Southern Appalachian Digital Collections

Western Carolina University (20) View all

Report of the Secretary of Agriculture in relation to the forests, rivers, and mountains of the southern Appalachian region

items 219 of 386 items
  • wcu_great_smoky_mtns-8693.jpg
Item
?

Item’s are ‘child’ level descriptions to ‘parent’ objects, (e.g. one page of a whole book).

  • SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN REGION. 89 Soil. Appalachians, in its descent of 2,400 feet in 20 miles, from the Linville Falls to the foothills. The alluvial lands in the valleys, except those along the Catawba for a few miles above Marion, are limited to narrow strips bordering the streams, or, as on the lower Linville and many tributaries of the Johns River, are altogether lacking. The soils of the uplands, derived from the decay in place of quartzite, slates, sandstone, and gneiss, are sandy, or sandy loams, and are thin and poor, with few exceptions. Along the larger streams the alluvia are silty and fertile; along the smaller they are sandy and often less productive. In the lower valleys corn and small grain are the com- Agriculture. mon crops on the alluvia; corn the exclusive crop of the steeper slopes. Corn, oats, grass, and apples form the staple crops in the elevated valleys and on slopes at high altitudes. The alluvial lands of the Johns River and the Catawbas Erodon. have been severely damaged by recent freshets, which have in many places washed away the soil to a depth of several feet, leaving only the rock and gravel, while in other places the agricultural value has been destroyed by the deposition of beds of pure sand or coarse gravel above the alluvium. Soils on steep slopes which have been under tillage, especialty those in corn, have also been .badly damaged. The forests, except those of a few limited valleys at high elevation, are confined to the slopes, nearly all of the alluvial bottoms having been cleared. Composition.—They are formed of hard woods, chiefly oaks, associated with pines, white or black; or of mixed hard woods—oaks, chestnut, maple, birch, linn, ash, and poplar—associated with hemlock in the deep hollows and on some northern slopes. Condition.—Nearly all south and cast slopes, especially at a low elevation, have been damaged by fires to some extent. The best hard woods have been culled from much of the area, and the best white pine from the lower part of the valley of the Johns River and from a portion of the Upper Linville. There is yet much hard wood, largely oak, on the headwaters of the Catawbas, Johns, and Uppei Linville rivers. Reproduction.—Reproduction of hard woods is free by stool shoots and seed, and of pine by seed. Protection from fire is greatly needed. This, with improvement cuttings, would soon develop a valuable forest. The forest.
Object
?

Object’s are ‘parent’ level descriptions to ‘children’ items, (e.g. a book with pages).