FARMING IN LEICESTERSHIRE 49 
(2) Westward of Charnwood Forest and extending across the western 
boundary of the county into Derbyshire, the coal measures, with 
their accompanying beds of grit, shale and limestone, form the 
region known as the Leicestershire Coalfield. 
(3) ‘ Red Rocks’ of Triassic age form much of the land north, east, 
south, and south-west of Charnwood, covering, in fact, the greater 
part of the western half of the county. The river Soar may be 
regarded as the eastern boundary of this division. 
(4) In the eastern half of the county, stiff bluish clays of Liassic age 
preponderate, with a hard bed of marlstone, whilst above them 
in the extreme north-east, and in one or two outlying patches else- 
where, sand and limestone of Lower Oolitic age are found. 
(5) Lastly, scattered in varying thickness and with great irregularity 
over all the rocks mentioned, there are beds of clay, gravel, and 
sand, with occasional boulders of varying size which are described 
as ‘ Drift —relics of the last glacial period, or Great Ice Age, 
when the Midlands were covered with sheets of ice. The alluvial 
deposits in the valleys of the main rivers are extensive and give 
rise to fairly rich soils which are liable to repeated and extensive 
flooding. 
GEOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS. 
The nature, composition, and arrangement of the underlying rocks 
have a most important bearing upon the formation of soils as well as 
their subsequent cultivation. The average rainfall of the Midland area 
is by no means high, and the general topography of Leicestershire is that 
of a gently undulating county, which only rarely exceeds 600 feet above 
sea-level. ‘Though the county does not possess many large rivers it has 
a large number of well-distributed small streams of great value to the 
farming industry ; these serve as tributaries to the Soar, Welland, and 
Wreake, which are the main rivers in the county. It should be noted, 
however, that at certain points on the county boundary the rivers Trent 
and Avon are reached, though only over limited distances, 
SOILS OF THE COUNTY. 
The soils of the best grazing area are varied. The eastern half of 
Leicestershire and part of Northants and Warwick lie chiefly upon the 
lower Lias clay, and soils from this formation are to be found in the 
valleys, as in the Vale of Belvoir, where many excellent pastures lying 
directly on the Lias clay are to be seen. ‘The outcrops of the middle 
and upper Lias generally appear upon the gently rising slopes and summits 
of the rounded hills. Over the whole of the Lias formation, and especially 
in the more elevated parts of this roughly defined Midland area, varying 
expanses of boulder clay are met with and patches of glacial drift are not 
uncommon. ‘These give rise to soils of a sandy and gravelly character, 
usually supporting a herbage of only moderate quality, but generally 
making good land for the rearing and growth of store cattle and sheep ; 
and occasionally the best of this type of land will fatten heifers quite 
satisfactorily. 
D 
