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The Dust Bowl

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The Dust Bowl

The dust Bowl was a storm which occurred in the 1930’s, that affected the Midwestern United States. Farming was the major growing production in the United States in the 1930’s. Droughts and dust storms caused by poor tillage practices devastated farms and ranches of the Great Plains, therefore causing people to move to more fertile lands. This problem became so great that a nationwide effort was made to resolve the problem. Beginning in 1935, extensive efforts were made by both federal and state governments to develop programs for soil conservation and for the rehabilitation of the Dust Bowl. Eventually, thanks to government aid farming became possible again and farmers learned a valuable lesson from this dilemma.
Rain is very unpredictable in the rocky Mountains so farmers had to make do with what they had back in the 1930’s. This lack of water created a hardy dry soil that was very difficult to cultivate for agricultural purposes. The farmers continued to cultivate the land and disaster struck. The natural elements wreaked havoc on the exposed soil. Wind erosion blew away the dry soil and created clouds of dust that could be seen hundreds of miles away. The dust storms and sandstorms battered the settlers and buried their roads and homes. The farmer’s problems became worse when it rained. The water couldn’t reach the roots and instead washed away more of the much needed soil.
The disaster that struck the Great Plains left the soil without nutrients, and plant cover. The land was un-cultivatable. The Government intervened with a number of reforms. They replanted grass and trees together with introducing scientific agricultural methods. The roots would help prevent further erosion. Broad leafed crops such as clover and alfalfa produce organic matter and available nitrogen. They were planted because there roots bind the soil and they absorb

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