SOIL SURVEY OF PINELLAS COUNTY, FLORIDA. 329 
and proper methods of management it would prove the most valu¬ 
able of any of the soils for truck growing. 
SWAMP. 
In the survey of Pinellas County the term Swamp has been con¬ 
fined to the low-lying soils along stream courses and around the 
larger inland bodies of water. Other wet, swampy, and poorly 
drained areas forming cypress ponds, bays, bay heads, and sand 
ponds have been classified as other types of soil. 
The Swamp areas are subject to overflow and are more or less 
wet the greater part of the year. They support a water-loving 
vegetation, consisting mainly of cypress, with cabbage palmetto, 
gum, swamp maple, bay, myrtle, alder, and numerous vines. 
The extent of Swamp is small, the largest areas occurring along 
Brooker Creek and its tributaries and around Lake Butler and Lake 
Largo. 
Swamp soil is rich in organic matter and may consist of mucky 
black sand, Muck, or Peat. The subsoil varies from a white or 
black sand to drab or dark-colored fine sandy clay. 
The areas of Swamp have no agricultural value, on account of 
the impracticability of draining them. Location and the character 
of cypress growing on it determine the prices asked for land of this 
kind. 
COASTAL BEACH. 
The Coastal beach includes strips of white and light-gray sand 
containing varying amounts of shells and shell fragments, occupying 
a position along the water front. These areas, which owe their for¬ 
mation to the action of waves and tides, have no' agricultural value 
at present. 
The keys or islands lying off the mainland are the largest and 
most important areas. The higher elevations, which are modified 
by wind action, support a scattering growth of pine, cabbage pal¬ 
metto, scrub palmetto, and a number of salt' grasses. The side of 
these islands bordering the bay is usually lower than the side border¬ 
ing the Gulf, and here mangrove bushes grow in profusion. Many 
of the smaller islands are only slightly elevated above water and 
are covered with a dense growth of mangrove. 
At Green Springs a low, narrow ridge consisting almost en¬ 
tirely of oyster shells has been included in this classification. The 
