IRRIGATION IN FLORIDA. 43 



Nevertheless, there are disa vantages to this system, the most seri- 

 ous perhaps being the first cost, which is too high for the average 

 grower to consider. Inasmuch as the citrus trees in Florida grow 

 very tall after reaching the age of about 20 years, another objection 

 is the trouble experienced from nozzles when it becomes necessary to 

 elevate them above the reach of the hand. This is a considerable 

 drawback since the nozzles are likely to need attention as they become 

 worn or clogged. An irrigation system should be put in with the 

 idea of having permanent effectiveness, for it seems that the older a 

 tree the more water it needs. 



IRRIGATION OF GliOVES BY SURFACE METHODS. 



To one who has seen the systems employed for the irrigation of 

 orange groves in southern California, it is somewhat surprising that 

 the California methods are not in more general use in Florida, as 

 many of the growers had visited the western systems before they in- 

 stalled these entirely different systems in their own groves. The fur- 

 row systems of the West are not more widely used in Florida, how- 

 ever, because of the difference in soil conditions, the conclusion having 

 been that the loose and sandy soils of Florida would not permit the 

 running of water for long distances upon the surface of the ground. 

 Yet some prominent growers in Florida have irrigated their groves 

 by this method with reported success. Probably the best-known grove 

 where this method has succeeded in spite of sandy soil is a grove on 

 Lake Butler, about 10 miles west of Orlando. The manager of the 

 grove reported to the Florida Horticultural Society in 1907 that he 

 had used the furrow system with success during the protracted 

 drought of that season, running water down furrows 500 to 600 feet, 

 and that he was using successfully a main of 10-inch terra-cotta pipe 

 as well as several hundred feet of light portable galvanized sheet-iron 

 pipe. The latter may be carried easily from place to place and may be 

 made to carry water where the grades do not permit running it in 

 furrows. 



Another example of furrow irrigation in Florida is a grove at 

 Winter Haven. The plant consists of a steam duplex pump, capacity 

 about 200 gallons per minute, operated by a 30-horsepower engine. 

 The main pipe line runs from the lake to the center of the 50-acre 

 grove. Outlets consisting of 5 by 3 inch iron crosses are provided 

 on the main, 125 feet apart. The 3-inch outlets face at right angles 

 to the main, each being provided with a 3-inch iron gate valve. In 

 connection with the above there is enough 3-inch iron pipe to reach 

 from the main to the outside of the grove. This pipe is carried from 

 place to place as it is needed. 



Before the water is turned on the land several furrows are 

 plowed in each space between the tree rows parallel to the main, and 



