108 * RURAL NEW YORK 



arc large areas of the Merrimac series. In the Cham- 

 phiin Valley they reach up to the foot of the steep 

 slopes that rise to the mountains. The deep water 

 deposits which predominate through the region, ex- 

 cept near the shore, are silt and clay of a light brown 

 color. They give rise to the clay loam and silt loam 

 types. These form a broad, fiat to gently undulating 

 surface, and coupled with the compact character of 

 the subsoil this surface feature produces large areas 

 of wet land in need of under-drainage. The common 

 practice is to use shallow surface ditches for drain- 

 age, which are very inefficient. Many of these are 

 formed by plowing the land in narrow beds a rod 

 or two in width with a broad " dead furrow " be- 

 tween. 



The utilization of the soils and the general agri- 

 cultural development of this region is handicapped 

 by the short season and by the limited transportation 

 facilities. The seasons are further shortened, es- 

 pecially on the flat heavy soils, by the poor drainage. 

 Better under-drainage, coupled with the development 

 of special money crops such as potatoes, in addition 

 to dairying, and the adjustment of the systems of 

 farming more effectively to those practices will pro- 

 duce better results from the land. 



THE HUDSON VALLEY REGION 



Both the soil conditions and the agricultural de- 

 velopment of the Hudson Valley region may be de- 

 fined by the word " piecemeal," and so they must 

 continue in view of the predominance of those 



