- s MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



necessary to use some water for irrigation. The city or town 

 water supply has been used first and is now the mast common one 

 in use. The expense of such supph makes us all very careful 

 of the amount we use. The cost of water in the different towns 

 and cities varies from locts. to 30cts. per thousand gallons. But 

 besides this cost there is the expense of applying the water to the 

 land and this varies in my experience from 2cts. to 20ets. per 

 thousand gallons. 



The methods of applying water are by spraying, running in 

 furrow, and flooding. Of these methods the spraying and furrow 

 methods are most in use. 



Whirling spray machines are in common use and must be set so 

 as to overlap each other in their work; they are economical of time 

 and labor and put the water on in a fine spray doing little if any 

 damage to the crops. 



The hose method of watering costs a lot of money for labor and 

 there is considerable loss of crop at times because of being broken 

 down by the hose or men in getting ready to water. 



There is one great advantage in the hose method, you can easily 

 get the water where it is wanted. 



A three-quarter inch hose with a full three-quarter hose bibb will 

 deliver 900 gals, of water an hour where the piping is ample size. 

 However, when watering all day I have never been able to get on 

 more than about 600 gallons an hour for each line of three-quarter 

 hose. Never use more than one fifty-foot piece as the friction cuts 

 down the delivery. The cost of labor in applying water with this 

 size hose and boy labor has been with me about 20cts. per 1000 

 gallons. 



The use of the inch and a quarter hose enables us to put on about 

 four times as much water per hour and by using man labor will cost 

 in my experience about lOcts. per 1000 gallons. 



If you are going to use city water get as large a supply and meter 

 as you can. A two-inch pipe will carry all the water needed on the 

 average market garden farm of ten acres. Get your two-inch iron 

 pipe on as close to your meter as possible and use two-inch for all 

 mains and one and a half for laterals if the hose method is to be 

 used. I would not run any lateral of less than one and a quarter 

 inch pipe for any hose. 



