7 HE IRRIGA I TON A GE. 145 



desired. Another mistake among beginners is the amount of water 

 necessary to raise a crop. Corn, our king crop, only needs water 

 twice. The first time when it is beginning to silk, the second and last 

 time when the ear is ready to fill. A good plan is to thoroughly wet 

 down the land in the fall; that, coupled with the rain, which every lo- 

 cality receives more or less, with the two final waterings will raise an 

 immense crop of corn or small grain. Another advantage in raising 

 corn is the fact that, if it looks like an early frost, all one has to do is 

 to shut off the water and the corn commences to ripen immediately. 

 We often hear it remarked among the farmers that the late rains will 

 keep the corn green till frost, therefore the chance of corn being 

 caught with the frost is very small when irrigated. Immense crops of 

 potatoes are raised under irrigation, but the fault with the beginner is 

 in putting on the water too soon; potatoes should never be watered 

 till the little potatoes have started, or what is commonly called "set," 

 for if watered sooner will grow nothing but vines. 



Fruit one of the luxuries as well as a necessity on a farm is 

 never grown better, with a nicer flavor and in greater abundance than 

 when grown under irrigation. We have two orchards in mind, both in 

 western Nebraska, one of forty acres, the other about thirty acres. 

 Orchards with better fruit, more luscious and with larger crops surely 

 would be hard to find. 



Too much cannot be said in favor of irrigation; one great point is, 

 in districts where it is necessary to irrigate, the atmosphere is very 

 dry, therefore one does not lose a part of the crop, either in the shock 

 or stack, through fall rains. Last fall in Wyoming, just before the 

 wheat crop was brought to market, the elevator of a milling firm was 

 burned, but that did not stop these parties from buying wheat; they 

 simply put it in sacks and stacked it on a vacant lot; but in some dis- 

 tricts it would have rotted by spring. We have a sample of that 

 wheat which we are always pleased to show. 



Time and space forbids us saying any more on this very interest- 

 ing subject, but at any time we will be pleased to talk this matter over, 

 especially with those who are interested. 



