180 AGRICULTURE IN ALASKA 



to 10 per cent of organic matter, but seldom more. If these soils are so 

 situated as to be well drained, they should be capable of producing enor- 

 mous crops, and with an abundant and well-distributed rainfall they 

 would be adapted to almost any kind of crop suited to the general climatic 

 conditions of that portion of the country. 



In several places complaints were heard of a decided acidity 

 of the soil, but no definite information could be secured relating 

 to it. In one place the addition of a large amount of lime to a 

 small plat had corrected the evil complained of. 



Peat formations are of considerable extent in southeastern 

 Alaska. In the southwestern portion of the country volcanic 

 material adds to the fertility and porosity of the soil in many 

 places. In the Cook Inlet region the drainage is usually good, 

 the soil overlying deep deposits of gravel. Another character- 

 istic soil formation is that which is so conspicuously illustrated 

 by the tide flats of the Copper and Stikine rivers. These places 

 are more or less marshy and are subject to overflow at high tides. 

 Where protected from the encroachment of the sea and suffi- 

 ciently drained they are generally considered as very productive 

 soils. 



In the southeastern portion of Alaska the Sitkan spruce (Picea 

 sitchensis) and the hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana) abound, now one 

 and then the other predominating. They grow from tidewater 

 to timber line, an elevation varying from 2,000 to 4,000 feet, and 

 in some places the trees attain considerable size. Specimens of 

 the Sitkan spruce were seen that were at least 8 feet in diameter 

 and probably more than 200 feet high. Logs of this species were 

 seen at the Wrangell saw-mill that approximated 100 feet in 

 length, with an average diameter of more than 4 feet. At differ- 

 ent places in the southeastern region the so-called red and yellow 

 cedar (Thuja gigantea and Chamsecyparis nootkatensis) abound, 

 usually at some little elevation from the sea, although trees of 

 considerable size were seen almost at sea level. Seldom do these 

 trees occur in such abundance as to wholly exclude other species. 

 Another spruce ( Tsuga pattoni) was observed, but not in great 

 abundance. But a single species of pine (Pinus contorta) was 

 seen, and that was almost invariably found on the flats or on the 

 edge of bogs. Two species of alder (Alnus oregona and A. viridis) 

 were common along the streams and on the mountain sides 

 where snowslides have swept away the dense growth of moss 

 and conifers. Willows are common, but seldom were they seen 

 to attain the dignity of trees. 



