IRRIGATION OF FIELD CROPS. 211 



among the roots, and never on the surface. This plan 

 requires only nine or ten pounds of seed to the acre 

 and the yield will be just as great. It must be under- 

 stood that wheat planted in this way will tiller in such 

 manner as to increase the yield. ' ' 



Before passing the subjedl the author desires to 

 again express the caution about irrigating a seed-bed 

 too prematurely in the season. It must not be for- 

 gotten that the first watering should not be given until 

 the young grain covers the ground fairly well. Flood- 

 ing the land while the wheat is very young and tender 

 has a tendency to bake the ground, especially with the 

 adobe soils, of which so much of our western land is 

 composed. When the grain covers the land properly, 

 the sun's rays do not strike the surface and it remains 

 moist for a considerable length of time. Then again 

 the last application should be given when the grain is 

 in the dough. If applied later than this, it does little 

 or no good. 



To facilitate irrigation it is well when the grain is 

 sown in the spring to use a corrugated roller, so that 

 the rims of the machine will make parallel irrigating 

 trends five or six inches deep in the field at the one 

 operation of rolling to firm the seed-bed. These 

 rollers are much used in Western Colorado, but for the 

 reason that they are difficult to manufadlure from 

 wood in a home-made way they are not employed 

 nearly so generally as they would be if cast in iron so 

 as to be more weather-proof. These rollers should be 

 weighted from 500 to 750 pounds, and it will usually 

 require a spiked team to operate them. A description 

 of this valuable implement will be found in the chapter 



