The Wilmington morning star., 1940-01-22
CONSERVATION OF
WEED SOIL ASKED
proper Care Of Land Is Urged
By ". D. Lee, Extension
Soil Specialist

r. we are to continue growing to-
hacco. No. l cash crop IN Nortn
Carolina, something o nan Is
being done must be done to conserve
tobacco soils, says W. D. Lee, Tx
tension soil co~nservationist OF state
college. Soils considered more sui
able to tobacco are those OF
character-that is sandy loan top.
soils, and loose open subsolls Oh
sandy clay material.
but, as the result of erosion the
sandy loans have become clay
loans, or even clays, in numerous
c~ountie in the state, especially IN
tbe upper Coastal Plain and PED
mont REGIONS" Lee declared. In
one county alone there are some 3D.
Oo0 acres so badly washed and gull
lied as to be entirely abandoned;
and another 100000 acres of partly
fanne and partly idle land, but
handled at a loss because OF erosion
This erosion was brought about by
tobacco farming, and the county
that once was second in wealth IN
the state is now far down the list in
financial and agricultural re-
sources"
Not An Easy Task
The task of conserving tobacco
soil is not an easy one,t h speclallst
pointed out. The tobacco plant can
not tolerate wet feet" Too much
water in the soil cuts off the oxygen
supply to the roots and the plant
really s~uffocates. That is why sandy
soils are considered best for tobac'
co. but such soils permit water 10
move downward quite rapidly after
rains, and it is not long before the
ideal sandy loan is deposited in
some river bed.
Lee recommends a combined sys'
tenn of terracing. row arrangement
and grade of rows, the negotiating
of depressions, strip cropping, rota'
lions, winter cover, and the protec'
ton of all water disposal areas.
Extensive observations and
studies conducted throughout tt e
Piedmont and upper Coastal Plain
tobacco-growing areas during the
past three years indicate that no
one treatment is sufficient to con-
troll erosion and yet permit proper
drainage on tobacco land.
1t was found that a terrace grade
of six-inch fall per 100 feet, on ter
race lengths not in excess OF 6o0
feet. functions very satisfactorily
when row arrangement is properly
worked out. Row grades have al
ways been difficult problems. Inc
studies indicate that the grade OF
guide rows should be limited to a
maximum of ~ inches per 100 feet.
Not less than three rows should be
laid out parallel to the upper TRACE
in each interval, end when increased
row grade is necessary. the lower
rev. should be given the added fan,
The length Of low drainage will gen
orally be less than 250 feet on the
average field, and should be held
below 300 feet if possible.
The specialist says that probably
the most common aus of row
breaking or rill formation occurs
where rows attempt to cross field
depressions. Usually the only sat
isfactory method to overcome this
difficulty is to vegetate these ma
tural depressions, and let rows dis
charge water at these points," Lee
stated.
Strip.cropping also effectively pre-.
vents movement of soil into terrace
channels. Some use buffer strips
Of mixtures Of redtop grass, orchard
grass, and common lespedeza.
Lee pointed out that the use of
rotations with tobacco is often a
"touchy" subject. However," he
adds, tobacco, small grain and red.
top grass makes a very satisfactory
rotation with good control over q
major portion Of the period, anc
with no adverse effect on the tobac
CO plant. Rotated strips Of tobacco
and close-growing vegetation, sucl
as rye grass and small grain, ma,
be used"
In conclusion, the soil conserva
zionist says: 1.-THE lack Of white,
cover probably contributes more t,
loss Of soil material than any othe
factor in tobacco culture. 1t is sur
prising that such a large amount o
soil is lost from bare fields over win
ter, not to mention the matter O
teaching. Where a rotation is no
practicable, the S Of Italian ny
grass will effectively check white
soil loss, with only a negligibl
amount Of nitrogen, and the guam
ity Of organic matter is not suffie
lent to adversely effect the qualit
Of the tobacco CROP"