190 



CALIFORNIA FRUITS: HOW TO GROW THEM 



length, but usually 3 feet, 4 feet or 5 feet long. The corners are 

 cut off to a circle, starting about 1 foot back of the corner. The 

 handles are made of two pieces of 1 by 3 inch pine,- 12 inches longer 

 than the gate, and are placed one on each side of the sheet iron 

 and secured by 1-4 inch bolts. 



The Combined Check and Furrow Method. An effort to escape 

 in some measure the puddling of the surface which results from 

 allowing water to sink away upon finely pulverized soil, lies in 

 the direction of breaking up the soil roughly in the bottoms of the 

 checks, which facilitates the quick passage of the water into the 

 subsoil. This is done by running a small plow or three large culti- 

 vator teeth attached to a single frame before the ridger is used to 



Combined check and furrow irrigation. 



form the levees. Mr. A. D. Bishop of Orange County, California, 

 uses a combined furrow and check system, as shown in the accom- 

 panying diagram. He furrows the land first with a three-tooth 

 furrower at right angles to the direction in which the water is to 

 flow, and then uses the ridger to make levees in line with the water, 

 laying out the work so as to get the closest approximation to a 

 level. When the levees are made, the jump scraper is used and 

 the end of each third or fourth furrow bank is connected with the 

 levees at alternating sides of the check made by the levees. This 

 causes the water to flow through the furrows from side to side and 

 distribute itself evenly over the whole ground. The number of 

 furrows which can be passed before connecting with the bank 

 depends upon the slope of the land the nearer level the land the 



