SOIL SURVEY OF WRIGHT COUNTY, IOWA. 41 



The principal industry in Wright County is agriculture. It con- 

 sists mainly of grain farming combined with the raising and fat- 

 tening of live stock. The chief crops are corn, oats, and hay. Hog 

 raising is the most important live-stock industry. Many carloads 

 of cattle and a few of sheep are shipped in annually and fattened 

 for market. 



There were 1,927 farms in the county January 1, 1920, having an 

 average size of 178.8 acres. In recent years tenant farms have 

 rapidly increased in number. At present only 45.5 per cent of the 

 farms are operated by owners. 



Substantial homes and auxiliary farm buildings are found in the 

 county. Rural mail and telephone service is good. Excellent rural 

 schools are accessible to all communities. 



Farm lands bring a cash rent of $7 to $15 an acre and sell for 

 $160 to $400 an acre, depending on improvements and location. 



The soils of Wright County are classed in nine series and are 

 represented by 16 types, including Peat and Muck. They are pre- 

 vailingly dark brown to black in color, and loams in texture. The 

 Carrington, Webster, and Clarion series occupy the upland division. 



The Carrington loam is one of the more extensive types in the 

 county. It is particularly adapted to corn and oats. Timothy, 

 clover, wheat, and barley are also grown. The Carrington sandy 

 loam and fine sandy loam occur in the niorainic region in areas of Car- 

 rington loam. These soils are rather loose and open, lighter colored, 

 contain less organic matter, and are generally less productive than the 

 heavier types. 



The Webster soils, which are first in extent, are black in color, 

 productive and durable. They occupy the broad, level prairies and 

 all require artificial drainage for maximum production. When well 

 drained they are the strongest and most productive soils in the 

 county. The silty clay loam lies in the flat, poorly drained depres- 

 sions, many of which were formerly sloughs or ponded areas. The 

 Webster loam is gently undulating to gently rolling and has better 

 natural drainage. These soils are characteristically calcareous. 



The Clarion loam is a heavy, dark-brown to black, mellow soil, 

 very productive, and better drained than the Webster soils. The 

 soil profile is similar to the Carrington loam to a depth of 30 to 

 34 inches, where a yellowish-gray calcareous layer is encountered. 



The alluvial second-bottom, or terrace, types are included in the 

 O'Neill, Buckner, Waukesha, Fargo, and Bremer series. 



The O'Neill loam, Buckner loam, and Waukesha loam have a 

 rather loose, open structure, and crops thereon are subject to injury 

 in prolonged droughts. All staple crops are grown and in normal 

 seasons give good yields, though slightly lower, than yields on the 

 upland types. 



