170 BOAED OF AGRICULTURE. [Jan. 



stormy or a cloudy one ; but in the field a cloudy one would 

 be preferred if the water was to be applied to the foliage. 



The supply for irrigation is taken from ponds, rivers, 

 brooks, or it is pumped from driven wells. I much prefer 

 to pump from wells in all cases, because in the summer 

 the water from ponds or rivers is quite warm, while that 

 from wells is cool, which will be an advantage to the crop, 

 especially if the ground is dry and hot, as is often the case ; 

 and in winter if taken from ponds or rivers it is very cold 

 and could not be put upon the plants until it had been 

 warmed, while that taken from wells would be at a proper 

 temperature to be applied immediately. 



For these reasons I have always preferred the wells and 

 have always used them. 



The appliances used for pumping are the wind-mill and 

 the steam pump ; but it is much the best to have both. 



The cheapest pumping is done by the wind-mill, but when 

 it does not pump a sufficient quantity then the steam pump 

 can be used. 



In many places there are elevated ponds or rivers that 

 can be taken from. When such is the case no pumping is 

 necessary. 



There are some very extensive works of this kind in Cali- 

 fornia and Colorado. I visited one this last summer. It had 

 nine hundred miles of canal. I saw it about forty miles from 

 the head. At that place it was twenty feet wide and ten feet 

 deep. The land sloped about ten feet to the mile and the 

 water flowed about two miles an hour. There were many 

 small canals or ditches leading from the large one. This 

 entire system would irrigate about sixty thousand acres of 

 land. It was a very great undertaking to build it ; but it 

 increased the value of the land very much, so that when it 

 was sold it brought five dollars more per acre. 



In addition to this increase in the value of the land, every 

 one who used the water paid so much for the use of it. 



The past year the cost was sixty-seven cents per acre, so 

 you see the cost of irrigation was quite small. 



It was mostly used for vineyards, and was applied when 

 the crop was growing. When the crop was nearly grown its 

 use was stopped, and none was applied while the crop was 

 ripening. 



