REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR AND STATE GEOLOGIST 1903 27 



the lake and river swamps, but get a large part of the moisture 

 necessary for their formation from a humid atmosphere. In some 

 cases springs may furnish the supply of water; and in the case 

 of some swamps in glacial kettles the only apparent supply is 

 rain water. 



PART 2 



Classification of peat based on vegetation 

 Somewhat dependent on the differences in inundated lands is 

 the classification of peat based on the variety of plants which 

 go to make up the mass. Though no large mass of peat is made 

 up of any one kind of vegetation; yet a general distinction can 

 be drawn which is based on the most important class of plants 

 present. The following classification is given by Wagner:^ (1) 

 "bog peat consisting principally of species of sphagnum; (2) 

 heath peat, formed chiefly from the roots and stems of Erica and 

 Calluna; (3) meadow peat, formed principally from grass and 

 sedges; (4) forest or wood peat, formed from the wood of trees; 

 (5) sea peat, formed from sea weeds." 



Some difficulty is encountered in referring some of the New 

 York deposits to any one of these classes, because of the many im- 

 portant varieties of vegetation present in the same swamp. There 

 is no difficulty in referring the Montezuma marshes to the third 

 class, inasmuch as they are principally composed of cat-tails and 

 grasses; but in the case of the Cicero and Oak Orchard swamps 

 and the Drowned Lands of the Wallkill, it is decidedly a question ; 

 borings bring up pieces of wood from all depths, and the surface 

 is covered with a luxuriant growth of trees, but at the same time 

 sphagnum and other mosses form a dense carpet, which rapidly 

 covers any fallen trees and may furnish a greater amount of 

 material than the trees. Shrubs and heath plants are also found, 

 so that these swamps seem to be filled with a more composite 

 deposit than is indicated by any of the classes given by Wagner. 



Classification of peat based on physical condition 

 Another classification that has been used is based on the differ- 

 ence in texture of the upper and lower layers of the deposit. 



^Wagner, Rudolph. Manual of Chemical Technology. 



