THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



301 



full measure of the benefits of this year's irrigation. 

 Referring to the result of this year's watering of 

 nursery stock, Professor Waters believes that nursery- 

 men will find irrigation exceedingly profitable, that it 

 will result in securing larger growth in young trees, 

 trees with better formed heads and possibly a saving 

 of one year in the time when nursery stock can be 

 placed on the market. He also believes that the pro- 

 tection of bearing trees from injury by drouth is a 

 matter of very great importance, because this injury 

 often extends beyond the season when the scarcity of 

 water begins. 



IRRIGATION IN THE NORTH ATLANTIC STATES. 



In the North Atlantic States the large area devot- 

 ed to market gardens makes security against drouth 

 a matter of much importance. Throughout this re- 

 gion the average rainfall provides sufficient moisture 

 if properly distributed, -but short drouths just at the 

 time when the crops are maturing frequently cause 

 heavy losses. In many years no such drouths occur, 



sonal direction, paying the entire cost of installing 

 the pumping plants, with a profit, in a single season. 



An analysis of the rainfall records at Philadel- 

 phia, covering a period of seventy years, shows that 

 in considerably more than half the years there was a 

 lack of rainfall in some one month of the growing sea- 

 son to seriously affect the yield of small fruits and 

 garden vegetables, which constitute so large a part of 

 the products of the Eastern farms. Taking Philadel- 

 phia records as typical of the Eastern United States, 

 and the results so far obtained in New Jersey as a 

 basis for deduction, it will be seen that an irrigation 

 plant would be a profitable investment for most of 

 the farmers living where our large cities provide a 

 ready market for small fruits and vegetables. 



It is not likely that the water-right problems which 

 are so large a factor in Western development will prove 

 of equal importance in the East, owing to the larger 

 flow of streams and the fact that the areas to be irri- 

 gated will always be restricted, but in many localities 



Scene Wisconsin Experiment Station No. 2. 



but they come often enough to make the growing of 

 vegetables and small fruits uncertain. The problem 

 to be solved is whether the saving of an occasional 

 crop and the increased yield of many crops will re- 

 pay with a profit the cost of providing a water supply. 

 The study of these questions is being carried on by 

 this office in connection with the Agricultural Experi- 

 ment Station in New Jersey, Prof. E. B. Voorhees, 

 director of this station, being in charge. His experi- 

 ments, so far reported, have been limited to small 

 fruits. They show that, in case of almost all varieties, 

 the increase in the product of the irrigated tracts over 

 the unirrigated ones was considerably more than 

 enough to pay in a single season the entire cost of pro- 

 viding the water supply, as well as the expense of ap- 

 plying it. 



In addition to making experiments with small 

 fruits Professor Voorhees collected data from private 

 parties in regard to the irrigation of various kinds of 

 garden truck. In most cases the results were equal to 

 those obtained in the experiments made under his per- 



there are already indications that important legal prob- 

 lems will have to be solved before irrigation can safely 

 assume the importance which its value wiill naturally 

 give it. The work of this investigation along the legal 

 and social lines can well be extended to this section. 

 The experience of the West will in time come to be 

 of value in solving the water problems of the East. 



Among the important work which needs to be done 

 in the East along agricultural and engineering lines is 

 a study of the cost of installing and operating pump- 

 ing plants for small areas. Something has alredy been 

 done along this line and arrangements are being 

 made to continue this more effectively in the future. 



RICE IRRIGATION. 



During the past season the problems of rice irri- 

 gation have received much attention from this office. 

 The investigations inaugurated have been principally 

 along agricultural and engineering lines. In the Caro- 

 lina? it has included a study of the methods of storing 

 water to provide a supplemental water supply, the 



