiIizar sucb -H OF mineral
no.oah "' as phosphates and
-ay be accomplished without
stfficulty and large expenditure of
capital.
When many of the arid and semi
arid districts have ceased to support
civilization, this country will be in
its prime 1t will feed large part
of the world which now seems to he
getting along without our heDn, but
Which, in time, must come to us for
aid. The resident of the Rogue river
valley need only 90 away from home
to realize that after all there is no
country like this.
Wapoc in Janan have riSen IN Dnr