GROWTH OF OAK IN THE OZARKS 5 



is commonly fitted together somewhat in the form of the original 

 rock, but in most places the lower stratum consists of a compact 

 mass of cherty gravel and reddish clay. Rock outcrops and stony 

 cliffs are numerous. In general, the south and west slopes al- 

 ways contain more stones than the north slopes, a condition found 

 in all the gravelly and stony soils of the Ozark Region 



Origin. "The rocks giving rise to the Clarksville stony loam 

 consists mainly of very cherty limestones, with occasional thin 

 beds of sandstone. The resulting soil therefore is very stony and 

 such fine material as is formed is largely washed away."* 



Topography and soil phases. Clarksville stony loam occupies 

 a large per cent of the roughest part of the Ozark Region. The 

 surface is mainly a succession of narrow ridges, alternating with 

 deep ravines. Relative elevations are seldom in excess of 200 

 feet. On some of the broader ridges and northern slopes this 

 soil type gives way to a gravelly loam, the chief distinguishing 

 characteristic being a lower per cent of rock content. At the foot of 

 the longer slopes, along fair sized streams, the finer soil particles 

 from the hills accumulate and form what is known locally as bot- 

 tom land. 



Agriculture and Grazing. Most of the farms have been lo- 

 cated on the better grades of soil. They are found in the bottoms 

 or on the flat ridge tops and extend along the north slopes places 

 where the rock content is lowest. Much of the area occupied by 

 soils of the Clarksville type is too rocky, rough and dry to raise 

 field crops. During favorable seasons yields of 25 bushels of corn, 

 15 bushels of wheat or a ton of hay an acre are attained. Very 

 often, however, the crops are almost complete failures. 



Stock raising has from the earliest settlement of this region 

 contributed largely to the farmers' income. Many localities still 

 contain large areas of wild land usually owned by non-residents 

 and entirely unfenced. Such tracts constitute a free range the area 

 of which is largely increased by the unfenced portion of farms. 



"Most of the range is very poor, especially for cattle In a 



few remote sections of the southern counties cattle still do well 

 on the range. The nature of the range in most parts, however, is 

 such that the production of beef of good quality is out of the ques- 

 tion.'^ 



*M. F. Miller and H. H. Krusekopf, "Soils of Missouri," Bulletin 153, Mo. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



p. 81. 

 tSauer, "The Geography of the Ozark Highland of Missouri," p. 185. 



