264 IRKIGATION INVESTIGATIONS IN CALIFORNIA. 



citrus fruits, notaVih' near Centerville), alfalfa and grain fields are more or less 

 compactly grouped throughout this region. 



As a southwesterlj- extension of this region the Wildflower country ma}' be 

 named. This is the region originallj^ conmiaiided b}- the Emigrant Canal, lying to 

 the northward of the delta channels of Kings River. Still farther west are the Lib- 

 ertj' and Millrace settlements, and bordering the river, between the main stream on 

 the south and extending bej'ond Cole (or Murphj-) Slough on the north, is the Laguna 

 de Tache Rancho. 



The lands of the Wildflower and Libert}^ districts are for the most part very 

 sand}'. 



The Fresno Swamp lands, of which the area irrigated with Kings River water is 

 becoming notable, have a soil which may be classed as black vegetable mold. Upon 

 either side of the area, which was originallj' tule-covered, and extending far bej'ond 

 the extreme flood limits, is the bad-land strip, strong]}' alkaline, generallj' hog 

 wallow, and not yet worth an^- efl^ort at reclamation. 



The Laguna, de Tache lands, except such portions as fall within the limits of the 

 alkaline belt, are of recent alluvial formation, deep sandy soils predominating. The 

 marginal portion of the rancho, which, with other lands held under one ownership, 

 has an area of about 68,000 acres, lies in the dejta of Kings River, and is traversed 

 by the water courses formed hj the overbank flow toward the north and west from 

 the main channel of the river. 



South of the river, extending southwesterh' from the base of the foothills for a 

 distance of about 15 miles, are the lands watered bj' the 76 Canal. These extend 

 southward to Cottonwood Creek, and westerly almost to the delta region of the 

 river. This district is cut in two bj- the only valley tributary of the river, Wahtoke 

 Creek, which is a small foothill stream that drops into Centerville Bottoms from the 

 southeast, and which is crossed where it leaves the base of the hills by the 76 Canal. 

 The soil of the 76 countrj- is somewhat heavier and in places coarser than that of the 

 Fresno Plains. Most of it, however, is still to be classed as sandj' loam. 



At the western limit of this district and between it and the delta of the river 

 is the broad alkaline belt of waste lands, more or less covered, according to the 

 character of the seasons, with a deep efllorescence of alkaline salts. 



Beyond the alkaline strip lies the southern half or the river's delta, the Mussel 

 Slough countrj', with its fertile alluvial sands, and the broad belt of dark alluvial 

 soil which passes from northeast to southwest centrallj' thi-ough this region. Soils 

 are here deep; hardpan is unknown. The surface of the country- lies almost on a 

 horizontal plane, having a fall of only 2 to 4 feet per mile, southwesterly toward 

 Tulare Lake. 



Except for the fine growth of oaks in the Centerville Bottoms, and the oaks, 

 cottonwoods, and willows skirting the delta channels of Kings River, the entire region 

 under discussion was originally treeless. The soil was but sparsely covered with 

 nutritious grasses; very little other vegetation was to be seen. 



Watoi', wherever applied, has demonstrated the productiveness of the lands, 

 which without it were barely fit for pasturage. 



