THE MEMPHIS SILT LOAM. 13 



commercial fertilizers are used with the corn crop, supplemented by 

 the application of 300 or 400 pounds of cottonseed meal per acre, 

 yields of 30 and 35 bushels per acre of corn are readily obtained and 

 not infrequently exceeded. It may, therefore, be said that the Mem- 

 phis silt loam even under the conditions of the long, hot summers of 

 the more southern latitudes, is a fairly good corn soil when properly 

 treated. 



In Illinois the Memphis silt loam is extensively devoted to the 

 production of winter wheat, the acreage of which ranks next to that 

 of corn. The yields are low, amounting to not over 10 bushels per 

 acre on the average, although proper tillage methods and a moderate 

 amount of fertilization result in the production of 15 bushels an 

 acre or more. 



A small amount of winter wheat is also grown in western Ken- 

 tucky, but the yields are very low and the acreage is decreasing. 



Cotton is grown to a considerable extent upon the Memphis silt 

 loam in western Tennessee, and constitutes the dominant crop in all 

 Mississippi areas where the type has been encountered. In Ten- 

 nessee the average yield for a considerable period of time is about 

 one-third bale per acre, although the better farmers secure one-half 

 bale or more through better tillage methods and the application of 

 larger quantities of commercial fertilizer. 



In the State of Mississippi the Memphis silt loam, so far as it is 

 cultivated to cotton, constitutes an excellent upland soil for the pro- 

 duction of this crop. It must be held in mind that because of topo- 

 graphic difficulties and because of erosion not over 20 per cent of the 

 Memphis silt loam in the " Cane Hills " region is cultivated to any 

 crop, while not more than 35 to 40 per cent of the type is occupied 

 by crops in the " Flat Hills " region. The more level areas possess- 

 ing the deeper soil and being in the best condition for crop produc- 

 tion are devoted to cotton in both of these sections. 



The average yield through a considerable period of years upon the 

 Memphis silt loam in Mississippi is between two-fifths bale and 

 one-half bale per acre. Again the better farmers upon well-cared- 

 for lands produce average yields of approximately three-fourths 

 bale per acre, and this yield might readily be attained over prac- 

 tically the entire tillable area of the type through the use of better 

 methods of tillage and the employment of additional amounts of 

 commercial fertilizer used in conjunction with applications of* cot- 

 tonseed meal at the rate of 300 to 400 pounds per acre. 



The showing made by the Memphis silt loam as a general crop soil 

 is not particularly favorable, with the single exception of cotton in 

 the Mississippi counties where it is developed. In the majority of 

 instances the yields of corn reported are scarcely sufficient to pay 

 the interest upon the investment and the annual charges for working 



