13G IRRIGATIOn FARMING. 



The lateral being filled with water, the irrigator 

 opens the upper ends of the plow farrows by taking out 

 a shovelful of earth. The little furrows then become 

 filled. The water seeping through or running over the 

 sides gently trickles along over the surface and soaks 

 into the ground. Flowing thus from each side the 

 waters soon unite between the furrows and thus the 

 moisture becomes uniform and general. The farmer 

 may remove all obstructions by clipping off a bit of dirt 

 at intervals from the sides of the furrows, and flood his 

 land till the water will everywhere cover the surface. In 

 this way he can in an hour or two give an entire farm 

 what would be equal to a heavy soaking rain. These 

 floodings are often given about the heading-out time and 

 the result is the production of heavier and more perfect 

 grain. The water should be put on as rapidly as possi- 

 ble with no let-up the quicker the better. It should 

 not be allowed to stand in pools anywhere, because 

 standing water stops all the pores in the soil, cutting off 

 the air from the roots and, as it were, taking the life 

 out of them for some time. Flooding requires more 

 water than many other methods, but at the same time 

 much less labor is needed, and it may be called the lazy 

 man's system. 



Furrow or Rill System. It is best to irrigate 

 gardens and orchards by the furrow method. An even 

 greater difference comparatively in the quantity of water 

 used obtains in the furrow irrigation of fruit trees and 

 vines than in the case of cereals. To such an extent 

 does this prevail that not only do districts differ, but, of 

 two neighbors who cultivate the same fruits in contigu- 

 ous orchards, having exactly the same slope and soil, 

 one will use twice or thrice as much water as the other. 

 Judging as far as possible from conflicting testimonies, 

 the cardinal principle appears to be just tin- same. 

 As we have endeavored to show, it is desirable to 



