Farm Irrigation. 463 



To give an idea of ordinary farm irrigation, I will describe the 

 conditions existing on a farm that I inspected. The system employed 

 was undoubtedly injurious to the crops. The orange trees were 

 growing in the furrows, and were naturally in an unhealthy 

 condition. The young shoots were dying off, and the leaves turning 

 yellow, altogether showing signs of improper irrigation. The water 

 should have been kept well away from the base of the trees, so as 

 to induce the roots to spread. It is a rule amongst advanced irri- 

 gators never to irrigate within the area covered by the shade of the 

 tree at noon ; but the irrigation of fruit trees on that farm is 

 limited to this area. Consequently, all the roots are confined to a 

 restricted space close to the trunk of the tree, and, should no 

 irrigation be possible during a drought, many of the trees would 

 undoubtedly perish. Then, again, it is the custom on that farm 

 to irrigate twice a week, using comparatively small quantities of 

 water : for orchard irrigation this is a fundamental mistake. The 

 small crop of oranges on the mature trees was ample proof that the 

 system of cultivation was radically wrong. It is also a great mistake 

 to plant fruit trees in the water-logged soil near the furrows. I 

 have seen several instances of diseased trees caused by this, and 

 one of the leading farmers of the Rustenburg district told me he 

 had noticed the same thing. A friend of mine in Kimberley once 

 expressed his surprise that, although he irrigated his trees every 

 day, he never got any fruit. That was a natural result of over- 

 irrigation, and if scientific irrigation were better understood there 

 would be fewer disappointments. 



Now I will give an example of better methods. It is in the 

 Barberton district, and the farmer in this case has one of the 

 healthiest looking orange orchards that I have seen in the. Transvaal. 

 He grows nothing but trees in his orchard, and there are neither 

 grass nor weeds. The surface-soil is broken into a loose tilth 

 which prevents the sub-soil drying up, and when he irrigates the 

 water is allowed to soak into the ground between the trees. This 

 he only does twice a year during the winter, and after irrigating 

 the surface is well cultivated. There were no symptoms of root-rot 

 and no leaves turning yellow. The farmer knew that the roots 

 extended over twenty-five feet from the tree, and it was those 

 roots he wanted to water. I saw another notable instance on a 

 farm in the Rustenburg district where the water supply had 

 practically ceased ; but there again the surface was covered with a 

 fine tilth, and under the branches, where the plough and harrow 

 could not be used, the soil was broken up with a fork. The correct 

 practice is to apply heavy irrigations at as long intervals as possible, 

 depending on the nature of the soil and the kind of tree, and the 

 distance from the trunk at which the water should be applied varies 

 with the size of the tree. This perennial variation induces the 

 roots to spread themselves out towards the moistened soil, producing 

 a larger area from which the tender roots can draw nourishment 

 and moisture. If copious irrigations are used, the trees become 

 deep-rooted and will safely withstand any ordinary drought. 



