48 the farmers' handbook. 



The continued use of such water, if allowed to lie on the land, would in 

 course of time prove detrimental, and soils have been examined where the 

 land has been thus flooded without drainage, or any attempt to correct the 

 alkali present, which have shown as much as -9 per cent, alkali, and exhibit 

 all the peculiarities described by American writers as characterising their 

 alkali deserts. 



Speaking generally, if this kind of water has to be used, it should be 

 employed with judgment, and care should be taken in the selection of such 

 crops as are most capable of resisting the action of these salts. This, 

 combined with a system of drainage wherever practicable, good tillage, and 

 the use in some cases of substances known to correct the alkali, such as 

 gypsum on the soil or in the water, will probably enable such water to be 

 utilised with advantage on these soils. 



Lucerne Soils. 



The soils from which the average given in the table on page 33 has been 

 calculated are from the Hunter River district (Maitland and Branxton), 

 from the South Coast (Shoalhaven River Flats, near Nowra, Milton, and 

 Tilba Tilba), and from Bathurst. 



They are all good lucerne country on which this crop is successfully culti- 

 vated, and may be taken as being representative of the best lucerne land in 

 the State. They are friable clay soils, some containing as much as 80 to 90 

 per cent, clay, the lowest having 60 per cent. At the same time lucerne can 

 be profitably cultivated on lighter soils, and if irrigation is practised, a 

 much lighter soil is preferable. They are fairly rich in mineral plant-food, 

 particularly in lime, an ingredient which is of the first importance in 

 lucerne-growing. It will be noticed that although the percentage of organic 

 matter (humus) is not particularly high (it is low compared with the soils 

 from Dorrigo and Richmond River) the nitrogen content is good. This is 

 largely due to the faculty possessed by lucerne, in common with other legu- 

 minous crops, of obtaining its nitrogen directly from the air, and thus 

 actually enriching the soil in this ingredient. 



The growth of lucerne depends less upon the physical and chemical nature 

 of the soil than upon the presence of moisture and room for the development 

 of the root system. The root system of a good, well-established lucerne plant 

 is enormous, and has been traced to a depth of over 30 feet. 



The most satisfactory position is, therefore, along watercourses, or on the 

 banks of rivers and creeks, where the roots can extend freely downwards to 

 the water. 



In such situations fairly heavy rich soils give the best results, provided 

 they are friable and contain a sufficiency of lime. Under irrigation, as ha3 

 been said, it will do well in much lighter, even sandy soils. 



Wheat Soils. 



The soils taken as typical of wheat land (page 35) are from the Riverina 

 district. There is no striking peculiarity about their chemical composition, 

 and they are very similar to other soil samples taken from the Riverina. 

 They are generally fairly heavy loams to clay loams. The most suit- 

 able soil for wheat under our climatic conditions, is a free loam overlying a 

 clayey subsoil. Such a soil is easily worked, while the stiff subsoil retains the 

 moisture, Wheat does not require heavy manuring. The usual practice of 

 applying a small quantity of superphosphate with the seed is a sufficient 



