A 
however, maintains (I. c. p. 123) that saline soil must be washed 
for two winters before it is fit to be tilled. 
Batpak or Batkak, according to CHOROSHKIN (cited by 
MuskETOW p. 655), must be closely related to Ssor. These 
are swampy depressions with efflorescent salts, and they are 
nearly always found by salt-lakes and may be partly covered 
by water. It must be areas of this kind which Borszczow 
Fig. 3. To the left Salt-desert with scattered Halostachys caspica. The 
soil to the right of the mound has been irrigated once and is covered with 
a thick growth of Aeluropus littoralis. Near Buchara in May. 
has described as “Salt-deserts” and whose brilliancy of co- 
lour he admires so much. Antonow’s “Swamp-lakes” must 
also be of this same type. 
If the above assumptions are correct, Batpak must be 
more swampy than Ssor. Only near Chiwa have I seen 
salt-swamps which can be classed in this category. These 
are small, shallow, stinking salt-lakes, surrounded by a snowy- 
white salt-steppe which is flat or slightly undulating. The 
salt-plain is similar to the Ssor described above, and has 
large tracts without any plants, but in most of the depres- 
sions are found fresh green groups of Salicornia or Halimocnemis. 
