FRUITS UNDER IRRIGATION. 159 



It is said that mountain water will not run up hill, and we find 

 this to be true, but it will find and fill the low places and the 

 chances are that if smoothened as well as you can when you 

 turn the water on there will be some surprises in store for you. 

 In setting the trees, furrow for the rows, set the trees in the 

 edge of the furrow and use the furrow for watering the 

 first season. Later you can use smaller furrows further from 

 the trees. Flooding the ground is not as a rule as good as allow- 

 ing the water to soak in the ground from small furrows a little 

 distance from the trees, but on some of our lands flooding does 

 well, as water does not stand on the land, neither does our soil 

 bake, and can be cultivated in a short time after flooding and 

 be as loose and fine on the top as when first plowed and fitted 

 in the spring. But having plenty of water is not aU, for here 

 as well as elsewhere you must keep your cultivator going to 

 have the best results, for when you get the moisture in the 

 ground you must have the dust mulch to retain it. To know 

 when, how much, and how often to water is after all the main 

 thing to know, and that has to be learned largely from the plants 

 or trees themselves. They have a way of making their wants 

 known if you study them, and if you don't you are not on to 

 your job. With water running by you all the time that can be 

 had by just opening the gate, the tendency always is to water 

 too much, and from my own experience I am satisfied that we 

 do water too much rather than too little. Then again some 

 fruits require more water than others, so that it is better not 

 to mix varieties any more than necessary. 



Trees and canes that are of a woody nature may be watered 

 quite freely early in the season but you must stop as soon as 

 August that the growth of the trees may stop and mature the 

 wood for winter. Late in the fall after all danger of growth is 

 past and just before the ground freezes, water freely. This 

 might not be necessary when they have winter rains or snow 

 but with us we have very little of either and while other parts 

 of the state are having rain, snow, hubs in mud, with us the 

 roads are dry and dusty as summer and almost continual sun- 

 shine. Our irrigated vegetables have already made some 

 records at the State Pair, and the day is not far distant when 

 pure irrigated fruits will do the same. 



