50 
SOIL SURVEY OF JACKSON COUNTY 
vated. Good crops of corn, oats, and potatoes can be grown. 
This land cannot well be permanently improved and protected 
from floods, however, so that its agricultural value is compara¬ 
tively low. 
GENESEE FINE SAND 
This type includes several small areas of low-lying fine sand 
soil on the first bottom land bordering the Black River south 
of Melrose. The type is not extensive and because of its being 
subject to frequent overflow, its agricultural value is low. Its 
use is confined to pasture and wood lot purposes. 
GENESEE SILT LOAM 
The Genesee silt loam occurs as first bottom land along the 
larger streams, and is subject to occasional overflow from the 
streams. The soil is generally a grayish or drab silt loam with 
a compact mottled or iron stained silty clay loam subsoil. 
Sometimes the surface two or three inches of soil has a dark 
brown or black color due to greater amounts of organic matter 
in it. 
The greatest amount of this soil occurs in the overflow lands 
bordering the Black River from the city of Black River Falls 
southward. Some was mapped along the Trempealeau River 
and tributaries. The soil is a grayish-brown heavy silt loam 
with a mottled iron-stained heavy silty clay subsoil. Variations 
from this description occur where slight knolls of very fine sandy 
loam occur, or sandy streaks along abandoned slough banks and 
water courses.. 
In Sections 4 and 9 (Township 20, Range 4 West), this soil 
lies on different levels and portions of it less subject to over¬ 
flow are cultivated. Grass and willow swales occur in the higher 
levels where the soil is springy and wet. 
The greater part of the Genesee silt loam bottoms are timbered 
or brush-covered. The trees consist of large elms, ash, soft 
maple, birch, and willow. In a few places, open areas occur 
where the vegetation is mainly grass or small brush. 
The land is used largely for pasture land and wood lots. Some 
of the higher levels of small extent could be improved by tiling, 
but most of the soil is too low and subject to too much overflow 
to be profitably drained. 
