THE CARRINGTON LOAM. 7 



Carrington loam is developed, agriculture is just passing through its 

 pioneer stages, crop rotation is not generally practiced, the feeding of 

 live stock is subordinate to grain production, and practically no stable 

 manure is saved or applied to the land. As a result there has been 

 some decrease in the crop yields of the type during the past 15 or 

 20 years, and the farmers in these regions are becoming convinced of 

 the necessity for crop rotation, the introduction of animal husbandry, 

 and the application of manures in order that the original efficiency of 

 the type may be restored, maintained, or even increased. 



In Minnesota and North Dakota, where the Carrington loam is 

 extensively developed, the principal improvements in soil efficiency 

 can be effected by the adoption of a regular crop rotation, utilizing 

 the considerable variety of general farm crops well suited to produc- 

 tion upon this type and capable of production under the climatic 

 conditions which exist. In numerous instances where the practice of 

 crop rotation has already been adopted material increases in yield, 

 both of corn and of spring wheat, have been attained, even when 

 the changed farm practice only included the alternation of corn with 

 wheat rather than the continued growing of the one crop or the 

 other. When in addition seeding to clover and other tame grasses 

 has been introduced into the rotation marked increases in the yields 

 of the grain crops have been secured. In Michigan, Indiana, and 

 Iowa, where the feeding of beef cattle and the keeping of dairy stock 

 has been prevalent upon this soil type for periods of 20 to 30 years, 

 no difficulty is experienced in maintaining the crop-producing power 

 of the soil at an average efficiency considerably higher than the gen- 

 eral average for these States. 



In consequence it is apparent that in order to maintain the effi- 

 ciency of the Carrington loam it is only essential to adopt the proper 

 methods of crop rotation, to combine animal husbandry with crop 

 production, and to use moderate care in preserving and applying 

 stable manures. Practically throughout the extent of the Carring- 

 ton loam, as far as shown by the surveys, the use of commercial fer- 

 tilizers is unknown and the need for them has not been felt. 



LIMITATIONS UPON SPECIAL CROPS. 



The Carrington loam is so well suited to the production of a con- 

 siderable range of general farm crops that little attention has been 

 paid to the introduction of specitil crops upon it. In addition to the 

 grain and grass crops commonly grown, Irish potatoes have been 

 successfully produced for home use and for sale in all of the more 

 eastern regions. It has also been found that the small fruits give 

 satisfactory results upon this type where they have been grown for 

 home consumption, and in the vicinity of larger cities or of facilities 

 for rapid transportation it is probable that these may be grown to 



