210 EXPERIMENT STATION EECORD. 



Reclamation of alkali land in Salt Lake Valley, Utah, C. W. Dorsey 

 ( r. .'^'. Dcpt. Afir.. Bur. Soils Bui. ^3. pp. .28. pi. 1. fiffs. 2). — This bulletin describes 

 the Salt Lake Valley, its soil and alkali conditions, and the methods and results 

 of reclamation work carried on by the Bureau of Soils and the Utah Experiment 

 Statiim on a 40-acre tract in the valley since 1902. Previous work has been 

 reported (E. S. R., 15. p. 859). 



The contents of the bulletin are summarized as follows: "It has been shown 

 that extensive tracts of land in Salt Lake Valley west of the Jordan River are 

 not productive on account of alkali. On account of the nearness to excellent 

 markets it is highly desirable that the farmer should know how to remove the 

 alkali. Reclaiming alkali land to a limited extent has been practiced since the 

 first settlement in the valley in 1847. but no extensive work has been undertaken 

 by private enterprise. An experiment on 40 acres of worthless alkali laud 4 

 miles west of Salt Lake City, conducted by the Bureau of Soils and the Utah 

 Experiment Station, showed that such work is practicable, since the reclaimed 

 laud now supports a good stand of alfalfa. These results were accomplished by 

 heavily flooding the land after a drainage system had been installed. It was 

 found that surface flooding for one year leached away large quantities of alkali 

 from heavy soils ; in fact the quantity of alkali was so reduced that shallow- 

 rooted crops could be grown the following year. The cost of reclaiming this 

 tract of land is not large in comparison to the enhanced value of the land. . . . 

 Much of the now idle land in Salt Lake Valley can be made to yield handsome 

 returns by a limited outlay of time and money." 



Excluding the cost of leveling, but including that of drainage, it is estimated 

 that the alkali lands of this valley may be reclaimed at a cost of from $20 to 

 $35 per acre. 



Reclamation of alkali soils at Billings, Montana, C. W. Dorsey (U. S. 

 Dept. Agr., Bur. .S'o/Zs- Bui. .J.J. pp. 21. pi. 1. figs. 2). — The soil and alkali condi- 

 tions in the Yellowstone Valley and the methods and results of reclamation 

 work commenced by the Bureau of Soils in 1898 (E. S. R.. 10. p. 1026) are 

 described. 



It is stated that the soils of the Yellowstone Valley, in which Billings is 

 situated, are largely heavy loams and clays which naturally contain large quan- 

 tities of soluble salts, especially in the lower depths, derived from the shales 

 and sandstones from which the soils of the valley have been formed. In the 

 early development of the valley the areas visibly affected by alkali accumula- 

 tions were small and attracted little attention, but with the extension of irriga- 

 tion, involving as it often did the application of excessive amounts of irrigation 

 water on heavy soils having very poor natural drainage, the damaged area has 

 rapidly increased in size. 



"An examination in 1898 by the Bureau of Soils showed that the deep sub- 

 soils were rich in salts, that shallow drains would be ineffectual, and that wash- 

 ing the surface only removed the accumulated alkali from a shallow depth of 

 soil. . . . The experiment in reclaiming a worthless tract of alkali land by deep 

 underdrainage and surafce flooding, conducted by the Bureau of Soils, proved 

 successful, and after one year's treatment a good crop of oats was harvested. 

 ... At the present time the outlook in the valley is most promising, owing to 

 the widespread interest manifested in the formation of drainage districts iu the 

 areas most severely damaged by excess of seepage waters and alkali." 



The cost of drainage in these experiments was $.35 per acre, but it is believed 

 that with locally made tile and by excavating the trenches in the spring when 

 the soil is more moist the cost need not exceed .^15 to $20 per acre. 



Texture of Massachusetts soils. G. E. Stoxe and N. F. Monaiian (J/n.s.sa- 

 cJiusetts Sta. Rpt. 1006, pp. 190-198. pi. 1). — Mechanical analyses of typical soils 



