The Sunday telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1914-1927, 1916-04-09
As Made by the United States
Department of Agriculture
and State Body.

WASHINGTON. April ga repor,
OF the soil survey OF Raleigh county
recently completed by the United
States Department OF Agriculture
and the West Virginia Geological
Survey. has Just been published by
the federal department. This report
covers thirty-four printed pages and
includes large map showing by
means OF colors the distribution OF
tho various soils found In the county
and also location OF railways, high
roads. rivers. watercourses, schools
churches. etc.
At the present time says the re-
port, cattle raising and general farm
ing are the dominant forms OF agri-
culture. Sheep raising was formerly
very general. but to large extent
this has been abandoned in favor OF
hog raising. The. leading crops are
COR oats, haY. Duckwh&at, sorguna
- potato9s Most III these IRE
grown In sustenance crops for the
use OF the farmer and feed for live
stock. Some hay and considerable
part Of the potato crop is sold. The
principal money crop Is buckwheat.
The climate and soil of the county
are well situated for fruit growing.
The level ridges and gently sloplng
hillstdes furnish many good locations
for extensive orcharding. Apples are
probably best adapted to local con-
dhions and are grown on larger
scale than any other fruit. Peach
trees are short-lived, MS a rule, and
care in the selection OF site, for
the orchards Is necessary to insure
success. Strawberries do exception
ally well. Cultivated berries Of other
kinds also would thrive but, owing to
the abundance of wild fruit, It is
doubtful IL they would be profit
able.
Systematic crop rotations are not
in general use, most Of the farmers
changing their crops in a more or
less haphazard manner. Some fol-
low corn with small grain and then
seed the land to grass. moving the
grass until 1t runs out, and then
pasturing the field. Most Of the soils
are low in organic matter and the
growing OF legumes such as COW peas,
,vetch, and clover is essential to the
best rotations. Buckwheat and rye
can be used to good advantage as a
means OF supplying green manure.
Commercial fertilizers are used to q
very small extent. Many farmers
do not use any fertilizer at all, but
depend upon manure, which Is sell
dom sufficient in quantity to cover
all the cultivated land. Lining is
;practiced to small extent.
go Soils. ~ ~
Z The fourteen soils found in the
county are divided into three classes;
upland. or residual, soils formed by
the weathering In place Of gray
shales and sandtone and red shale
and trin-bedded limestone; terrace,
or old alluvial soils. which occupy
the former flood plains Of the
streams; or the first bottoms, or pres
.ent Hood plain, soils.
Soils having the same range Of
color and structure in the soil and
subsoil. a similar origin. and the
same type of drainage and topog-
raphy, are grouped in series. A soil
series includes various types OF soil,
depending upon the texture Of the
material.
OF the upland soils the Dekalb
series is the most extensive, occupy
ing more than seventy per cent Of the
total area of the county. These soils
are gray brown with yellow or yell
lowish-brown subsoils. The drain
age is usually excessive. In Raleigh
county, six types are encountered.
The Dekalb fine sandy loan and
the Dekalb loan are not extensive.
The character Of the fine sandy loan
makes cultivation easy. and the
nature Of the areas 1t occupies makes
It very favorable to the use OF i'm
proved farm machinery. 1t occurs
chiefly in the central part Of the
county The principal crops are
corn. oats. buckwheat, garden vege-
tables. Irish and sweet potatoes, and
hay. Glover is grown, to very small
extent, as 1t does not do well on this
soil. On the other hand. the soil is
very we'll suited to cowpeas, and
-retch is a good crop for building It
up. Rye and oats do we'll on It.
Apples APPARENTLY do better than the
other fruits, but peaches, plums and
berries are also grown successfully.
The Dekalb loan is found In a few
small, scattered areas on high
mountain tops in the western part
flats between Piney and Glade creeks.
Much OF 1t is underlain by heavy,
massive sandstone strata, and crops
do not suffer from drought as much
as on other upland soils. The dark
color Of the surface soil OF the loan
10 due to the accumulation Of organic
matter. Practically all OF the crops
make good yields. Potatoes, cabbage,
. beans, beets and turnips are more
extensively grown than other vege-
tables. The soil also produces good
yields OF apples and berries OF ex-
cellent quality.
The Dekalb silt loan II found over
the central and northern parts Of the
county and in extent is the most i'm
portant Of the soil types. In ad-
.dition to such crops as corn, wheat.
'buckwheat. oats, potatoes, hay and
vegetables. little tobacco Is grown
on this type. On the same soil in
counties to the west, tobacco is pro-
dnced extensively. In Raleigh
county apples do particularly well on
this type and other fruits fairly
well. The peach does not seem
especially adapted to local conditions.
Much Of the soil has been under
cultivation since the county was first
cleared and many fields have had
their organic matter contents mater
Ilnr