18 MUCK CROPS 



tation continues to flourish, being composed 

 of soft maple, red elm, and shrubbery. May 

 mosses and ferns are abundant, but sphag- 

 num moss is lacking. 



The top stratum is composed of a spongy 

 muck, very light in weight, therefore easily 

 blown away. Windbreaks of cedars and 

 poplars have been planted to check the dam- 

 age wrought by the winds. A large part of 

 this muck is partially decomposed wood, 

 easily cut with any sharp instrument, as a 

 spade or shovel. In the cultivated portion, 

 the surface is black, well adapted to all kinds 

 of vegetables. 



In the western part of the swamp, in the 

 town of Cicero, the surface conditions are 

 entirely different from those of the drained 

 portion north of Canastota. Here are found 

 arbor vitae, scrub pine, tamarack, and other 

 shrubbery typical of a cedar swamp. The 

 muck is deep, 6 to 8 feet, underlain by marl, 

 but from its tree growth it might not give 

 as good satisfaction as the muck north of 

 Canastota. 



At South Lima, N. Y., is a body of muck 

 about 575 acres in extent. Very little of the 

 original growth is left, most of the land being 



