United States Department of Agriculture, 



BUREAU OF SOILSCIRCULAR NO. 9. 



MILTOX WHITNEY, Chief of Bureau. 



SOIL SURVEY AROUND IMPERIAL, CAL. 



UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, 



BUREAU OF SOILS, 

 Washington, D. C., January 10, 1902. 



SIR: For some time an active interest has been ..taken in the development of what 

 is known as the Colorado Desert in San Diego County, the extreme southern portion 

 of California. This area is undoubtedly the site of an old inland sea which has long 

 since dried up, leaving a basin, at the bottom of which is the Salton Sink at a depth 

 of 280 feet below the present sea level, with a surface heavily incrusted with salts 

 which are mined for domestic purposes. The rim of this basin is composed of soils 

 which have been considerably modified by the occasional overflow of the Colorado 

 River, which runs into this area for a short time every few years. 



From the climate of this region, and the success that has been attained in the irri- 

 gation of a small area south of Yuma, it has been supposed that equal success could 

 be attained here, provided water were available for irrigation. The country has fre- 

 quently been compared with the Nile Valley, and the Department has looked to this 

 area as a promising field for the introduction of Egyptian cotton, the date palm, 

 and other crops imported from northern Africa. 



After considerable agitation by engineers and capitalists a canal has finally been 

 constructed from the Colorado River through about 60 miles of Mexican territory, 

 and the water delivered at a point on the international boundary at Calexico, and 

 sold there to mutual water companies for distribution to the land owners in this 

 country. Although water was not available for irrigation until June, 1901, and then 

 only over a small portion of the area, a great many settlers have gone into the coun- 

 try, towns are springing up, a national bank has been organized, and a railroad is 

 projected. 



A number of requests were received by the Bureau of Soils for a soil survey of this 

 area, so that some sure basis might be obtained for the establishment of agricultural 

 industries. Such a survey has now been made of a portion of the area, comprising 

 altogether about 169 square miles in the most important part of the irrigated district, 

 and the condition of the soils, as regards the possibilities of their cultivation, the 

 amount of alkali they contain, and their adaptation to crops, has been found to be 

 much more serious than was anticipated. As the safe development of the country 

 will have to follow certain definite lines, and as the enterprise is just starting, it is 

 considered advisable to issue a preliminary circular, giving the results of the survey 

 as a guide to the safe location of farms and the cultivation and care of the lands. 



The soil survey shows that of the 169 square miles surveyed about 51 per cent is 

 either too rough for economical irrigation or contains too high a salt content for any 

 but the most alkali-resistant plants to withstand. The remaining 49 per cent of the 

 area it is believed can be safely cultivated, provided suitable precautions are taken 



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