44 



THE IKRIGATION AGE. 



CORRESPONDENCE. 



The Bungalow, Ballendella, P. O., 



Rochester, Victoria, Australia. 

 The Editor of IRRIGATION AGE, 



Chicago, 111. 

 Dear Sir: 



In your September number I note with pleasure 

 your account of our -Mr. Mead's statements, while 

 in your country, on Australia's advantages to the 

 settler, on irrigation blocks, etc. I also note the 

 lifelike photo of him. 



Mr. Mead is one man up in this district, which 

 is one of many new irrigation settlements, and 1 

 suppose if it had not been for his coming to this 

 C'luntry and accepting the post here he did, and 

 doing the work he has done, we from over seas, 

 neither should have come here either, especially as 

 his statements and those of our Minister of Lands, 

 the Honorable Hugh McKenzie at home, were 

 mainly instrumental in bringing us. Most of us 

 from the old country have come with the real and 

 only desire to succeed and make our homes here. 

 and to that end we look to your Mr. Mead for his 

 great experience, coupled with our energy, to make 

 this undertaking a great and lasting success for all 

 concerned. It is conceded by all here that Mr. Mead 

 is a great man, has the courage of his convictions 

 in this great scheme, and not only that, but which 

 is more important for us who have come 12,000 

 miles and more ,our interests at heart, as naturally, 

 if we don't succeed, neither can the undertaking, so 

 that, coupled with other assistance which is being 

 given and promised by those in authority, should 

 help in a short time toward the desires, hopes and 

 aims we left our homes and friends for. 



I have found many helpful articles in your 

 paper and I would now suggest others which will 

 be further so such as one on how to start and es- 

 tablish canneries for vegetables and fruits, the prob- 

 able cost, etc. I also vote that you write largely on 

 alfalfa meal, which makes such splendid feed and 

 sells your way at $36 a ton. 



This meal business should prove a most helpful 

 adjunct here, therefore, can you let me know cost 

 of a mill, where to get one, and whether, if we make 

 the meal here, it would pay us, failing a market here, 

 to ship it to your parts. As large numbers of alfalfa 

 stacks will be on the grounds here soon, an early 

 and detailed reply will greatly oblige. 



I hope soon to write you, regularly, articles on 

 our progress here and ask for further advice, which 

 I trust you will be kind enough to give. 



I am, sir, 



Yours faithfully, 



(Signed) THOMAS BUNBURV. 



Wendell. Idaho, Dec. 15, 1912. 

 THE IRRIGATION ACK, 



Chicago. 

 Gentlemen : 



The United States Government, after exhaust- 

 ive investigations, has finally determined upon the 

 location of a potato experimental farm near the town 

 of Jerome, Idaho, on the Great Twin Falls North 



Side Project of southern Idaho. Forty acres of land 

 were donated by Messrs. Kuhn Brothers to the 

 Government for their experimental work, and the 

 North Side Project is to be congratulated upon hav- 

 ing the soil and conditions that make it worth while 

 for the Government to establish its experimental 

 station here. 



Mr. Eugene Grubb of Carbondale, Colorado, 

 of potato fame, has been tireless in his efforts to 

 bring "before the public the wonderful possibilities 

 of this section for the growing of high class market- 

 able potatoes, and several weeks ago, in company 

 with Dr. Orton and Dr. Corbett of the Department 

 of Agriculture, were in the field looking over a 

 proposed Government site, and making other in- 

 vestigations, and a gathering of the people of the 

 North Side Tract from the towns of \Yendell and 

 Jerome was called for a discussion on potatoes. 



Dr. Orton was the first speaker, and his re- 

 marks, in part, were as follows: "My own field is 

 that of 'Plant Diseases.' In our work at Washing- 

 ton we have given a great deal of attention to potato 

 diseases. Our work has been principally in the 

 eastern states, but in recent years largely in the 

 West. There is no work so important as the Patho- 

 logical side of potato growing, and in the West is 

 one of the most important parts of this industry. 



"I want to mention to you some things that 

 have happened in other potato growing districts. I 

 believe you have here in this wonderfully fertile 

 district, one of the greatest possibilities that have 

 ever been presented to any agricultural community, 

 in that you are beginning in virgin soil the cultiva- 

 tion of a crop, which, in other districts, has suffered 

 greatly from plant diseases. You are beginning in 

 soil entirely free of these troubles. It rests largely 

 with you as to whether you shall continue potato 

 growing free from these handicaps. 



"Let us take, for example, Greeley. Colorado, 

 one of the most famous of the potato districts, which 

 has been built up by growing potatoes to the point 

 where it is one of the wealthiest of the western dis- 

 tricts. Greeley, a few years ago. was growing- 

 35,000 to 40.000 acres of potatoes. A year ago the 

 crash came at Greeley, and the production fell from 

 seven to ten thousand cars down to 500 cars. 



"The cause of this is purely a question of plant 

 disease. It is very questionable whether they will 

 be able to get back, at least in a few years, anything 

 like their normal production. 



"The trouble in Greeley has been somewhat 

 complicated. Possibly the heavy soil has had some- 

 thing to do with it. Possibly continuous rotation 

 in alfalfa, and the presence of nitrogen forming 

 bacteria in the soil has increased the nitrogen con- 

 tent of the soil too much, but whatever those fac- 

 tors may be. the condition present is one of disease. 



"Another district in the West which has had a 

 great deal of fame is that around Stockton. Califor- 

 nia, the beet land section between Stockton and 

 San Francisco, below the river level. AVhen this 

 river district was first opened up. the crop of po- 

 tatoes was something wonderful, and the farmers 

 desired to make all they could growing potatoes 

 continuously. After a while the yields began to 



