FORAGE CROPS FOR THE SAND-HILL SECTION OF NEBRASKA. 5 



TOPOGRAPHY OF THE SAND-HILL AREA. 



The northern and western parts of this sand-hill area, lying in the 

 counties of Holt, Rock, Brown, Cherry, Sheridan, Morrill, Garden, 

 and Grant, are characterized as the " wet-valley region." In this 

 region the valleys follow a general east-and-west direction and are 

 usually quite broad and flat at the eastern or lowest end, which in 

 most cases contains a shallow lake of varying dimensions, the largest 

 of these being Dad's Lake, which is 4 to 6 miles long and 1 to 2 miles 

 broad. In wet seasons the lakes increase in size and in dry seasons 

 the smaller ones disappear entirely. Although in periods of extreme 

 drought, like that of 189-4, very few of the large lakes dry up com- 

 pletely, their varying size renders the area of the hay meadows 

 which surround them inconstant. 



Fig. 



A blow-out near Alliance, Nebr 



The dry- valley region occupies most of the sand-hill section out- 

 side of the counties just named. It lies south of the former, and its 

 distinguishing characteristic is its more abrupt and narrower valleys 

 interspersed with ridges of sand hills. These valleys also are inclined 

 in a general east-and-west direction, contain some fairly good soil in 

 the bottoms, and have underground drainage sufficient to remove the 

 surplus Abater. This dry-valley region grades insensibly into more 

 irregular and choppy sand hills, which have no well-defined valleys 

 between them and which contain little or no soil suitable for agricul- 

 tural purposes. These choppy sand hills are found south of Thed- 

 ford and Halsey in Thomas County, between the Middle Loup and 

 Dismal Rivers. They are entirely useless for agricultural purposes 

 other than grazing. On the tops of many of the hills are irregular 

 conical depressions in the loose, shifting sand, locally knoAvn as 

 " blow-outs." These depressions, swept out and kept clear of vegeta- 



[Cir. 80] 



