The Grangeville globe. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho) 1907-1922, 1920-04-01
Make the Alkali Soils Produce
BY +. b. Hitchcock

If
Soits Specialist of the University of
Idaho Extension Division
HOW many acres Of your farm are
nor,-producing on account of alkali?
Gan YOU afford to let $500 to $500
land lie idle, with produce at present
prices?
Many times land owner has a small
ricce of ground on his farm which
does not have good drainage, causing
fhn water table to rise very close -
fha Surface. A condition of this kind
fncfeases evaporation, which in tuIn
hrs large quantities of alkali salts
u De surface, causing the ground to
IL IIbn- productive. The owner gives this
ue1fer little thought, but if he were
It'd 1lgure in dollars and cents what the
laud would bring him if producing.
he would take steps to reclaim IT,
ne first and most fundamental pre-
] codare in retaining alkali soil is to
q pr0Yide an efficient system. The drain
should be placed deep enough TO keep
The water table from eight to ten feet
boIoE the surface.
Mater tables which are close to the
y surface are detrimental in two ways.
Ihey cause rapid evaporation, which
cares large quantities of alAaH salts
I'd he surface, and they prevent all
drainage water from carrying out any
of he alkali salts through the lower
LAYERS.
N Procedure after the drainage system
is ia may depend on the form in which
4 the b kali appears. In case the alkali
-sa1fs are white, the flooding system
" can DE used and many of the salts
leaEhed out and carried off by the
l drainage water. If the salt happen to
be Hack alkali it is best first to make
an Implication of landplaster Gypsum
to convert the salts to white alkali
which is much more soluble than the
black alkali. The quantity of land
plaster (gypsum) to apply will depend
on fhe percentage of black alkali salts
In the soil.
In some cases an efficient drainage
Ssystem is out of the question. Under
such circumstances it becomes neces-
4.sary to adopt a system of cropping
and soil management that will take
Y up q considerable percentage Of the
alkah salts and put into the soil all
organic matter possible. to help neutral
| ize the alkali and build up live soil
These results can be obtained by grow
ing some alkali resistant crop, such as
barley or sweet clover (scarified seed
SO that there will be green crop tC
turn Under, and by applying consider
able quantities of barnyard manure
and straw.
In preparing the seed bed. pillow
from six to eight inches deep in thu
! sI!ring. Follow Immediately With 6
: spike-tooth harrow, so as to form ;
mulch on the surface, which prevent.
rapid Evaporation. Precede this oper
aficn with use of a disk harrow. /
necessary. 1t is well to 60 over tn,
ground number of times with th,
harrow, in order to get the salts wei
4 HstriDpted, giving the seed bette
chance to terminate.
s Seeding should follow as soon n,
possible after preparing the ground
giving tie seed better opportunit,
>. 70 germinate before the salts are agai,
prHght to the surface through evapo
, sszson. In case sweet clover is uset
: ssas Fen to twenty pounds of scarifie,
y sefa should be planted to the acre
ms should be inoculated and sowe,
\ eroaueast or with drill. Inoculatioi
SIZES much better assurance of ;
'sV'Hi stand and a larger yield.
fhMcdlatelv after seeding. a ligh
al'pihau of barnyard manure o.
ssrhw should be spread over til,