THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



311 



into certain lands which it was proposed to use for 

 garden purposes, consisting of about 150 acres. This 

 was agreed to, and we proceeded to lay about 4,000 feet 

 of water mains out into the farm. As there was some 

 delay in completing the work, our irrigation was not 

 begun until some time in June. We had in the mean- 

 time, however, planted a portion of the land in fruit 

 trees and berries, and the remainder was planted in 

 vegetables. As soon as the pipe laying was completed 

 the water was turned on and irrigation of the entire 

 tract begun. 



"The following results show the profit of the un- 

 dertaking : 



Beets, 4 acres, 1,960 bu. at 30c $ 588.00 



Cabbage, 15 acres, 1,498 bbls. at $1 1,498.00 



Cauliflower, 3 acres, 81 bbls. at $1.50 121.00 



Cucumber, % acre, 184 bu. at 60c 110.00 



Lettuce, % acre, 101 bbls. at $1 T . 101.00 



Water and musk melons, 7 acres, 16,000 at 3c 148.00 



Onions, 3 acres, 245 bbls. at 75c 183.75 



Peas, 5 acres, 250 bu. at $1.25 323.75 



Eadishes, 3 acres, 304 bbls. at $2 608.00 



Tomatoes, 6 acres, 1,360 bu. at 30c 408.00 



Turnips, 15 acres, 3,000 bu. at 30c 910.50 



Potatoes, 25 acres, 3,000 bu. at 30c 900.00 



Greens, 2 1-3 acres, 500 bu. at 25c 125.00 



Rhubarb, % acre, 261 bbls. at 50c 130.00 



Total for 9Qi/o acres $6,478.40 



Total for 1 acre 73.57 



"While it is conceded that this does not show an 

 excessively large yield, it must be borne in mind that 

 is far greater than the average yield in the regions 

 round about during the same season, and that irriga- 

 tion was begun very late in the season. Moreover, the 

 ground was newly broken and had never before been 

 used for vegetables. * 



"The cost of laying the pipe was about $1,500, or, 

 say, $10 per acre. The land before the pipes were 

 laid would have been regarded for agricultural pur- 

 poses as at a high price at $100 per acre ; it now has a 

 producing value to the institution of $500 per acre. 



TWO METHODS OF APPLYING WATER. 



"In applying the water at the hospital we used 

 only two methods the ditch and the flowing. In both 

 cases the water was conveyed in large ditches meander- 

 ing in conformity with the contour of the ground, 

 running often by very circuitous routes to the desired 

 points. There it was diverted into furrows made by 

 what is called 'middle breakers,' or double mold board 

 plow between the rows of corn, potatoes, cabbage or 

 whatever the plant; or by the flooding method it was 

 spread out over a leveled space ten to fifteen feet in 

 width, with ridges six to eight inches high, thrown up 

 to separate these spaces from each other, and occasional 

 cross-ridges if the slope of the ground was steep. We 

 kept the slope of the land constantly in mind and we 

 found it always best to always begin at the lowest point 

 and work up or backward. In irrigating the orchard 

 we ran a furrow on each side of each row of trees and 

 allowed the water to run slowly throughout its length. 

 For orchard purposes we find two irrigations sufficient, 

 one early in the spring and the other just as the fruit 

 begins to ripen. As the trees grow the irrigating fur- 

 row is run farther and farther away from the trees." 



Dr. Gapen is of the opinion that irrigation has a 

 much larger future in those portions of the country 



where the rainfall is reasonably large than even in the 

 dry regions, because there is a larger supply of water 

 which can be utilized and, of course, can be utilized 

 to a greater extent. Long continued experiments in 

 the direction of supplemental irrigation have indeed 

 demonstrated beyond any doubt that crops may be 

 doubled and quadrupled. The irrigation system 

 adopted at the institution of which Dr. Gapen is super- 

 intendent required from 100,000 to 200,000 gallons of 

 water per acre during the growing season. He esti- 

 mated that at least two inches of rainfal were neces- 

 sary for even a light irrigation, approximately 55,000 

 gallons, being at the rate of 27,154 gallons of water for 

 one inch of rain, and that to give two good wettings 

 to the soil at least 220,000 gallons, or about eight 

 inches, should be given each acre. This was modified 

 to about 100,000 gallons per acre for each wetting. 

 More water, however, could be used to advantage, for 

 the reason that in humid regions a 70 per cent satura- 

 tion by bulk will give the best results. 



As to the expense of the supplemental irrigation at 

 the Illinois institution, above referred to, it cost $3.00 

 per 1,000,000 gallons to deliver the water at the point 

 required. At this rate the cost of delivering 100,000 

 gallons, the amount necessary to irrigate one acre, 

 was only 60 cents per acre for two good wettings. This 

 expense was much greater than that incurred by ordi- 

 nary pumping or lifting, for the reason that there was 

 maintained a pressure of fifty pounds, which required 

 high pressure pumps. The piping was the best grade 

 of cast iron pipe, laid entirely below the frost line, 

 using three, four and six-inch pipe, which cost from 

 20 to 30 cents per foot. 



With a farm located on the bank of a stream, or 

 with an inexhaustible well, it is not difficult to under- 

 stand that the expense would be much less. The fact 

 remains, however, that with the most expensive appli- 

 ances supplemental irrigation is productive of double 

 profits, and therefore it is a system not to be rejected 

 without at least a trial of its merits. 



DRAINAGE INVESTIGATIONS. 



Office of Experiment Stations. 



The office of experiment stations of the United 

 States Department of Agriculture has issued a report 

 on the drainage investigations carried on during 1903 

 under the direction of Elwood Mead, chief of irriga- 

 tion and drainage division of this office, by C. G. El- 

 liott, expert in charge. 



The object of the report is to show the possibilities 

 of drainage and the methods of accomplishing it most 

 effectively and economically. The work carried on by 

 Mr. Elliott during the past year included plans for 

 reclaiming alkali lands at Fresno, Cal. ; surveys and in- 

 vestigations in Yakima and Atanum Valleys, Washing- 

 ton, and in Grey Bull Valley, Wyoming; plans for the 

 drainage of overflowed bottom lands in the Missouri 

 Valley in Iowa, and experiments with the use of 

 drains to prevent hillside erosion in Georgia. 



In the district about Fresno, Cal., where the water 

 plane in the once dry soil had reached, in places, a 

 distance of but two feet from the surface, the injury 

 to crops from an excess of water in the soil and the 

 accumulation of alkali was apparent over a large area. 

 Surveys were instituted to determine the proper ar- 

 rangement of drain ditches. Plans were made for two 



