54 BULLETIN 142, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
The Miami loam is chiefly developed in southern Michigan, with 
large areas in about the same latitude in Wisconsin. The occur- 
rence of this type in the more northern sections affects its crop uses, 
and it is probable that the largest acreage is annually devoted to 
hay production. Corn is second in acreage and oats are third. The 
area devoted to the production of winter wheat is next to that used 
for oats. The yields of all of these crops are good. Corn probably 
averages something more than 40 bushels per acre. Hay produces 
about 1J tons. Oats yield an average of about 40 bushels per acre. 
The average wheat yield is about 15 bushels. Rye and barley also 
are grown, giving good average yields. Beans constitute the most 
important special crop, being extensively grown upon the Miami 
loam in southern Michigan. The average yield per acre is about 
15 bushels. Potatoes are grown chiefly for home use, but a surplus 
is annually marketed, and the type might well become an important 
potato-producing soil. Orchard fruits are grown in favored locali- 
ties, chiefly for home use. Both in Michigan and Wisconsin the 
dany industry is w T ell developed on the Miami loam. The crops grown 
are well suited to dairy feeding, nearly all of the farms include some 
land best suited to permanent pasturage, and the climatic conditions 
are suitable for the manufacture of butter and cheese. In connection 
with the dairy industry, some hogs are fattened. In the bean-grow- 
ing region sheep also are raised. But few beef cattle are kept on 
this type. 
The Miami silt loam has been mapped chiefly in Indiana and Ohio. 
Large areas are also found in the southern part of Wisconsin under 
similar climatic conditions. The larger areas of the type lie well 
within the " corn belt " and this crop occupies the largest acreage on 
the Miami silt loam. All of the better drained portions of the type 
are well suited to corn production, and the average yield obtained is 
in the neighborhood of 40 bushels per acre. It is an important corn- 
producing soil although the average yields secured from it are fre- 
quently exceeded by those produced on the darker colored soils asso- 
ciated with it. There is a general tendency over the entire type to 
produce as large an acreage of corn as is possible each year. The 
acreages given to oats and to hay are almost equal over a considerable 
part of the Miami silt loam. In the more southern regions of its 
occurrence the climatic conditions are not especially favorable for 
oat production, but near its northern limits, as in Wisconsin, this 
crop thrives and the largest acreage sown to grain is annually de- 
voted to oats. The average yield produced under all conditions of 
climate and soil is about 40 bushels per acre. The yields in southern 
latitudes are generally less than those secured farther north. The hav 
grown on the Miami silt loam is chiefly mixed timothy and red clover, 
although some localities produce clover alone. The average yields 
