THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 143 



nniforni will be the distribution of the water. In this connection the 

 inipor'tance of a very small gratle to the furrows is ai)parent, since in 

 such fuiTOWs a much larger head can be turned in without resulting in 

 disastrous washing of the soil. After the water has reached the lower 

 end of the furrow, regulations should be fre((uently made to prevent 

 excess from escaping from the ends. 



To one paying from ten to twenty -five cents per miner's inch for 

 water it is unnecessary to point out the loss from allowing quantities 

 of water to escape as waste from the ends of the furrows. To those to 

 whom the price of water is a very small item I wish to say that nearly 

 all waste water carries with it valuable salts and fertilizing elements 

 and thus becomes a serious drain on the soil fertility if permitted as a 

 regular thing during irrigations. To those owning their pumping 

 l)l<nits. or otherwise having an entire control of their water supply, the 

 (lucstion of the frequency and duration of irrigation is one of vital 

 imjxtrtance. A King's soil tube with which one can examine the soil 

 easily and (piickly to a depth of four feet is necessary to a thorough 

 knowledge of the soil conditions l)clow the nudch. 



By the use of this tool one can keep in touch with soil conditions 

 and api)ly the water just when the soil needs it. Again, this same 

 tool should be used during each irrigation to determine how deep the 

 water is penetrating aiul when down the full four feet at the lower 

 end of "the orchard the water should be turned otf. as any further 

 application will largely be lost. 



As a geiu'ral rule the sandier the soil the more frequent the irriga- 

 tions and the shorter the durations of the same : and vice versa, 

 the heavier the soil the less frequent the irrigations and the longer 

 shonld be their duration. 



I shall take up but briefly the (piestion of head ditches, Humes and 

 standpipes as devices for distributing the water to the several fur- 

 rows. Investigations show a loss in nuiny cases of from 30 to 50 per 

 cent of the water by seepage from earthen head ditches. In citrus work 

 very few such distributing svstems can be found. The question then 

 resolves itself into a comparison of cement flumes and cement or clay 

 pipe lines with distributing standpipes. In my work I have had con- 

 siderable experience with both methods. To sum up briefly : the advan- 

 tages of pipe system are many over the open flume for comparatively 

 level land. Less trouble comes from clogging of the gates with trash 

 in Ihe standpipes than in the flume, especially if standpipes are covered. 

 Cultivations are not hindered in any way by standpipes. while with 

 the flume considerable land must be tilled by hand if weeds and trash 

 are kept out. However, on steep slopes, where contour systems are 

 in operation, the flume is more satisfactory, since the gates are spaced 

 to correspond with the furrows and less trouble with washing is encoun- 

 tered than with a standpipe from which four to six furrows must have 

 their source. 



I must take up next the proper handling of the soil in the orchard 

 between irrigations which will residt in the greatest conservation of 

 the water applied. 



Experiments of Professors Fortier and Beckett show that it is of 

 prime importance to cultivate the soil as soon as it is dry enough to 

 work without puddling when tramped by the team. Various tools are 



