41 



grain is beginuiug to head. If water is applied much earlier than this 

 the ground, not being sufficiently shaded by the foliage, is apt to bake 

 and form a hard crust over the surface. On the other hand, if watered 

 later it retards the maturing of the grain and impairs its quality. 



Several farmers tried the plan of allowing the water to flood their 

 land all winter, letting it flow unrestricted over the fields. This 

 proved detrimental and even disastrous in some cases. The ground 

 became so wet that it could not be worked till late and the soil 

 remained so cold that seed rotted before it could germinate, and the 

 result was a swampy weed patch instead of a field of grain. It is 

 hard for beginners to rid themselves of the idea that if a little water 

 is a good thing more is better; and more irrigators in this section 

 have failed in their eff'orts and given up entirely from the effects of 

 overirrigation than from any other cause. 



Those who have been most successful financially are the market 

 gardeners. Their methods vary with the different crops and seasons. 

 Their aim is to have the ground well moistened at seed time to insure 

 quick germination. After that they simph' watch the crop and water 

 when needed. These crops are almost invariably watered by the 

 furrow system, letting the water flow do^^•n between the rows of vege- 

 tables and seep to the roots. Cultivation within three or four days 

 after irrigation is essential to prevent the ground from baking. The 

 early vegetable crops, as garden peas, beans, radishes, lettuce, etc., 

 are usually grown as quickly as possible and disposed of, the ground 

 being cleared off for another crop of millet or turnips, or utilized to set 

 out late cabbage and tomato plants. In this way two crops are raised 

 on the same land, the irrigation for the first crop being sufficient for 

 maturing the following one. 



Fruiting crops, such as strawberries and tomato vines, are watered 

 just as the fruit is beginning to set, unless the rainfall has left the 

 soil in projjer condition. Meadows are irrigated bj' flooding in the 

 spring and after each crop, except the last. This has been found 

 especially favorable for tame grass and alfalfa. 



OBJECTIONS TO ARTESIAN IRIIIGATION. 



Aside from the danger of a rain coming immediateh' after irriga- 

 tion making the soil too wet, the chief objection to irrigation by 

 artesian waters is due to a belief that various salts contaiiied in the 

 water poison the soil and render it unfruitful. Special inquiry was 

 made regarding this matter, and those who have used the water in 

 irrigation the most extensivelv were unanimous in the statement that 

 there were no injurious effects if the water were j)roperly used. The 

 experiences of Joy Brothers and Mr. Glidden agree on this point. 

 The}^ find that water is frequently applied in such excessive amounts 

 that the rootlets are smothered and the soil is covered by standing 

 water which on evaporation leaves a deposit of salts. Hence many 

 conclude that the salts have killed the vegetation, whereas it is the 



