1919] SOILS FERTILIZERS. 129 



River. Approximately the northern half of the county is comprised of 

 glacial plains characterized by level prairies and gently rolling areas, while the 

 southern portion consists of timbered, rolling to hilly uplands representative 

 of the Ozark region. In general, natural drainage is well established. 



The upland soils of the county are glacial, loessial, and residual in origin, 

 with the first two predominating in the northern part and the last in the 

 southern part of the county. Gray soils with heavy subsoils characterize the 

 region generally. Areas of alluvial soil also occur. In addition to rough 

 stony land, 21 soil types of 16 series are mapped. Putnam silt loam, LIndley 

 silt loam, and Union silt loam predominate, occupying 41.8, 19.2, and 12 per 

 cent of the total area, respectively. 



Soil survey of Oswego County, N". Y., C. N. Mooney, E. T. Maxon, R. J. 

 Morgan, and J. H. Bromley (17. S. Dept. Agr., Adv. Sheets Field Oper. Bur. 

 Soils, 1917, pp. J^S, fig. 1, map 1). — This survey, made in cooperation with the 

 New York State College of Agriculture, deals with the soils of an area of 

 606,720 acres situated in the north-central part of the State at the eastern end 

 of Lake Ontario. The topography varies from undulating to hilly with a range 

 in elevation of from 246 to 1,750 ft. above sea level. Except in certain boggy 

 and swampy areas in tlie central and eastern part of the county, natural drain- 

 age is generally adequate. 



The soils of the region consist of glacial till derived chiefly from sandstone 

 and sandy shale and comprise glacial drift, water-deposited, and cumulose 

 material. In addition to muck, meadow, and beach sand, 18 soil types of 8 

 series are mapped. Worth stony fine sandy loam, including the poorly drained 

 phase, occupying 37.1 per cent of the total area, is the largest single type. 



Soil survey of Benton County, Wash., A,. E. Kocher and A. T. Strahorn 

 {U. S. Dept. Agr., Adv. Sheets Field Oper. Bur. Soils, 1916, pp. 72, pis. 3, figs. 

 2, map 1). — This survey deals with the soils of an area of 1,100,800 acres situ- 

 ated in the southeastern part of the State and separated from the State of 

 Oregon by the Columbia River, which also bounds the county on the north, 

 east, and south. The elevations range from 240 ft. above sea level in the 

 river valleys to 3,500 ft. in the Rattlesnake Hills and Yakima Range. Rather 

 extensive areas in the Columbia River Plains lack adequate natural drainage. 



Benton County lies wholly within the Northwest Intermountain soil province, 

 and is underlain by a succession of basaltic sheets of the Columbia River lava, 

 which has entered little into the formation of the soils. The soils of the region 

 have been derived from loessial, eolian, old valley filling, and stream-laid ma- 

 terial. In addition to scabland, dunesand, and riverwash, 26 soil types of 12 

 series are mapped. Ritzville loam and Sagemoor silt loam, occupying 30.9 

 and 10.7 per cent of the total area, respectively, are the prevailing types. 



[Cultivation and soil moisture], M. Ringelmann {Compt. Rend. Acad. Agr. 

 France. Jf (1918), No. 27, pp. 7^6-748; abs. in Rev. Sci. [Paris], 57 (1919), No. 

 9, pp. 280, 281). — This article discusses briefly the relation of plowing to the 

 water content of soils. According to the author's tests the best results with the 

 least expenditure of energy will be obtained in plowing when the soil contains 

 from 11 to 17 per cent of moisture, depending upon the physical character of 

 the soil. This necessarily narrowly limits the time in which plowing can be 

 most effectively done, and hence increases the value of tractors in expediting 

 the work. 



It was found that traction increases with decrease of moisture in the soil. 

 With 15.4 per cent of moisture in the soil, the traction per square decimeter 

 was 47.4 kg., with 11.1 per cent of moisture, 46.1 kg. ; with 5.1 per cent of 

 moisture 70.7 kg, ; and with 3.8 per cent of moisture 78.2 kg. 



