THE SASSAFRAS SILT LOAM. 5 



third as great, and the surface soil is more yellow and lacks suf- 

 ficient organic matter. It is also more likely to be compacted 

 and clodded when cultivated in a moist condition. These differences 

 in its condition indicate the chief limitations upon the producing 

 capacity of the Sassafras silt loam. Where a careful and systematic 

 crop rotation is practiced, where stable manure and other organic 

 manures are used, and particularly where moderate amounts of lime 

 are applied in connection with the seeding down of the grasses, 

 maximum yields are always secured, and the soil is found to be in its 

 best condition. On the contrary, where organic manures are not used, 

 where liming is never practiced, and where hoed crops are cultivated 

 year after year upon the same area, the soil is much less productive 

 and much less esteemed for the production of crops. The introduc- 

 tion of better methods in the regions last referred to will slowly in- 

 crease the producing capacity of this soil and render it as fertile and 

 as valuable as in the locations where it has received better treatment 

 in the past. In all cases the natural capacity of the soil is above the 

 average for each region where it occurs. 



IMPROVEMENTS IN CROP YIELD. 



The necessary steps for the improvement of crop yields upon this 

 type have already been indicated in the discussion of the limitations 

 of such yields. One of the paramount necessities is the application 

 of all stable manure which is available, and in case this supply is not 

 sufficient to meet the needs some leguminous crop like crimson clover 

 or the medium red clover should be produced for the sole purpose of 

 being plowed under to increase the humus content, preferably with 

 an application of 2,000 pounds of lime per acre. In certain localities 

 difficulty has been encountered in securing a good stand of clover 

 upon this soil type. Liming will largely overcome this difficulty, 

 and better results can be obtained by seeding the clover without a 

 nurse crop. 



There are small local areas within the general area of the type 

 where additional artificial drainage would prove beneficial. These 

 usually consist of small saucer-shaped depressions or of flat inter- 

 stream areas where the headwater drainage of the streams is only 

 partially established. 



THE EXTENT OF OCCUPATION. 



Practically every available acre of the Sassafras silt loam has been 

 brought under cultivation in the various regions where it occurs. It 

 is one of the most highly prized general farming soils of the North 

 Atlantic Coastal Plain section, and the original hardwood timber 

 was cleared from its surface from 100 to 200 years ago. The soil type 



