t8 
Coi.oRADO Experiment Station 
mther than a nitre- s])ot. The land was planted to sugar beets 
in 1919 but was abandoned because there was a shortage of 
water. 
ANALYSIS WATER-SOLUBLE, SOIL Laboratory No. 2608 
Watei- soluble equaled 6.414 percent of air-dried soil. 
Percent 
Calcic sulfate 17.414 
Magnesic sulfate 44.688 
Potassic sulfate 1.508 
Sodic sulfate 21.842 
Sodic chlorid 9.622 
Sodic nitrate 4.258 
Excess sodic oxid 0.578 
100.000 
Though this sample represents an alkalized soil rather than 
a nitre-one we see that there is a little over one-quarter of one 
percent of nitrates in the^ soil as the sample was taken. The 
striking feature of tliis analysis is the predominance of raag- 
nesic sulfate and the relatively small amount of sodic sulfate. 
The location where we gathered this sample is nearer to 
the Poudre river than any other liere given and it is almost as 
rich in magnesic sulfate as the alkali gathered from the bot- 
tom lands along the river but is poorer in sodic salts. 
These analyses agree in showing the great difference in 
the com]>osition of these soil extracts from that of ordinar>^ 
alkalis. These extracts are characterized by subordinate quan- 
tities of the sodic salts, particularly of the sulfate, by the pres- 
ence of large quantities of calcic and magnesic chlorids and ni- 
trates and by notable quantities of potassic oxid. 
We have given these analyses of soil extracts, in greater 
number than was our original intention, to show that the pres- 
ence of calcic and magnesic chloi^ids and nitrates was not a 
l>eculiarity of the first two sanqiles given, but is characteristic 
of the whole section here considered. 
Two of the sanqiles given are of effloresced alkalis, one of 
them from drained land and while these sanqdes show that 
they represent ordinary alkalis, the mixture of salts is not the 
usual one found, but is rich in magnesic sulfate and also con- 
tains some nitrates. The chlorids in these alkalis are low. The 
drained land from which one of the alkalis was gathered had 
been tilled in 1919 but the crop was a failure. 
CALCIC AND MACNESK^ (^dlLOHII)S 
Reference has been made several times to the occurrence 
of calcic and magnesic chlorids. But the analyses of these soil 
extracts and alkalis may not impress tlie reader as justifying 
