234 



FARMERS' REGISTER— THE RED LANDS. 



soil and of farming which most readily attract a 

 stranger's notice, by the contrast to what he has 

 known elsewhere — and will be either very concise, 

 or omitted altogether, on the subjects fully ex- 

 plained in this report, to which I shall frequently 

 refer. 



The Southwest Mountains, f()rm the.. most 

 eastern range in Virginia, running parallel with 

 the next, and far more elevated Blue Ridge. 

 They li^rm what may be ternuul the back bone ot 

 the body of "red land" which stretches some 

 miles on both sides, of various widths and irregu- 

 lar outline, and running sometimes abrupdy, and 

 at others gradually into the "gray land," as the 

 soils didijrently colored are called. The red soil 

 seems remarkable for the very srnall portion of si- 

 licious sand which it contains, compared to the ar- 

 gillaceous part, or the pure matter of clay. Twice 

 OF thrice asiiiuch sand alone, would not prevent a 

 soil being very close, 'water holding,'adhesive vvhen 

 wet, and intractible and" ditficult to manage both 

 when wet dnd dry. But the red clay soil of Al- 

 bemarle, is (for a clay soil) remarkable for its being 

 permeable by rain, produces fine corn, (a crop to 

 Avhich stitf soils are so unti'iendly,) and is not diffi- 

 cult to plough, if taken in a proper state as to 

 moisture. Nor is this state rare — for the soil ab- 

 sorbs rain, and permits its evaporation, so readiU^, 

 that it soOn becomes fit fiir the plough after a tho- 

 rough wetting. The subsoil differs very little in 

 appearance li-om the upper soil, where ditches or 

 gullies jiermitted it to be seen several feet below 

 the surface. But though there seems to be so little 

 of silicious sand imhis soil, (judging altogether by 

 appearances,) there .are other ingredients which 

 ser\^e a better purpose in keeping the soil open. 

 These are argillaceous gravel, and snui.ll particles 

 of soil iron ore, or particles of earth combined with 

 iron in some form, and forming in size aiid tex- 

 ture a sort of gravel in small and soft . lum;"s. . Tn 

 a recently ploughed corn field of Mr. John Ro- 

 gers' on which a'heavy rain had lately fidlen and 

 swept the surface considerably, I observed in every 

 Httle depression many round particles, which ap- 

 peared in size and form like small shot coated with 

 red clay. These were the particles of iron earth 

 Avhich, when mashed, were found to be black, or 

 very dark within. It is the decomposition of the 

 rocks containing "iron which give to the soil its 

 brilliant deep red color. To lowlanders, this red- 

 ness of the soil at first appears as an- indication 

 of actual or approaching sterilityj because their 

 surface soil is never red, and the subsoil Avhich is 

 so, (though never so red as the land of Albe- 

 marle,) is rtiade visible by being washed into galls 

 and g.illi.'s, and is quite barren. For this reason, g, 

 visiter who first sees this land Avill generally un- 

 d'vrate its worth. The whole ploughed surface 

 of a hill-side appears like a bare and barren red 

 gall — and there ars plenty of gullies on the st "p 

 lands which have been managed injudiciously, to 

 aid to tlllfs unfavorable impression of the slight 

 observer. Besides, the tnain road is generally on 

 the lower land, and the traveller looks upwards at 

 the fields which are on the sloping hills on each 

 side — and this exposes every gulley to full view, 

 and keeps concealed the great exient of rich land. 

 But much as this hilly land has been caused to 

 wash and gulley by careless management, no 

 where is this loss of soil move easily and profitably 

 rej)aired. From the ease with which naked wash- 



ed galls and deep gullies have been converted to 

 rich soil, by vegetable matter, clover and gypsum, 

 as well as fi-om the similarity of appearance and 

 texture, it would seem that in fiict there was not 

 much didierence between the soil at the surface, 

 and at the depth of some feet. All this red land 

 was naturally rich, and the mountains to their 

 summits are as rich as the lower and more gentle 

 ! slopes. Still however, their steepness near the 

 i tops, and the increasing quantity of stone scatter- 

 I ed over the surface, render the mountain sunimits 

 I less profitable for tillage; and the greater part re- 

 I main under their original growth of trees. Nor 

 I can the mountain steeps be made as profitable for 

 I grazing, as their richness would indicate, and as 

 would be the case if the soil was limestone, or cal- 

 careous. The red soil is not friendly to gmss ia 

 general; and in dry seasons," stock on the mouil- 

 tains Avould sufl'er for water as well as tor grass. 

 The adaptation of the soil to clover, which might 

 be deemed a contradiction to this assertion, seems 

 to be caused by gy])sum, and the peculiar fitness 

 of the soil for the action of that manure. 



But rich as were the red lands originallj^, their 

 general steejmess, aided by tobacCo culture, shal- 

 low and bad ploughing, &c. had caused a general 

 and great deterioration of the old cleared lands, by 

 exhausting, and still more by washing away the 

 soil. The same system, if:persevered in as long 

 as similar causes were pursued in the low country, 

 would have ruined these lands, if they were capa- 

 ble of being ruined. Fortunately, some judicious 

 agriculturists commenced a reformation which has 

 gradually extended through this neighborhood; 

 and wherever it has operated full}', has served to 

 restore richness to the surface, and to exhibit the 

 most beautiful country that I have ever seen. The 

 use of clo^'er and gypsum is the main, indeed al- 

 most the sole means for this renovation — for with- 

 out them, the benefits of collected manures and 

 improved tillage would avail but littl&- Deep 

 plouffhing and coultering, (which seem to be uni- 

 versally approved, if not universall}' practiced,) 

 and the use of hori:^ontal rows for tillage, have 

 checked the disposition of the soil to wash, and 

 the old gullies have disappeared on the most im- 

 proved farms. 



As -may be supposed of lands which form the 

 slopes of a range of niountains, the red lands are 

 generally killyt but there are also many extensive 

 levels through which small streams flow, and 

 which hav-e almost the appearance of alluvial flats, 

 in comparison to the surrounding hills. These 

 jjieces are at least as level as any one ia ould de-" 

 sire, and more productive on the average of sea- 

 sons, than the richer but less safe James River 

 loAV o-rounds. The hilHness of the surface gene- 

 rally, liowever objectionable for' cultivation, adds 

 greatly to the beauty of the landscape. Except 

 the mountain tops, the country is generally cleared: 

 and from. an elevated position, the observer has 

 within view a wide sweep of hill and valley, alike 

 covered with rich crops of clover and corn, or 

 fields now studded thickly with wheat shocks, 

 sho^^■ing an abundant harvest. The beauty and 

 richness of the landscape more than compensate 

 for the total absence of the sublimity and grandeur 

 which characterize the scenery of more rugged 

 and elevated mountairus. 



So much for general remark. Mv more partic- 

 ular observati^ons (if any deserve that name) were 



