ADVANTAGES OF THE SOIL SURVEY. 



From its surveys the Bureau is steadily accumulating- a great mass 

 of information about the various soils found in different parts of the 

 country. This will soon enable it to state accurately what soils are 

 best adapted to the production of "different kinds of cotton, tobacco, 

 corn, wheat, and other staple crops. In many localities crops are 

 being grown on soils which are not adapted to them. Thus, in many 

 States attempts are being made to grow wheat on soils so sandy that 

 only a very low yield can be obtained. In other sections of the coun- 

 try attempts are being made to grow early truck on cold, wet clay 

 soils, which are wholly unsuited to such crops. In some of our tobacco- 

 growing States the farmers are growing an inferior leaf, selling for a 

 low price, on lands which are really adapted to special kinds of 

 tobacco, bringing much higher prices. The influence of soil upon 

 the quality of tobacco is so marked that a fine bright tobacco land may 

 be separated by a few feet from one which will produce only a coarse, 

 heavy, inferior leaf. In the mountain fruit districts of our Southern 

 States certain soils are not only adapted to certain fruits, as apples, 

 peaches, grapes, etc., but distinct soils are recognized as best adapted 

 to single varieties of these fruits. 



An example is the mountain soil (named by the Bureau Porters 

 black loam) which in Virginia is called "Pippin land," because the 

 celebrated Albemarle Pippin does better on it than on any other soil. 

 With the present system of classification and knowledge of these moun- 

 tain soils and their adaptation to different varieties of fruits, the 

 Bureau's soil survey parties can enter any of the mountain areas of 

 our Eastern States and quickly and accurately distinguish the good 

 fruit lands from the poor. To one who wishes to engage in the fruit- 

 growing industry in these fertile mountain regions this information is 

 an insurance against loss from purchasing poor fruit soil, and means 

 a great saving of time and money by rendering unnecessary any experi- 

 ments in planting different varieties on different soils. 



The investigation of important agricultural industries which have 

 been developed on soils with certain characteristics enables the Bureau 

 of Soils to recommend safely the introduction of such industries in 

 other localities where similar soils and climatic conditions prevail. An 

 example of this is the mountain peach industry of western Maryland. 

 It was found that peaches of superior quality and flavor could be grown 

 on some of the stony foothill soils of that section which were worth- 

 less for general farming purposes. The peaches grown here ripen in 

 season to be placed on the market at a time when the supply from 

 other localities is small and prices corresponding!}^ high. Upon 

 extending the soil survey into other parts of Maryland and into the 

 adjoining State of Virginia the Bureau of Soils was able to recom- 

 mend the introduction of the mountain peach industry in a number of 



