JOURNAL OF AGRIOITIIAL ISEARCH 



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

 Vol. V Washington, D. C, October 4, 1915 No. i 



EFFECT OF ALKALI SALTS IN SOILS ON THE GERMI- 

 NATION AND GROWTH OF CROPS 



By Frank S. Harris, ^ 

 Professor of Agronomy, Utah Agricultural Experiment Station 



INTRODUCTION 



In arid regions the soil is likely to contain an accumulation of soluble 

 salts in such quantities that the growth of vegetation is hindered. 

 Indeed, in many sections the type of vegetation is determined almost 

 entirely by the alkali content of the soil. Every grade may be found, 

 from the soil containing so much soluble salt that no vegetation whatever 

 will grow to the soil containing scarcely sufficient soluble material for the 

 needs of plants. 



In the western part of the United States there are millions of acres of 

 land of each alkali type. The worst of these lands need not be considered 

 at present for agricultural purposes, but there are vast areas just on the 

 border line. If everything is favorable, they produce profitable crops; 

 but during the average year crops are a failure. If a permanent agri- 

 culture is to be established on these soils, it will be necessary to increase 

 greatly our knowledge of methods of handling them. 



A large part of the unsettled land of the West contains more or less 

 alkali. Chemical analysis of the soil can easily be made and the alkali 

 content determined; where the alkali content is very high, the land is 

 not suited to agriculture; where it is low, the alkali can not be con- 

 sidered an interfering factor. It is the soil containing a medium amount 

 that causes the difficulty. Many projects that were condemned when 

 an analysis of the soil was made have proved later to be fertile agricul- 

 tural tracts. On the other hand, lands whose salt content was thought 

 to be sufficiently low for crop production have later been abandoned. 

 There are not sufficient exact experimental data available to make it 



1 The author wishes to acknowledge his indebtedness to his assistants, Messrs. Howard J. Maughai:, 

 George Stewart, and A. F. Bracken, for their faithful and intelligent efforts in conducting certain p-rtj of 

 the work; to Mr. R. M. Madsen, Miss Alma Esplin, and Mr. N. I. Butt for their care ia making many 

 laborious computations; and to a number of other faithful assistants who helped in conducting the 

 experiments. 



Journal of Agricultural Research, Vol. V, No. i 



Dept. of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. Oct. 4. iQ'S 



aa Utah— I 



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