--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Peterson, Elmer G. collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 23 number: 8 published: 1920-06 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Peterson, Elmer G., "Essentials of Permanent Agriculture—III," *Improvement Era* 23, no. 8 (June 1920): 740–742.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera238unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera238unse start_page: 740 end_page: 742 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1920-06) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera238unse publication_year: 1920 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1920, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Essentials of Permanent Agriculture—III Essentials of Permanent Agriculture By Dr. Elmer G. Peterson, President Utah Agricultural College III— The Soil In any consideration of the factors which go to produce a permanent system of farming in a country a fundamental un- derstanding of the soil is necessary. We are blessed in Utah be- yond measure in having a soil which is among the richest on earth. Our production per acre of certain crops such as corn and sugar beets equals or surpasses the production of any other area outside the Rocky Mountain Region. How these wonderful valleys came to be laden with so priceless a crusting of pro- ductive soil substance is a story of surpassing interest. And to fully appreciate the life we are privileged to live here it is im- portant that we know in part at least the processes which for centuries have been going on in our mountains, valleys, and plains preparing them for the civilization which is now here and the greater which is to come. The rocks of the earth's crust centuries ago were and still are continuously subjected to the action of water which slowly washes away the more soluble portions of the rock and softens and finally disintegrates the whole substance. Ice, likewise, form- ing in the crevices of rock and expanding tends to tear the rocks apart and aid in their disintegration. The round pebbles and larger boulders which are so prominent at the mouths of all of our canyons from which water flows or has flowed were once sharp angular portions broken off from the cliffs above. These have been tumbled about rubbing against each other over long periods of time with the result that they become rounded and smooth, the worn off particles becoming soil. At one time the earth's surface over a considerable part of it was covered by an immense sheet of ice, in some cases several thousand feet thick. This great ice covering moved slowly one way or another, its great weight grinding the rocks and soil beneath it which, as the ice moved, was mixed throughout the mass. JLater when the ice melted, numerous quantities of the ground rock and soil so formed were deposited upon the surface of the earth, establish- ing in many regions a very rich and fertile land. Chemical substances in the air dissolved in water have a chemical action which tends to tear down the rocks, encourag- ing soil formation. Plants grow, die and decay, their roots and ESSENTIALS OF PERMANENT AGRICULTURE * 741 stems going into the soil to form a very valuable part of it. So countless animals, large and small, have died during the ages past; their bodies decaying, go to make up soil. In all these and other ways for ages the quiet work of creation has been going on with the result that today man inhabits the valleys and plains which have been so patiently made habitable for him. The farmer who from day to day, as he plows, harrows and harvests his crops must, if he understands the long years of ef- fort which have been necessary for the creation of his land, be not only industrious in his care of the soil but must have a deep reverence for the Power which prepared the way for his exist- ence. If he would pause in his work and if his mind were il- luminated he would see in a handful of the soil which he turns over forces at work which man only partially comprehends. Countless live organisms would be at work in tne handful of soil as busy as the men and women in an immense factory, each little germ tearing down or building up the substance which pre- pares the soil for another crop. Liquids would be seen flowing about in the soil dissolving substances and making them ready for plant food. Frost would do its share in working over the handful of soil and many other agencies would be at work that hay and wheat and such crops may be raised. If he could mag- nify a small pinch of soil a thousand times he would find it composed of what seems to be smaller and larger rocks. Roots, twigs, and stems would be mixed in the mass, decaying into soil. Peculiar substance formed by chemical and bacterial action would adhere to the particles. If he could see still deeper into the mysteries, he would see a great Power at work which co- ordinates all the action in the handful of soil driving each to do its full share of the work and fitting the action of each into the one movement. Roughly, soils may be formed from the disintegration of limestone, sandstone, shale and granite. Limestone is familiar to all western observers. Sandstone is formed from the consoli- dation of sand beds; shale, from the consolidation of clay. Many areas are formed by soils which were formed in the immediate vicinity. Nature, however, has various means of distribution. Glaciers have carried immense masses of soil considerable dis- tances. Sometimes the soil thus deposited is a hundred feet or more in thickness. Soils are frequently transported long or shorter distances by water. So lake bottoms and areas which were once sea bottom and areas near swiftly flowing rivers and creeks are made up of water-carried soil. Our Utah canyon mouths show clear evidence of this action, the banks of soil formed at the mouths of these canyons and the soils lower down having been deposited there by the action of streams and lakes which may have since disappeared. Wind also plays a large 742 IMPROVEMENT ERA part in carrying soils from one place to another. Many soil areas a hundred or more feet in depth are formed by wind action which, of course, takes the finer particles of soil. Much of the very fertile middle western soil in the United States is formed in this way. Rains and floods wash portions of earth that have crumbled from cliffs and the material from mountain sides to deposit them over areas which are characterized by such wash- ings. In all these ways have soils been formed and carried about with the result that the earth's surface has become habitable for man. These processes which proceed slowly, almost imper- ceptibly, and over periods of time beyond our comprehension illustrate God's way of accomplishing results. In the aggregate these powers represent a force which is infinite. Seen over a short space of time or only seen in part, the actions seem trivial. It is the great concerted movement which sweeps all before it and it is the orderliness of the processes which causes reverence. If our valleys were scooped out by the labor of hands much as children form grooves and holes in the sand it would not be more marvelous nor more meaningful. If our soils were created and laid down, forming the thin crust of living earth which sus- tains all life on the planet, by direct labor, as we coat our streets with cement or plaster our walls, it would be less beautiful pro- cess and no more indicative of purpose than that which does prevail. This is our heritage. Nothing is more wonderful in human terms than soil. And knowing it nothing should more generously arouse our love than the soil. The land, in this fine sense, is not something to be given and taken lightly. It is a gift, the work of ages and of infinite effort. Through industry and careful culture we may in part express our obligation. Brigham Young said in one of his sermons, delivered in 1856: "My implicit confidence in God causes me to husband every iota of property he gives me. I will take the best care of my farm, I will prepare my ground as well as I can, and put in the best seed I have; and trust in God for the result, for it is the Lord that gives the increase." I have heard no nobler expression of man's relationship to the soil. Logan, Utah