THE IRRIGATION OF CITRUS GROVES. 321 



The annual rainfall in Florida, as shown in the ac- 

 companying table, is certainly ample for the development 

 of citrus fruits. In fact, viewed in the light of the state- 

 ments made regarding the amounts of water used in Cal- 

 ifornia, it might by some be deemed excessive. But even 

 with such a heavy precipitation, it sometimes happens 

 that the groves suffer to some extent, or at least they 

 would at times be benefited by an additional supply of 

 moisture. If the heavy rainfall were divided up into 

 a large number of equal portions and these distributed 

 at regular intervals, citrus trees would certainly never 

 suffer from lack of moisture. Frequently the total rain- 

 fall for a month comes in a few hours, and most of it 

 runs off in the streams and rivers. The water has no 

 opportunity to sink in, and consequently the soil is not 

 capable of retaining it. 



The period during which this is most likely to occur 

 and the period likewise in which the rainfall is most un- 

 certain and during which the groves are most likely to 

 suffer is between the first of March and the middle of June. 

 Frequently during this time, weeks pass without a shower, 

 while at other times, an amount of water sufficient for 

 the whole period is precipitated within a few hours. It 

 is during this time that groves would be benefited by 

 being irrigated and the constant recurrence of these con- 

 ditions, year after year, lias led many growers located 

 even on comparatively moist soils, to make provision for 

 applying water artificially. The period from June to 

 October is usually designated as the "rainy season," the 

 season of heavy precipitation, during which showers are 

 of daily occurrence and during which irrigation is un- 

 necessarv and needless. 



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