STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 391 



MONTEREY COUNTY. 



Monterey County is one of the largest counties in California, having an 

 area of 3,600 square miles, or over 2,225,000 acres of land. The boundaries 

 of the county are as follows: On the north, by Santa Cruz County and 

 Monterey Bay; on the east, by the counties of San Benito, Fresno, and 

 Tulare; on the south, by San Luis Obispo County; and on the west, by the 

 Pacific Ocean. 



The topographical features of the county are rough mountains and broad 

 plains, gently rounded hills and small valleys. Three principal mountain 

 ranges pass through it from northwest to southeast: the Santa Lucia, run- 

 ning parallel with the coast line; the Hills, or Sierra de las Salinas, at the 

 foot of which the Salinas River flows; and the Gabilan Range, commencing 

 in the county on the east. Besides these, there are spurs which cramp 

 most of the valleys into comparative insignificance. The region embraced 

 in the hills is but poorly supplied with water, but where irrigation has been 

 practiced, a semi-tropical luxuriance of growth is the result. 



The table lands produce rye, oats, wheat, barley, and flax, the average 

 yield of wheat being about 30 bushels, and of barley, about 50 bushels per 

 acre. The upland which lies close to the base of the mountains, produces 

 wheat, barley, oats, and rye, and here also are located some of the finest 

 dairies in the State. Wheat and barley are the staple productions of the 

 Salinas Valley, but besides these, most of the other cereals as well as vege- 

 tables and many of the semi-tropical fruits are produced. 



The Pajaro Valley is located in the northwestern part of the county, and 

 extends across the Pajaro River into Santa Cruz County. The soil pro- 

 ductions and climate are similar to those of the Salinas, from which valley 

 it is separated by a low range of hills. 



Stock and sheep raising are prominent interests in Monterey County, 

 especially in the mountainous portions and the upper Salinas Valley, where 

 thousands of cattle, horses, hogs, Angora goats, and tens of thousands of 

 sheep are raised. 



