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meadows, and cereal crops, whereas either permanent ditches or fresh 

 furrows are resorted to in watering orchards, vineyards, or crops 

 grown in lines. 



In this second case furrows are traced each side of rows running 

 from the distributing channels down the slopes. On steep and 

 broken slopes difficult to plough and where the soil is apt to wash, 

 permanent ditches are laid out on gentle grades for slow running of 

 the water, which slowly percolates from these ditches and supplies 

 moisture to the trees or crops below them. The great drawback of 

 this system of watering land is that a considerable amount of hand- 

 hoeing has to be done on the banks of the furrows, which, not being 

 turned up by the plough, would soon be covered with a thick growth 

 of weeds. For this reason, and on level country, wherever the 

 land has been well graded and levelled, as it is the practice on most 

 irrigation colonies, the fruit trees are watered by means of plough 

 furrows, which are closed after each watering. Where the grade is 

 steep, a shovelful or two of earth thrown at intervals in the channel 

 w^ill break the current of the water. As soon as the water has 

 reached the lower end of the furrow, the watering may be stopped 

 altogether and other furrows filled ; or should a good soaking be 

 required, one- half or two-thirds of the water should be cut off and 

 smaller streams allowed to trickle a few hours longer, until the land 

 has been sufficiently moistened. A rapid flow of water along the 

 distributing furrows will glaze the surface and will prove an 

 obstruction to the water soaking deeply down into the ground. 



The Supply Furrow, which is fed from the Main Channel, is 

 made to run along the highest side of the ground and supplies the 

 water to the Distributing Furrows, which are made to run perpen- 

 dicular to its own direction. It is easily made by running first an 

 ordinary plough, which traces the furrow and is followed by a 

 double mould-board or ridging-plough, which not only opens up the 

 channel, but throws the loose earth on both sides so as to form the 

 bank. Should a deep channel be required, this operation is repeated 

 over again. 



The Distributing Channels are easily traced by running an 

 ordinary single furrow plough up and down the same furrow. 



It is important that the water should not come into actual 

 contact with the bark of the trunk, as trees which have thus been 

 standing in water for some time are apt to develop the " collar 

 rot," which is an exudation of sap at the root crown, and is very 

 similar to the gum disease. Many a promising young tree has 

 thus perished through being improperly watered. For this reason, 

 water should not be applied to the trees in the bowl-shaped reser- 

 voirs which beginners often think is the best way of watering them ; 

 whenever water is thus applied a little mound of earth should be 

 left as a protection round the trunk. Another reason why water 

 should not be thus applied is that in order to be more beneficial, 

 it should be placed within easy reach of the tender rootlets which 

 radiate round the plant, and to which it is most beneficial. I have 

 already called attention to the structure and disposition of the roots 



