3O THE FIRST BOOK OF FARMING 



clay and humus, the clay existing in quite large 

 quantities, there being a greater preponderance of 

 the clay characteristics than in the clay loams; 

 they are very heavy, sticky, and difficult to manage. 

 Some clay soils are not worth farming. Those that 

 can be profitably tilled are adapted to wheat, corn, 

 hay and pasture. 



Adobe Soils. These are peculiar soils of the dry 

 West. They are mixtures of clay, silt, some sand 

 and large amounts of humus. Their peculiar char- 

 acteristic is that they are very sticky when wet and 

 bake very hard when dry and are, therefore, very 

 difficult to manage, though they are generally very 

 productive when they are moist enough to support 

 crops. 



Swamp Muck is a dark brown or black swamp 

 soil consisting of large amounts of humus or decay- 

 ing organic matter mixed with some fine sand and 

 clay. It is found in low wet places. 



Peat is also largely vegetable matter, consisting 

 of tough roots, partially decayed leaves, moss, etc. 

 It is quite dense and compact and in some regions 

 is used for fuel. 



HOW WERE SOILS MADE? 



As a help in finding the answer to this question 

 collect and examine ~a number of the following or 

 similar specimens : 



Brick. Take pieces of brick and rub them to- 

 gether. A fine powder or dust will be the result. 



