30 
SOIL SURVEY OF BUFFALO COUNTY. 
Extent and Distribution. —The Bates silt loam is of small 
extent, the largest areas occurring directly north of Hondovi, 
occupying the sloping land bordering Big Bear Greek Valley, 
along the North Fork of Elk Creek, and the valleys of Big 
Waumandee and Kammuler Creek. Other scattered areas of 
small extent occur in various parts of the survey. 
Topography and Drainage. —The position which the type occu¬ 
pies is intermediate between the Waukesha silt loam of the ter¬ 
races and the Knox silt loam of the highest parts of the country. 
It occupies gentle slopes and even rather rolling upland areas, 
but these are always parallel with the alluvial valleys and imme¬ 
diately bordering them. The type grades into Waukesha silt 
loam on the one hand and Knox silt loam on the other, so that 
there is quite a range in the color of the material. On account 
of the sloping surface, the natural drainage is excellent, while 
the slopes are seldom steep enough to cause any considerable 
damage from erosion. 
Origin. —The silty material composing this type of soil is prob¬ 
ably of residual origin from a shaly phase of the Potsdam forma¬ 
tion or it may be partly loessial. It differs from the Boone silt 
loam principally in its higher organic-matter content. 
Native Vegetation. —The type as a whole is generally known as 
“oak openings,” having been originally timbered with scattered 
clumps of large oak trees, while the intervening spaces were in 
a semiprairie condition, supporting a more or less heavy growth 
of prairie grass. 
Present Agy'icultural Development.* —The Bates silt loam is 
one of the desirable types of soil in the county. Because of its 
great natural fertility, it frequently has been ill used, too little 
attention being given to crop rotation and fertilization. All the 
general crops grown in the region do well on this type, and the 
average yields of some of the crops are considerably higher than 
on most of the other soils. The soil is especially well adapted to 
corn, of which the ordinary yield is 50 to 60 bushels an acre. 
This type and the Waukesha silt loam are the two best corn soils 
in the county. Barley produces 30 to 35 bushels and oats 30 to 40 
bushels per acre. Wheat is still grown to some extent and yields 
of 25 to 30 bushels per acre are not at all uncommon. The qual¬ 
ity of the small grains is not so good as of those grown on the 
*For chemical composition and management see page 33. 
