102 RURAL NEW YORK 



true of the black loam. It grades off to the adjacent 

 series on the plateau to the south and to the moun- 

 tain soils on the north. It is preeminently a grain, 

 hay and dairy region, largely because of the character 

 of the climate under which it occurs. 



The glacial lake soils exhibit a greater diversity in 

 the character of the types, but a greater uniformity in 

 series characteristics than the glacial till soils. All 

 tlie glacial formations and all the rock formations of 

 the region were drawn on by the waters of these lakes 

 and by the streams flowing into them for the material 

 that was strewn over the bottom of the lakes. This 

 general uniformity of the soil material is most notice- 

 able in the former beds of larger lakes. Those are 

 adjacent to the present shores of the Great Lakes. 



The soils formed in the higrh-level lakes that occu- 

 pied the first hollows at the south front of the ice 

 exhibit somewhat more diversity since the material 

 brought in by the streams was more local. However, 

 this is rather a fading out of the typical character of 

 the larger lake deposits than a definite change in 

 character. 



The most widely developed lake formed series is 

 the Dunkirk and is made up of light brown or yel- 

 low to chocolate brown material that ranges from 

 heavy clay to light sand and gravel. The sand, in 

 small areas, is so clean as to be blown about freely 

 by the wind. As has been indicated, the material 

 represents the assorted wash of all the adjacent 

 higher formations. South of Lake Ontario, the soil 

 has a decided pinkish tinge, probably due to the in- 



