Timely Hints for Farmers. 75 



of the season. In general, the plan of the experiment was thor- 

 ough winter irrigation followed by thorough summer cultivation. 

 The effect of the above treatment was recorded in two ways: 

 ( i ) By making determinations of the amount of moisture in the 

 soil soon after winter irrigation ceased, and (2) by noting the 

 physical appearance of the trees and the character and amount of 

 fruit borne. 



For determining the amount of moisture content of the soil a 

 sample of each foot from the surface to the ground water was taken 

 during April, May, June and September. In taking the samples 

 of soil, roots were encountered in abundance as deep as fourteen 

 to sixteen feet, while one peach root was followed into the twentieth 

 foot at a horizontal distance of eighteen feet from the tree, show- 

 ing that the water of at least the upper twenty feet could be used 

 by the trees. , 



The upper five and a half feet was a clayey loam; the next nine 

 feet, gravel; then about a foot of clay; then another foot of gravel; 

 and the rest of the way to water, a fine clay. Hence the roots 

 had passed through ten feet of gravel and four feet at least into 

 the clay beneath. 



The results from the first set of samples indicated that the 

 irrigating water had penetrated to a depth of twenty-four feet. 

 The sixteenth foot was the wettest one, the soil being so nearly 

 saturated that it was muddy. From this point the moisture was 

 less and less abundant, until the twenty-sixth foot was reached. 

 From here the percentage of water increased gradually until ground 

 water was reached at thirty-four feet. 



The second set of samples showed that the capillary action 

 upwards had about kept pace with evaporation, the moisture 

 in the upper four feet being about the same as the month previous. 

 As a whole, however, the water had settled some. During the 

 next month evaporation was more rapid than the upward 

 capillary action, the third set of samples taken during June show- 

 ing that the upper five feet had become quite dry. However, 

 there was still plenty of water within reach of the roots, the soil 

 from the fourteenth to the twentieth foot being still wet. The 

 soil samples taken during September showed that while the upper 



