470 KKl'OKT OK OKKKK (>K KXl'KRIMKNT STATIONS. 



serve ;ill the land now IxMiiii' walercd. This makes it iiecessavv to 

 (let(>nniii(> the methods by which water can he a[)i)lic(l to crops with 

 the least waste and least loss. 



Opinions ditFer anion*,^ fiuit grow'ers in California as to the kind of 

 fui'row to use in orchard in-iyatioii. Ten years ago the shallow fur- 

 row was tifcnerally adopted, hut the practice in recent years has been 

 toward a less number of deep furrows. The chief reason for this 

 ciian«;'e is the saxing of water due to diminished evaporation. Six 

 months aeo th(>re was no definite information availal)le as to the 

 dillerence in evaporation between the two modes of a])prH'ation. Since 

 .luly last the experiments carried on by this Odice in comparinj^' the 

 losses due to evaporation in shallow and deej) furrow irrieation show 

 that when water was aj)plied to the surface of bare soil 03 per cent 

 was lost by evaporation. When the sanu^ ([uantity was applied in 

 shallow furrows 3 inches deep the loss was 83 per cent. When applied 

 in furrows 12 inches deep the loss was onl}^ 62 per cent. 



In California it costs from ^5 to $15 per acre to prepare land for 

 irrio-ated crops. The profits from a given acreage will depend in no 

 small degree on the adoption of a suitable method and the manner of 

 pr(>paring the surface and the ditches in accordance with that method. 

 In order to determine which practice is best suited to a particular 

 crop and furnish irrigators with reliable information on this branch 

 of the su])ject, a careful study is being made of the different ways in 

 which water is used; The field of inquiry has included the furrow, 

 basin, and check systems of irrigation as well as the various means 

 used to distribute w^ater in shallow and deep furrows. 



Experiments have been carried on during th(> past six months with 

 the obj(>ct of determining the effect of ii-rigation on the worn-out 

 fields of the San Joaquin and Sacramento valleys. Cereal and forage 

 crops are being grown in basins made of galvanized iron and the 

 (juantity of water added to the typical soils contained in these vessels 

 varies from nothing to 24 inches in depth over the surface. In so far 

 as practicable, natural conditions are maintained and the yield in each 

 receptacle will be compared with the amount of water applied. It is 

 hoped that, if the crops watered show a marked increase in yield, it 

 will tend to induce agricultuiists to extend the irrigated area over 

 regions that are now being cultivated by the aid of rainfall alone. 



In recent years the most pronounced extension of irrigation in Cali- 

 fornia has been due to the use of pumps to provide a water supply. 

 The abundance and low price of petroleum and the utilization of the 

 power of streams to generate electricity have been two important con- 

 tributing causes to this. At the present time crude petroleum costs 

 about 2 cents a gallon. It seems possible that with better transporta- 

 tion facilities the pric(> may be reduced to one-half of this. With 

 such cheap fuel it will be possible for farmers to cooperate in the 



