VEGETATION OF LANDS NOT SUITED TO TRUCK FARMING. 479 



in an}' considerable quantity is a safe indication of a good soil of this 

 type. Holly (Ilex opaca), black walnut (Juglans nigra), and hickory 

 are trees whose presence indicates a type of soil that is richer than 

 the lightest pine lands, yet highly esteemed by truck farmers. 



A variety of shrubs are found in good truck land. Myrtle (Myrica 

 carolinensis) is often a very important feature of the undergrowth. 

 Although common on the dunes, where the soil is agriculturally 

 worthless, its presence in the pine forests denotes a promising truck 

 soil. Gallberry (Ilex glabra), while frequent in land that is too heavy 

 to meet the requirements of truck farming, is occasionally common 

 on high-grade soils which are well adapted to some truck crops, espe- 

 cially potatoes and strawberries. Near Newbern a type of soil which 

 is sand}- but richer in organic matter than most truck soils and to 

 which we have already referred is known as "gallberry land " because 

 of the predominance of this shrub upon it. 



Sweet bay (Persea pubescens) resembles gallberry in its distribution 

 upon both light and heavy soils. The presence of a number of other 

 shrubs in considerable quantity among the undergrowth maybe taken 

 as fairly conclusive evidence of a good truck soil. These are: Calli- 

 carpa americana, sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum), persimmon 

 (Diospyros virginiana), spikenard tree (Aralia spinosa), huckleberry 

 or blue tangle ( Gaylussaciafrondosa), blueberry ( Vaccin iumvirgatum 

 tenellum), and deerberry (Vaccin ium shtmineum). Less character- 

 istic of this type of soil are sassafras and sumac (Elms copaUina). 

 Muscadine grape { Vitis rotundifolia) and summer grape ( V. aestivalis) 

 are much more abundant on this than on heavier soils. Round- 

 leaved greenbrier (Smilax rotundifolia) and yellow jessamine (Gel- 

 semium semper vir ens) are very often present, but are also common in 

 heavier land. 



VEGETATION OF LANDS UNSUITED TO TRUCK FARMING. 



The fact has already been noted that certain plants, such as red 

 maple (Acer rubrum), willow oak (Quercus phellos), and small cane 

 (Arundinaria tecta), while normally swamp- loving species, are found 

 in the Dismal Swamp region upon a great variety of soils. The pres- 

 ence of any or all of them among the undergrowth does not necessa- 

 rily indicate a soil too heavy for truck, but is good evidence that 

 the natural drainage is for some reason deficient. But wherever red 

 maple and black gum in numbers grow to be good-sized trees it can 

 be concluded with safety that here the soil is too heavy and too rich 

 in organic matter for purposes of truck farming. Similarly the occur- 

 rence of beech or of cow oak (Querciis michuuxii) of any consider- 

 able size betrays a clay content in the soil that precludes the suc- 

 cessful prosecution of this branch of farming. There are a number 

 of plants, e. g., cypress (Taxodium distichum), juniper (Chamae- 

 cyparistliyoides), black gum (Nyssa biflora), cotton gum (X. tuiiflora), 

 rattan (Berchemia voliibilis), big cane (Arundinaria macrosperma), 



