2084 Farm Bureau Circular No. 5 



of Lake Ontario. The Erie, or upper, Plain is the southern third of the 

 county. The elevation of the Erie Plain at Lockport, twelve miles from 

 Lake Ontario, is 620 feet above sea level and 360 feet above the level of 

 Lake Ontario. The Niagara River, flowing north from the Erie Plain to 

 the Ontario Plain over the abrupt escarpment, makes the world-famed 

 Niagara Falls. 



The division into the two plains rather generally divides the agricul- 

 tural interests and the adaptability of the county. The southern plain, 

 being generally level and poorly drained, is devoted largely to general 

 fanning, with hay and grain as the leading crops and with some good 

 orchards on the higher parts. The northern plain is devoted to fruit 

 growing and general farming near the escarpment, while toward Lake 

 Ontario, because of the ameliorating influence of the water, it is given over 

 almost exclusively to- the growing of fruits — peaches, apples, pears, and 

 cherries. The area bordering the lake is devoted largely to peaches; here 

 are found not only some of the largest and most productive peach orchards 

 in the State, but also probably the oldest, showing the natural adaptation 

 of this part of Niagara County to the production of this popular fruit. 

 The quality of fruit grown in Niagara County has long been known. 

 " The fruit raised on the level reaches of Niagara orchard land is of fine 

 quality; and connoisseurs assert that they can select it from among that 

 of .other localities by its peculiar richness," says a history written forty 

 years ago. 



Glaciers and glacial lakes have been the principal factors in forming 

 the soils of Niagara County. Consequently the soils bear little resem- 

 blance to the rocks beneath. These rock formations are shales, sand- 

 stones, and limestones, and have a gradual slope toward the south. The 

 soil overlying these rock formations varies in thickness from a few 

 inches along the escarpment, where the edges of the rock strata may 

 frequently be seen, to thirty or forty feet at various points on the plains. 



Most of the soils of the county, except the Tonawanda loam, belong 

 •to the Dunkirk and the Clyde series. Across the southern third of the 

 county, the heavy clay soils prevail; along the escarpment, both to the 

 north and the south, are silt loam, clay loam, and sandy and gravelly 

 loam; north of these, the heavier Clyde loam is the commonest; and 

 along the lake shores are the lighter Dunkirk loams. 



Draining some parts of the county has been, and is, the great problem. 

 Owing to the comparatively level topography and the heavy soil structure 

 of the southern part of the county, surface water is carried off very slowly, 

 and artificial drainage is necessary for this entire area. This is usually 

 accomplished by a series of parallel ditches, which are opened after the 

 fields have been prepared for crops. 



When the early settlers came into the southern part of the county, 

 they found almost a sea of water and swamp surrounding Beech and Bear 

 Ridges. From i860 to 1870 a system of ditches was dug for the purpose 

 of draining the lowlands. These ditches brought into tillage many acres 

 that had been swamp. However, there is a need for still better systems 

 of drainage in order to carry off the floods that occur during the spring. 

 At this time fields that have been seeded to wheat, and those that must 

 be plowed for oats, stand for days under water. 



