COTTON SOILS AND CLIMATIC ADAPTATIONS 75 



from southwestern Tennessee across the entire west^n 

 border of Mississippi into Louisiana. 



The Memphis silt loam is the principal cotton soil of the 

 Loessial region. The top soil is about 8 inches deep and 

 powdery when dry. The subsoil is a "yellowish-brown 

 or reddish-yellow compact heavy silt loam or silty clay 

 loam." As this soil occupies uplands, it is subject to 

 serious erosion. It produces good yields of cotton. 



84. Cotton soils of the River Flood Plains Province. — 

 The soils of this province occupy the present flood plains 

 or "first bottoms" and also the old flood plains or "second 

 bottoms" of streams of that portion of the United States 

 lying east of the Great Plains Region. These soils are 

 composed of alluvial deposits washed from the uplands 

 and deposited by overflow waters. In general, the soils 

 of this province are very fertile where properly drained. 

 The most important cotton soils of this group are briefly 

 described below. 



The Miller fine sandy loam and clay are important cotton 

 soils found in the valleys of those rivers which rise in the 

 Permian Red Beds such as the Brazos, Arkansas, and Red 

 Rivers. They represent the wash from these Red Beds. 

 The fine sandy loam is grayish brown or reddish in color 

 and is 12 to 24 inches deep. It is weU drained and is an 

 excellent cotton soil. The miller clay to a depth of 10 

 inches is brownish red or chocolate colored. The subsoil 

 is very stiff and tenacious. This soil represents the finest 

 materials brought down from the Permian Red Beds and 

 constitutes a strong cotton soil. 



The Trinity clay is a productive cotton soil occupying 

 rather level bottoms along the streams "in and issuing 

 from the calcareous prairies of the Gulf Coastal Plain." 

 This soil is easily puddled if worked while wet. Good 



