128 



EORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 



March 



First. Where the land is strongly al- 

 kaline : i, washing; 2, samar; 3, cot- 

 ton. The growth of the cotton indi- 

 cates the extent to which the reclama- 

 tion has gone. If a good stand is had 

 and a yield of good fiber is obtained, a 

 new rotation is planned to suit the far- 

 mer's taste. If cotton does not do well, 

 the land goes again into samar and re- 

 ceives a further washing. 



Second. In land which contains an 

 average amount of alkali : i, samar ; 2, 

 rice ; 3, cotton ; or, i, rice ; 2, samar ; 

 3, cotton. 



Third. In land which does not con- 

 tain a large excess of soluble salts, cot- 

 ton comes earlier in the rotation and is 

 followed by less resistant crops, as : i , 

 samar ; 2, cotton ; 3, corn. For a num- 

 ber of years after the reclamation has 

 gone on, it will be found advantageous 

 to grow either rice or samar every three 

 or four years, in order to wash from the 

 soil the alkali which has risen above 

 the drains. 



The cost of ditching per cubic yard 

 can be calculated from the following 

 contract prices for carrying on the work : 



Main canals fo 06% 



Main drains 10% 



Primary drains 04^ 



Secondary and tertiary drains 03! 



One of the greatest obstacles to more 

 rapid reclamation has been the lack of 

 population. With the deterioration of 

 these lands the fellahs left and the re- 

 peopling of the villages is slow. For 

 a time the fellahs had little faith in 

 alkali-land reclamation, but gradually 

 the success of the method of reclama- 

 tion became evident, and now settlers 

 are easier to obtain. 



Land once thoroughly reclaimed gives 

 no further trouble from alkali if farmed 

 with intelligence, but land partially re- 

 claimed reverts to its damaged condition 

 in a few years. It has been found more 

 economical to wash land four years and 

 be sure of thorough reclamation than to 

 attempt the cultivation of half- reclaimed 



ALKALI SPOT APPEARING IN A COTTON FIELD AS A RESULT OF AVOWING LAND TO WE IDLE. 



