18 SOILS OF THE EASTERN UNITED STATES. 



economy in the preparation of the land and its subsequent tillage, 

 together with increased crop yields, will be secured by the deep-cut- 

 ting disk plow and disk harrows which plow the land broadcast and 

 throw the loose surface material into a mellow, even mass. By the 

 use of such machinery the land is more quickly prepared and cotton 

 in particular may be planted seasonably upon a larger acreage. The 

 trash of the preceding summer's growth is thoroughly chopped down 

 and incorporated in the surface soil to add needed organic matter, 

 and through the use of disk cultivators a shallow dust mulch is 

 easily maintained during the latter part of the growing season. 

 There is a rapidly increasing tendency toward the use of such tools 

 and equipment in the tillage of the Orangeburg fine sandy loam, 

 and the average crop yields of the type will be increased with the 

 extension of their introduction. 



SUMMARY. 



The Orangeburg fine sandy loam is one of the most extensively 

 developed of the Coastal Plain soils. It is found chiefly in the Gulf 

 Coast region, although scattered areas exist in the Middle Atlantic 

 States. It occurs in three extensive belts the first extending from 

 southwestern Georgia and northern Florida westward through south- 

 ern Alabama near to the Gulf coast, the second extending from 

 west-central Georgia through central Alabama into eastern and 

 northeastern Mississippi, and the third covering the greater portion 

 of northern Louisiana, southwestern Arkansas, and northeastern 

 Texas and extending across the Red River into southern Oklahoma. 



It lies at altitudes ranging from 80 to 250 feet in the eastern Gulf 

 region and from 150 to 500 feet in the Louisiana -Texas region. The 

 surface features of the type are either gently undulating to rolling 

 or steeply sloping and hilly in the higher lying portions of the type 

 near its inland margin. Drainage is generally excellent. 



Erosion is the greatest menace, and all of the steeper slopes should 

 be carefully tended to prevent an almost imperceptible wash of the 

 finer grained material to lower levels. 



The Orangeburg fine sandy loam lies within the belt of the warm 

 temperate Gulf region of abundant to even excessive rainfall, al- 

 though the western extension of the type lies within a region of 

 moderate to light precipitation. Throughout the entire extent of its 

 development the Orangeburg fine sandy loam is favored with a long 

 groAving season. 



The Orangeburg fine sandy loam is particularly adapted to uplanc 

 cotton, being equaled in efficiency only by the Black Prairie soils. 

 Yields of two-fifths of a bale to one bale per acre are secured, and 

 the general average for the type is in the vicinity of one-half bale per 

 acre. The average production of the type may be considerably in- 

 creased by the general adoption of proper methods of the preparatioi 



