Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1925-09-10
Make Your Swamp
Land Raise Crops
Vast Area of Idle Soil That
Could Be Made Produc-
tive for Owner.

There is a vast area Of swamp land
In this country that could be made into
fertile, productive fields through the
use of proper drainage methods. Re-
cent statistics published by the United
States Chamber Of Commerce estimate
that the total swamp lands now unim-
proved and awaiting the magic touch
of drainage amount to almost S0,OOO,-
600 acres. The greater portion Of these
lands lie in the Southwestern states,
yet in the rich Central West there are
millions Of unclaimed acres in Mime
sofa, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Wisconsin,
Missouri and Arkansas, which might be
made at relatively small expense into
productive soil,
1t has been shown that such land if
susceptible to- drainage more than pays
the cost Of drainage. The soil is gen.
orally OF unusual fertility. rich in hu-
mus because of centuries of decaying
vegetable matter.
Two Viewpoints.
From the standpoint Of land drain
age, water In the soil is considered
from two viewpoints. Water which is
drained away is known as gravity or
hydrostatic water 1t retards plant
growth. 1t is the excess water which
tends to flow downward under the ac-
ton of gravity. Capillary water in the
soil keeps it moist and supports plant
growth. 1t rises In the soil just as oil
rises in lamp wick. Land drainage
removes water which Is injurious to
plant growth, but none Of the water
that is necessary and beneficial.
Soil that has been Systematically
drained is in condition to cultivate 10
to 20 days earlier in the spring than
UNFRAMED land, because surface and
excess water will disappear as soon as
frost leaves the ground. The soil will
also be warmer because air will enter
1t and warm 1t up after the water has
been removed. Seeds will therefore
terminate sooner and young plants will
grow more rapidly. On undrained land
the farmer must wait for excess water
to evaporate. This process takes heat
from the soil which should be retained
to give young plants an early start. This
accounts for the growing, sickly
looking plants that are seen on water
logged soils during early spring. Get
ting an early start gives corn more
time to mature before fall frost. Small
grains also have time to fill and ripen
before the hottest weather sets in.
Liberates Plant Food.
When surplus water clogging soil
pores is removed, air enters the soil.
This is necessary to help liberate plant
food and to stimulate plant growth.
Deeper root penetration is made pos
sible in drained soil. Plants thus
have larger supply Of food to draw
from. Deep-rooted plants will not be
affected by drought so much as shall
low-rooted ones. For this reason
drained land is more drought-resistant
than undrained areas.
The volume of water which will flow
through a tile line is limited to the ca
pacity Of the smallest tile, therefore all
tile TN particular line should be the
same size. To secure q steady flow Of
water, all tile should have the same
diameter so there will be no effects be-
tween adjacent tile. The diameter and
length Of concrete tile are accurately
controlled by the machines in which
the tile are nodded Twelve-inch tile
are twelve inches long.
Circular tile give greater capacity
than oval tile. Concrete tile are al
ways cylindrical, and this offers a con-
tinuous channel for the free and rapid
movement OF water. Because they are
Of a uniform mixture, nodded by ma
chine, and cured under uniform condi-
tons, there is little variation in
strength in concrete tile. There are no
rough places on the inside to retard
the flow of water.