No. 4.] IRRIGATION. 399 



have led to much inquiry regarding methods of irrigation 

 adapted to the east. 



In a limited discussion of so large a subject it may be best 

 at the outset to state briefly the reasons why irrigation is 

 important to the New England farmer, and then to enlarge 

 upon the different points in their order. These reasons are 

 as follows : (1) The uneven distribution of the rainfall, and 

 the occurrence of frequent severe droughts during the grow- 

 ing season ; (2) the large amount of water used by all crops, 

 and especially by most crops of high market value ; (3) the 

 large amount of water lost to the plant by leaching and by 

 evaporation from the soil ; (4) the high value per acre of 

 many of the crops best adapted to New England ; (5) the 

 high price of lands and the changed conditions of agricul- 

 ture ; (6) the many small streams and ponds, by means of 

 which irrigation may be made practicable at small expense. 



Probably the first reason why formers do not, as a rule, 

 appreciate that irrigation has any place in New England 

 agriculture is on account of our heavy rainfall. The aver- 

 age yearly rainfall (including melted snow) for Massachu- 

 setts is about 45 inches. This amount of water is ample for 

 the needs of nearly all crops, when it is fairly evenly dis- 

 tributed throughout the year. But the precipitation is very 

 unevenly distributed ; much of it falls as snow in winter or 

 as rain during the spring and fall months. Short, severe 

 summer droughts are a characteristic of this climate. A 

 high temperature, accompanied by drying winds, will in a 

 week's time frequently cause our crops to wilt, and in less 

 than three weeks the crop prospects may be nearly ruined, 

 as a result of the absence of the water needed to keep up a 

 vigorous growth. 



In order to make a good growth, most crops need, during 

 the three summer months, a rainfall of from 3 to 4 inches, 

 and this needs to be evenly distributed throughout these 

 months. During the past thirteen years the Storrs Experi- 

 ment Station has had rainfall records taken in about a dozen 

 different places in Connecticut, and these, with others made 

 under the direction of the New England Meteorological 



