FARMERS' INSTITUTES. 



397 



pine barrens" of New Jersey and from "the plains" of Kallcaska, Baldwin 

 and Walton Jnnction. 



^VATER IIOLDIXG CAPACITY 0¥ ONE HUNDRED PARTS OF VARIOUS SOILS. 



Fine barrens of New Jersey 25 



The plains, Baldwin 29, 



The plains, Walton Junction 30, 



The plains, Kalkaska 33 



1 05 



2 Gl 



3. 



4. 



5. 



6. 



7. 



S. 



9. 

 10. 

 11. 

 12. 

 13. 

 14. 



3G 

 73 

 50 

 44 

 49 

 51 

 51 

 43 

 45 

 44 

 35 

 45 



,G0 

 20 

 40 

 ,10 

 ,60 

 .20 

 ,30 

 ,20 

 .55 

 ,70 

 .60 

 .15 

 .40 

 .10 

 .65 

 .90 

 ,30 

 ,80 



15 32.40 



16 42.85 



17 39.10 



18 38.40 



19 47.30 



20 40.20 



21 37.80 



22 45.40 



23 39.30 



24 40.70 



25 39.60 



26 59.15 



27 43.20 



28 63.80 



29 43.80 



30 34.00 



31 52.10 



It seems to me that such an examination of soils with reference to their 

 waterholding capacity is valuable because we interfere so little with the natural 

 condition of the soil — we only deprive it of its free water, let it drink up all 

 it will hold and then determine its amount. The results are very instructive and 

 significant. The soil of the sterile pine barrens of New Jersey stands lowest 

 in this list, taking up only 25. GO per cent, of water; then follow in order " the 

 plains" of Baldwin 29.30, of Walton Junction 30.40, Eden 32.40, Kalkaska 

 33.10, and Webber 35.30. These soils are characterized by a deficiency of 

 organic matter except the soil of Kalkaska. On the other hand the soils in 

 the whole list which contain the most organic matter also have the greatest 

 capacity to hold water ; for example the prairie soils of Cass county, and the 

 Kiver Kaisin bottom lands, that will hold from 61 to 73 per cent, of water, 

 contain from 7.50 to 12.30 per cent, of organic matter. 



Mr. Kockafellow, of Clare, told me that they found this difiiculty in clearing 

 up the lands along the banks of the Tobacco Kiver, that '•' when the sandy lands 

 are burned over in a dry time the life seems to be burned out of the soil, and 

 some years pass before the land recovers its former fertility." The evil is 

 doubtless caused by burning out much of the vegetable matter of the soil, 

 which is again accumulated only after the lapse of some years. It seems to 

 me tiiat one important part in the management of such lands is to preserve 

 the organic matter in the soil, or even to increase the humus by judicious 

 green manuring. 



On looking over the thirty-one soils which have been analyzed, and compar- 

 ing the mass of these northern counties with those in the southern part of the 

 State in the matter of their capacity to hold water, we find no evidence brought 

 out by this test, which would lead us to question the agricultural capabilities of 

 tlie mass of soil in these counties. Compare these lands with the wonderful 

 wheat lauds, the burr-oak plains of Washtenaw county, and you observe that 

 only two out of the thirty-one specimens analyzed fall below the burr-oak 

 lands in their capacity to imbibe and retain water. 



3. The wafer line. — If we dig down in the ground we usually find a level in 

 which water is present in such quantity that it will flow into the hole. The 

 highest level in the soil in which water will flow is called the water line. It is 



