22 



The Bulletin 



IREDELL CLAY LOAM 



This soil is locally known as "Blackjack oak land" or ''pipe clay land." 

 There is only a small acreage of it in the county, and this lies in the 

 eastern part of the county and to the north of Mount Holly, and about 

 two miles east of Stanley. It is readily recognized by the forest growth 

 of blackjack oaks and other oaks and by the peculiar character of the 

 subsoil and also the presence of "nigger-head" rocks on the surface. 



The surface soil is a dull brown or dark gray loam, and this changes 

 abruptly into a yellowish-brown waxy, sticky, or putty-like clay which 

 grades into the rotten greenish-yellow colored rocks at 2 or 3 feet. Small 

 rounded brown iron pebbles about the size of ordinary peas are present 

 on the surface. 



It occupies gentle slopes to rolling areas, having good drainage over 

 the surface portion, but the underdrainage is very poor owing to the 

 density of the clay subsoil, which hinders the movement of water in 

 either direction. The soil is suited to corn, cotton, oats, and wheat, and 

 also for pasturage purposes, especially when seeded to Johnson grass. 



The following table gives the average results of analyses of the soil 

 and subsoil of the Iredell clay loam : 



.Surface soil. 

 Subsoil 



Fine 



Gravel, 



Per Cent 



6.7 

 2.9 



MECHANICAL ANALYSIS. 



Coarse 



Sand, 



Per Cent 



8.2 

 3.8 



Medium 



Sand, 

 Per Cent 



5.0 

 3.0 



Fine 



Sand, 



Per Cent 



16.0 

 7.0 



Very Fine 



Sand, 

 Per Cent 



26.9 



n.8 



Silt, 

 Per Cent 



26.4 

 31.2 



Clay, 

 Per Cent 



10.4 

 40.1 



MEADOW 



The land mapped as MeadoAv is found in the first bottoms along prac- 

 tically all of the streams. Much of the soil is productive and gives large 

 yields of corn and native grass Avithout fertilization. The meadow land 

 Avhere cleared furnishes excellent summer pasturage for cattle. 



