226 Universitii of California Publications in Agricultural Sciences [Vol. 1 



Saticoy Plain. — The long and broad slope in Ventura County, 

 reaching from the mountains southward to the sea-shore and 

 noted for its lima bean culture, is represented by two soil 

 columns, one taken by ]\Ir. J. B. Neff from near ]\Iound School- 

 house, a few miles east of Ventura, and the other from the orange 

 grove of Mr. N. B. Blanchard, at Santa Paula. 



Table 27. — Humus in Soil Columns of Saticoy Plains, Ventura County 



Mound Schoolhouse Santa Paula 



Humus- Humus- 

 Soil Nitrogen in Soil Nitrogen in 



CLay 14.18 , '' , Clav 15.02 , * , 



Ft. Humus Humus Soil Humus Humus Soil 



1 Loam 1.23 5.14 .06 Dark loam.... 1.23 5.61 .07 



2 Loam 1.36 4.96 .07 Dark loam 84 6.90 .06 



3 Loam 52 5.67 .03 Dark loam 53 6.60 .04 



4 Loam 57 6.84 .04 Light loam 45 6.00 .03 



5 Loam 54 5.46 .03 Light loam 23 11.30 .03 



6 Loam 48 5.27 .03 Light loam 21 20.47 .04 



7 Loam 54 4.68 .03 Dark loam 56 9.81 .06 



8 Loam 45 4.99 .02 Dark loam 59 1.69 .01 



9 Loam 36 4.68 .02 Dark loam 52 10.00 .05 



10 Loam 51 4.13 .02 Dark loam 38 9.74 .04 



11 Loam 60 3.98 .02 Dark loam 33 7.27 .02 



12 Loam 52 4.32 .02 Fine gravel .. .24 



Sum of per cents 7.68 6.11 



Average per foot .64 5.01 .03 .51 8.67 .04 



Upper 3 feet :* 



Sum of per cents 3.11 2.60 



Average per foot 1.04 5.26 .05 .87 6.37 .06 



* Range of most annual plant roots. 



The soil from Mound is the better of these two from Saticoy 

 Plain, because of the higher percentage of humus in the column 

 below the first foot; its second foot is richer than the first, and 

 the entire amount is greater than in the Santa Paula. But its 

 humus is poorer in nitrogen (5.01 per cent) than that of Santa 

 Paula (8.67 per cent), and the soil itself is not so well supplied. 

 The upper three feet of each column has a fair amount of soil 

 nitrogen. 



It would naturally be supposed that the growing of beans for 

 so many years and leaving the roots and stubble in the ground 



