SOILS, FERTILIZERS AND IRRIGATION 73 



buds, why is it that they practice fall pruning, denuding the tree of nearly 

 all foliage and exposing the fruit buds to all the sun and light they can 

 get? I don't think that fall ^vatering of the prune will cause it to 

 produce heavier crops. My idea is that the soil needs nourishment. 



It is well to place emphasis on the need of fertilization and fall 

 irrigation is not at all at enmity with that claim. However, one can 

 never be sure that the tree needs fertilizers until he has given it a 

 chance to grow well and bear well under the influence of adequate 

 moisture. Besides, the tree can only use fertilizers when there is enough 

 moisture present. But on the other hand it may be urged that in many 

 cases if ample humus is present by cover crops or stable manure the 

 soil will be more retentive and the trees stand in less need of fall 

 irrigation, and that is true. In fact, irrigation and fertilization are so 

 intimately related in effects that one should never try to stand one off 

 against the other. The wise grower assures himself that the tree has 

 moisture enough, and if water does not help the bearing, turns to 

 fertilization. Every kind of a fruit tree must have moisture enough 

 to hold foliage active until fruit buds are adequately strong and to pro- 

 tect the tissues of the new growth against desiccation (as shown by 

 shriveling in extreme cases). When the soil is dry and rains late, 

 this moisture must come from fall irrigation. This lesson has been 

 clearly learned in the San Joaquin Valley with peach trees and when a 

 tree has fall moisture enough to keep it in good condition it is protected 

 against starting too early from its dormancy. 



Purity of Domestic Water Supply. 



Will a cesspool dug to gravel and a few feet from water table 

 have any effect on the zvater of a drinking well 100 feet away? Would 

 there be danger to health and fear for the typhoid germ? Is it sanitary 

 to keep an elevated water tank covered that is used for household 

 purposes and drinking? Will the water keep pure and sweet? 



Putting in a cesspool as you describe is dangerous as in the loose 

 gravel there is quite sure to be a movement of injurious material 

 from cesspool to well and typhoid could easily be carried to user of the 

 water. If, however, you have a bored well and the gravel stratum 

 with which the cesspool connects is cased off, there can be no practical 

 danger. It is sanitary to keep a tank covered. Better to do that than 

 allow it to remain open to injury from birds and other sources of 

 contagion. Whether the water remains pure and sweet or not depends 

 more on the amount used than anything else. If the water is frequently 

 renewed, a covered tank will give good water. 



Reclaiming Overflow Land. 



How can I reclaim a piece of swamp land that is Hooded by zvater 

 from a creek, caused by the tide from the ocean? It is well drained 

 as the tide recedes, and it can easily be shut out. 



