10 SOILS OF THE EASTERN UNITED STATES. 



do not need to be hauled more than 2 or 3 miles to the shipping point 

 this crop will prove an excellent money crop for the land. 



In certain localities near to the canning factories, tomatoes might 

 well take the place of potatoes in this rotation on the Sassafras silt 

 loam. 



Locally, both in southern New Jersey and on the Delaware-Mary- 

 land Peninsula, asparagus is produced to a considerable extent upon 

 the Sassafras silt loam. The beds are long-lived and productive, 

 but the asparagus is not ready for marketing as early in the spring 

 as the crop Avhich is grown upon the more sandy soils, although the 

 quality is excellent. 



The Sassafras silt loam was at one time extensively used on the 

 Maryland-Delaware Peninsula for the production of peaches and 

 proved its value for this crop. Owing to the invasion of certain 

 diseases many orchards have been cut out, and their area is at present 

 devoted to the general farm crops. If it should ever seem desirable 

 to reestablish some of these orchards, the Sassafras silt loam will 

 still be found to be an excellent soil for peaches, though it may be 

 regarded as rather too heavy and retentive of moisture for an ideal 

 peach soil. The fruit is usually large and well colored, the trees 

 fairly long-lived and thrifty, and the yield large. 



Recently the Sassafras silt loam has been extensively planted to 

 pears, the Kieffer being the variety usually selected. The Kieffer 

 is fairly resistant to blight, makes a strong growth, and usually gives 

 a heavy yield. In both Maryland and Delaware thousands of bushels 

 of Kieffers are annually canned in the local canneries. A consider- 

 able proportion of this crop is produced upon the Sassafras silt loam. 



The Sassafras silt loam is undoubtedly one of the best soils for 

 apple production in the Maryland-Delaware Peninsula and in south- 

 ern New Jersey. Several varieties are adapted to this type, but it 

 is probable that the Winesap group, including Winesap, Staymai 

 Winesap, and Paragon, and the Grimes Golden are best suited foi 

 this particular soil, under the climatic conditions existing in thos 

 sections of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and of the Chesapeake Bay 

 region where the type is developed. Wherever apples are to 

 planted upon this type there should be some elevation to the soi] 

 body and good natural drainage, both for water and for air. 



TVTiere the Sassafras silt loam is encountered in southern Marylam 

 a considerable amount of the Maryland pipe-smoking tobacco is stil 

 grown upon it. The soil is generally considered rather too heavy anc 

 retentive of moisture to produce the best quality of leaf and the 

 area planted to tobacco is gradually being restricted. 



It will be seen from the discussion of the above crop adaptatk 

 of this soil that it constitutes one of the best general farming soils 

 be encountered in the Atlantic Coastal Plain. In fact it is generall] 



