THE JNTERIOK PLATEAU REGION. 



17 



Soils. — In Little Lake Valley and Sherwood Valley the soil appears 

 to have been formed by delta deposition in the bed of small mountain 

 lakes; it consists of a moist, sandy loam, which is deep, exceedingly 

 fertile, and apparentty well adapted to general farming. 



The following report of analyses of soils from localities about 2 

 miles northeast of Willits (probably in Little Lake Valley) were made 

 in 1891 by Dr. R. II. Loughridge, of the Agricultural Experiment 

 Station at Berkeley. a The samples were received through Mr. S. F. 

 Swortfiguer, of San Francisco, who says: 



A large part of the land from which the samples were taken lies about 22 miles 

 inland from the ocean, and is well sheltered on the west from the coast winds by 

 intervening ridges covered with a heavy growth of redwood timber, and from 

 cold winds from the north by a heavy growth of pine [probably Pinus sabiniana 

 or P. ponclerosd] and fir [Pseudotsuga taxifolia] . The elevation is about 2,000 

 feet above sea level. 



The samples were taken to a depth of 22 inches. 

 Analyses of soils near Willits, Col. 



Constituents. 



No. 1459. 

 Valley 



soil 

 (Home 

 ranch) . 



No. 1460. 



Hill soil 

 (Ham- 

 mond 



ranch). 



No. 1461. 

 Soil ele- 

 vation 



2,000 



feet 

 (Young 

 ranch). 



Coarse materials > 0.5 mm 



Fine earth 



ANALYSIS OF FINE EARTH 



Insoluble matter 



Soluble silica 



Potash (KoO) 



Soda (Na 2 0) 



Lime ( Cat) ) 



Magnesia (MgO) .... 



Manganic oxid (Mn 3 4 ) 



Ferric oxid (Fe 2 3 )--- 



Alumina (AI0O3).-- 



Phosphoric acid ( P2O5) - 



Sulphuric acid (SO3) 



Water and organic matter 



Total.. 



Hygroscopic moisture (absorbed at 15° C.) 



50.00 

 50.00 



55. 55 



13.56 



.76 



.04 



.29 



1.03 



.06 



8.80 



11.95 



.04 



.04 



7.45 



99.57 

 5.27 



50.00 

 5(1.00 



59.50 



9.33 

 .61 

 .05 

 .30 



1.02 



.04 



12.77 



6.97 

 .06 

 .03 



9.25 



50.00 

 50.00 



69.20 



5.57 



1.14 



.09 



.38 



1.61 



.05 



5.53 



9.74 



.06 



.04 



6.30 



99.71 



4.47 



These soils, while of excellent quality as a whole, are rather poor in lime, as 

 compared with others of the State, though not deficient. They share with other 

 California soils a large proportion of potash and a rather low one of phosphoric 

 acid. The latter is doubtless the first deficiency that will make itself felt, unless 

 it be that of humus, which (as the soil was taken to 22 inches depth, instead of 6 

 or 8) could not be determined in the samples. 



As regards field crops, roots and not grain will hold out longest on these soils. 

 They all contain so much gravel that cultivation will not be difficult, and roots, 

 with fair tillage, will find no difficulty in developing. Their moisture absorption 

 is satisfactory. 



a University of California Agricultural Experiment Station: Report for 1891-92, 

 pp. 31-32; report of analyses of soils from near Willits, Mendocino County. 



18766— No. 12—02 2 



