The Irrigation Question 173 



In the cool and ambitious days of spring, put the 

 effort and the muscle into the land : work it into 

 condition. In the long and hot days of summer, 

 merely keep it in condition. 



1. IRRIGATION 



In many parts of the country, the crop is determined 

 by the amount of rainfall rather than by the plant-food 

 in the soil. In many cases, the crop requires more 

 water than is supplied by the normal rainfall of the 

 growing season. Tillage can save much of the water 

 which fell in the early rains and the winter snows, 

 but there may still be insufficient moisture for a good 

 crop. Irrigation may be necessary to supply the defi- 

 ciency. 



In the arid parts of the country, irrigation is a 

 necessity. It is a general practice. In the humid 

 parts of the country east of the plains irrigation is 

 often helpful and it reduces the risk of a poor crop. 

 It is an exceptional or special practice. 



Evidently, in all regions in which crops will yield 

 abundantly without irrigation, as in the East, the main 

 reliance is to be placed on good tillage. Irrigation is 

 an economic question. If, by irrigation, one can pro- 

 duce enough better crop to more than pay the cost, 

 the practice is to be advised. Too often the farmer 

 thinks of irrigation as he thinks of fertilizer as a 

 means of giving him crops when he does not work 

 for them. As a matter of fact, however, it is only 

 the well -tilled and well -handled lands that pay for 



