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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 1172 Chapter 2 LAND The Amity service area is outlined on Plate 1 (appendix) and is bounded approximately by the Amity Canal On the north and the west; by the Arkan- sas River. the Hyde Ditch. and the Buffalo Canal on the south; and the Kansas state line on the east. The gross service area is about 74.000 acres. SOILS AND TOPOGRAPHY The Rocky Ford soils of the Colorado-Piedmont section of the Great Plains Province have developed from loessial material. These soils were formed under a climate of long, warm summers. mild to severe winters, and a light to moderate precipitation. The Amity service area is comprised primarily of the Rocky Ford-Nepesta-Numa association. Most of the soils in';the service area are suitable for cultivated crops and a high percen- tage of the area is irrigable, The surface layer of the Rocky Ford series is nine to eighteen inches of a grayish-brmln, silty clay loam. The soil contains a moderate amount of organic matter and has high natural fertility. The subsoil layer is twelve to seventy-two inches of brown to very pale brown friable silt loam. Soils in the service area are mOderately shallow to deep and well drained except flat or depressed areas tend to be slower draining because of the siltation build up from muddy irrigation waters. All soils in the project area are aerated well enough to have excellent crop response. Other soil series in the area are Numa and Nepesta, Most land in the service area is on the upland plains and is generally gently sloping to gently rolling, There are small areas of enclosed drainages with nearly level depressed basins where runoff collects, The periOdically wet lands in and adjacent to these basins and along the shallow drainageways are Class 6 lands. These lands are unsuited for ir- rigation due to the lack of drainage which interferes with crop production, Additional areas are subject to intermittent flooding from high intensity storms. but this normally does not interfere with crop production and these areas are classed as irrigable. Most other land is generally suited to irrigation because of the uniform soil and gentle slopes. LAND CLASSIFICATION Lands within the service area are shown on the Land Classification Map, Plate 1. A total of 48,661 acres were classified as irrigable, The semi- detailed mapping was accomplished on aerial photographs having a scale of 1 :12000 or 1" = 1.000 feet, On the average. about eight soil borings 2-1