IMPROVING HEAVY SOILS. 43 



growth of swamp plants which the streams have currently 

 overflowed in flood times or over which they have risen 

 daily as the tide wall has held back their waters. This 

 organic matter from the aquatic plants is in various 

 stages of decomposition, but in the best of the lands has 

 been reduced to fineness by cultivation after the floods 

 and tides have been excluded by levees, or by natural 

 barriers interposed by stream or wave action, or by re- 

 cession of lake waters according as the situation is on the 

 coast or distant interior. This light but very deep and 

 rich soil especially suits some plants and is the basis 

 of some of our export vegetable business, as for instance, 

 celery growing. Such soils are of course used locally for 

 all esculent plants which thrive upon them and which 

 the market favors. Such lands are in vast area in many 

 parts of the State, from near the ocean to the margins 

 of interior rivers and lakes and waters of interior plateaux 

 as well. In the heat of the interior valley they dry 

 out very rapidly when seepage or overflow from streams 

 and sloughs is cut off by levees. They are non-retentive, 

 owing to the coarseness of their structure, but irrigation is 

 easily accomplished, as will be noted in the proper con- 

 nection. 



IMPROVEMENT OF SOIL TEXTURE FOR 

 GARDENING. 



Aside from such treatment of the soil as is designed to 

 increase its fertility, which will be considered in the 

 chapter on fertilizing, it seems fitting in this connection 

 to suggest measures by which the texture of the soil may 

 be improved when necessary. This is important in the 

 farm garden because there may not be anything approach- 

 ing an ideal garden soil inside the line fences. But this 

 fact should not discourage the home gardener, as has 

 already been intimated. 



If one observes the operations of market gardeners or 

 reads any treatise on gardening written for the older 



