308 



IRRIGATION PRACTICE 



After flowering, and during fruiting, more water is required 

 than before. Cultivation is the main consideration in 

 the culture of both watermelon and cantaloupe. To 

 obtain crops of high quality, water should be limited at 

 the time of ripening. Pumpkins and squash should be 

 irrigated very much as the watermelon. No exact records 

 are available, but the evidence points to 10 to 12 inches 

 of water as ample for most of these crops. 



185. Cabbage, cauliflower, etc. These typical gar- 

 den crops, sometimes grown as field crops, use fairly 

 large quantities of water. The Utah Station has made 

 some experiments as to the effect of varying quantities 

 of water. Some of the results are shown in the following 

 table : 



YIELDS OF CABBAGE WITH VARYING QUANTITIES OF IRRIGATION 



WATER 



As the total quantity of water increased there was a 

 relatively small increase in yield. In ordinary practice 

 these crops receive small irrigations weekly, or somewhat 

 larger irrigations every other week. The most important 

 thing in their culture is to keep the soil from becoming 

 too dry during the growing period. However, no water 

 should be added after the heads are half formed as it may 

 cause a splitting of the heads. Cauliflower should be 

 treated much the same as cabbage. Lettuce, spinach and 



