SOIL SUEVEY OF THE REDDING AREA, CALIFORNIA, 13 



good orchard land is now for sale, and when offered high prices are 

 asked. Unimproved land suitable for alfalfa, truck crops, or orchard 

 crops can be secured at moderate prices. In the Happy Valley dis- 

 trict wooded land well adapted to the production of peaches, grapes, 

 or other products of the section can be secured at a cost of $10 to 

 $15 or more an acre. While the expense of clearing off the brush and 

 timber is high, store wood commands good prices and will in many 

 cases repay the cost of clearing. 



In the Happy Valley district the size of the farms and orchards is 

 generally small, often consisting of 10, 20, or 40 acres, while in the 

 Anderson Valley and other sections some of the orchard lands are 

 held in larger tracts of 200 acres or more. The average size of farms 

 in Shasta County, according to the United States census for 1900, 

 was 284.3 acres, 77.1 per cent of wliich were operated by the owners. 



In order to increase profits from fruit production, clean and fre- 

 quent cultivation is necessary so as to conserve soil moisture during 

 the long diy season. Upon the shallower soils of the uplands this 

 is of particular importance, and it is believed some of the failures 

 in the growing of vines and trees might have been avoided had a 

 more thorough sj'stem of tillage been followed. The control of dis- 

 eases and insect pests by pruning and spraying is also necessary in 

 successful fruit production. 



SOILS. 



The soils of the Redding area fall into three natural divisions, viz, 

 the soils of the uplands, of the valley slopes, and of the stream bot- 

 toms. These natural divisions are based upon phj^siographic, geo- 

 logic, and agricultural differences, although sharp lines of demarca- 

 tion do not always exist. 



As previously stated, the upland section of the area is elevated 

 somewhat above the Sacramento and minor stream valleys. It is 

 rolling or sloping in character and is dissected by narrow, flat- 

 bottomed gulches and valleys. Except in the vicinity of the Still- 

 water Plains, the uplands are generally wooded or covered with 

 brush. The section is naturalh' well drained and somewhat subject 

 to erosions, with consequent loss of organic matter and of the finer 

 mineral materials. The soils, however, are rather llea^y in texture 

 and are underlain by dense, compact subsoils containing a large 

 percentage of plastic, tenacious clay and more or less indurated 

 hardpan, which, together with the usual protective covering and the 

 admixture of roots, native grasses, and leaves from forest vegeta- 

 tion, resist the wearing action of water coursing down the slopes. 



The soils of the uplands are of deep-red color, gravelly, and in cer- 

 tain sections carry considerable quantities of cobbles and small 

 bowlders. The gravels and cobbles are largely igneous and meta- 

 morphic material and are usually well rounded or flattened. 



