UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
 AGRICUL1URAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 
 
 BULLETIN NO. 36. 
 
 [In order to render the results of investigation- 
 and experiments conducted by the Agricultural Des 
 partment of the University of California more quick- 
 ly and more generally available than has heretofore 
 been done through the annual or biennial reports, 
 it is proposed to embody hereafter, in the form of 
 "Bulletins," to be issued as olten as may seem de- 
 sirable, reports of results, as well as such other discus- 
 sions, information or answers to questions as may 
 be of general interest. It is intended to make these 
 bulletins, as a rule, short enough for insertion in the 
 daily or weekly papers of the State, and proof-slips 
 of the same will be regularly mailed to papers apply- 
 ing therefor. The substance ot these bulletins will 
 ultimately be embodied in a more complete and con- 
 nected form, in the annual reports of the College of 
 Agriculture.] 
 
 Examinations of Soils and Subsoils. 
 
 No. 859. Alkali soil from PJast Park, Sacra- 
 mento city, taken and sent by Mr. Jas. Rutter 
 of Florin, Sacramento county, together with a 
 sample of the ordinary soil of the region, with 
 the query whether the alkali soil is so consti- 
 tuted that by a free or moderate use of the same 
 on the other it will act as a fertilizer, or other- 
 wise beneficially, especially with reference to 
 the production of grapes. 
 
 The alkali soil is a buff- colored, rather sandy 
 loam, contains roots and stems of "alkali 
 grass." It yields to water 2.88 per cent of 
 saline matters, which on evaporation aud igni- 
 tion of the residue give the following result: 
 
 Per cent. 
 
 Again soluble in water 76.2 
 
 Insoluble 9.7 
 
 Organic matter and water 14.1 
 
 The soluble part, forming 2.2 per cent of the 
 soil, is composed as follows: 
 
 Chloride of sodium 68,73 
 
 Carbonate of soda 22.49 
 
 Sulphate of soda 8.82 
 
 100.00 
 
 The insoluble part being .31 per cent of the 
 soil: 
 
 Carbonate of lime 7.92 
 
 Carbonate of magnesia 34.49 
 
 Gypsum (sulphate of lime) 4.29 
 
 Iron oxide and some clay 45.05 
 
 Silica 8 - 25 
 
 100.00 
 
 According to this analysis, the soil sample 
 contained in its permanently soluble portion only 
 salts of sodium, none of which can be considered 
 as being of any material value to vegetation; 
 the carbonate being, on the contrary, an injuri- 
 ous ingredient, and present to the extent of 
 over seven-tenths of one per cent. Only traces 
 of potash and phosphoric acid exist in this solu- 
 ble part; and the lime the insoluble portion 
 carries with it would be insignificant. Tnus it 
 could not be beneficial to any soil to which it 
 should be applied as fertilizer. On the contrary, 
 in order to destroy the injurious carbonate of 
 soda, the Sacramento alkali soil should be 
 treated with a proper dose of iaud plaster, 
 which would transform the carbonate into the 
 relatively innocent sulphate, or Glauber's salt. 
 
 Vineyard soils from Mr. J. H. Drummond's 
 place, Gien Ellen, Sonoma county. Mr. Drum- 
 mond's vineyard lies near the mouth of 
 Nun's canyon, a deep and narrow valley cut 
 into the range separating Napa and Sonoma 
 valleys; and appareatly the three soils sampled 
 by Mr. Druinuiond are representatives of a 
 considerable belt of foot hill land lying along 
 the b*se or the range on the Sonoma side. The 
 visible rocks of the region are partly ferrugi- 
 nous shale ^ or shaly sandstones, evidently 
 composed in part of the debris of volcanic tufas 
 or breccias, which themselves mostly form 
 the country rock; their exact relation to the 
 shales it is not easy to observe. While in 
 the General and higher parts of the range the 
 soils are inclined to be heavy and clayey, as ex 
 emplitied in soil No. 799, heretofore examined, 
 (see bulletin No. 24, or report for 1884, p. 52), 
 and of a ^.ray tint, those of the foot-hills on the 
 Sonoma side are often of a gUring orange-red, 
 and in texture rather light loams. On the lower 
 slopes the color is less intense, and in the undu 
 latiug lauds forming the eastern valley slope 
 near Nun's canyon, the color is modified into a 
 "sienna" brown tint, becoming a deep chocolate 
 brown when wet. The latter class of land?, 
 represented by No. S02 below, is heavier than 
 the foot hill lands proper, and dry clods cannot 
 be crushed between the ringers; while this can 
 easily be done with the re i hill soils. All con- 
 tain a certain proportion of gravel, or rock 
 fragments more or less rounded, though not as 
 abundantly as in the Napa valley near Oakville 
 and Rutherford. 
 
 The following table gives the results of the 
 analysis of the two chief varieties just referred 
 to. 
 
 4- 
 
No. 805. "Hill soil taken about 100 feet 
 above the valley to the depth of one foot; 
 southern exposure. Land formerly thickly 
 covered with black oak trees and poison oak; 
 also a li tie fern. Many boulders were taken 
 from this hill." This soil, a glaring red loam, 
 is underlaid at the depth of from 12 to 30 inches 
 by similar material, gradually becoming a 
 little lighter tinted and more clayey. Below 
 this, pebbles are found; or at times, a subsoil of 
 decomposed tufaceous rock is reached at vary- 
 ing depths, while sometimes the latter crops 
 out on the surface. 
 
 No. 802 e "A sienna-brown, rather clayey 
 loam, from the valley slope or lower vineyard, 
 where the newly-imported grape varieties 
 (Cabernet Sauvigon, etc.) were grown." No per- 
 ceptible change of nature or tint to three feet, 
 the substratum below that depth gradually be- 
 ! coming more reddish and lighter in texture, be 
 j yond the depth of four feet. 
 
 JNo. 805 No. 802 
 Hill Soil. Valley Soil. 
 
 Coarse Material 11.0 12.7 
 
 Fine Earth 89.0 87.3 
 
 Insoluble Matter 40 . 33 59 . 26| 
 
 Soluble Silica 15.19 9.33 
 
 Potash 45 .32! 
 
 Soda 38 .36 
 
 Lime 53 6S 
 
 Magnesia 33 .44 
 
 B»-. Oxide of Manganese .. . .09 .10 
 
 Peroxide of Iron 9.15 5.85 
 
 Alumina 24.60 16.45 
 
 Phosphoric Acid .06 .09 
 
 Sulphuric Acid 08 .09 
 
 Water and Organic Matter. 9 . 00 7 . 59 
 
 Total 100.19 99.53 
 
 Humus 1.65 1.78 
 
 Total Available Inorganic ... 52 .49 
 Available Phosphoric Acid . .04 .05 
 Hygrosc. p. Moisture 11.44 8.28 
 
 Absorbed an. . . .15.5° C. 15° C. 
 
 A general fea ure of interest shown in thesd 
 analyses is that in these soils, as in nearly all 
 others thus far examined from districts where 
 volcanic rocks prevail, there is a large proportion 
 of dissolved silica and of soda, indicating the 
 presence of a large amount of easily decompos- 
 ible silicates, in which doubtless the greater 
 part of the potash, soda, and perhaps lime, 
 shown in the table are concerned, since water 
 dissolves no sodium compounds (alkali) from 
 the soils. The same indication is given by the 
 extraordinary quantity of alumina dissolved in 
 the analysis ouc of soils showing only a moder- 
 ate amount of clay. While therefore tne pot- 
 ash percentages of both soils are not as high as 
 is usual in the Napa valley, yet what there is 
 can doubtless be made currently available by 
 the use of lime, and thus supply the demands of 
 grape culture for a long time after the soils 
 have fallen off from their natural yield. As 
 regards phosphates, the supply in the valley 
 soil is very fair, and that of the hill soil above 
 deficiency; but the determination of the "avail- 
 able phosphoric acid" shows that very unusual 'y 
 high proportions of the total supply or both 
 are in an available condition. In No. 805, two- 
 thirds, and in No. 802 over one-half. For pres- 
 ent purposes, therefore, this important sub 
 stance may be considered as being in full supply 
 in both soils. Both, also, have a good supply 
 of humus — unexpectedly so in the hill soil, 
 
 whose high retentivent-ss or moisture is, how^i 
 ever, obviously due to the large proportion of 
 iron. 
 
 Considering their origin, dep h, "lay" and 
 physical as well as chemical nature, these soiU 
 are errtainly bcSu adapted to the fruit culture- 
 to which they are now being mainly devoted; 
 which utilizes the depths as well as the sur-' 
 face of the land, and (especially in the case 
 of the vine and olive) draws but lightly 
 upon the soil's resources in the commercial 
 products, whose high quality will compensate 
 for a relatively lower production. Comparison 
 with the soils previously examined, from tho 
 west side of the valley, on Hooper's place (sea 
 K uk for 1S82, P. 48), seem to show that thera 
 both the valley and hill soils are richer in phos- 
 phoric acid as *vell as in lime, owing, doubtless, 
 to their partial derivation from the marly rocks 
 of the territory. Gitn Ellen, therefore, would 
 appear adapted to the production of the rela-' 
 tively lighter ami more highly-flavored wines. 
 
 No. 813. Under -subsoil from near Montecito, 
 Santa Barbara county; sent by Mr. H. C. Ford, 
 president of the Santa Barbara Horticultural 
 Society, for examination as to its probable 
 quality as a subsoil for fruit tree3. The sample 
 was taken at the depth of lour feet and was 
 penetiated by vigorous roots of an orange tree 
 that had been killed by a gopher; and others 
 growing around it in the -aine soil were in a 
 flourishing condition. "The question with us 
 ail here is, can this subsoil furnish food for 
 trees, and if so, in what manner can it be best 
 fed to them?" 
 
 The sample sent consists of fragments of soft 
 and easily brok* n sandstone, mingled with a 
 friable mass resulting from the disintegration of 
 of the rock. In such a mass high percentages 
 of plant food cannot be looked for; the question 
 is only whether it is totally barren, as. is often 
 the case, or may be considered as contributing 
 in any material degree to the nourishment of 
 the trees. Th^ fact mentioned in the letter, 
 that the roots found were covered with small 
 ones penetrating fissures, points to the actual 
 nourishment of the roots by the rock. 
 
 This supposition is fully borne out by the 
 analysis, which resulted as follows: 
 
 Sandstone Under-Subsoil. 
 
 Coarse sand 1.6 
 
 Fine earth 98.4 
 
 Insoluble residue. 81.830 
 
 Potash 412 
 
 Soda 311 
 
 Lime 326 
 
 Iron and alumina 12.382 
 
 Phosphoric acid 034 
 
 As a surface soil such a material wouli, on 
 account of the low percentage of phosphoric 
 acid, be accounted but of moderate promise and 
 in imminent need of having its phosphates sup- 
 plemented by fertilization. As the surface soil 
 of the region is, however, known to be well 
 provided in this respect, and it is the higher 
 roots that chiefly supply the mineral food to the 
 tree, a subsoil like this lying at four ftet 
 depth and containing fair supplies of pota-h and 
 lime, is a good deal better than many found 
 elsewhere in corresponding pesitions. It is not, 
 however, a marl; and the best mode of utilizing 
 it is to leave it just where it is, to be extracted 
 by the roots of fruit trees and vines. 
 
 Berkeley, April 10, 1885. E. W. Hilgard.