COLORADO 



COLORADO 



355 



•which are in great part utilized as hay ranches and for 

 stock ranges. The following figures regarding acreage 

 are from the report of the state engineer for the year 

 1890. The total is given as approximately 66,560,000 

 acres. East of the continental divide lie 40,800,000 

 acres, and on the west 25,760,000 acres. Of the area east 

 of the divide, one-third, or 10,200,000 acres, lies within 

 the mountains and the remainder, 30,600,000 acres, con- 

 sists of plain and valley 

 lands. On the western slope 

 the proportion of mountain 

 and plain is reversed, there 

 being 16,360,000 acres within 

 the mountains and about 

 9,400,000 acres of plain and 

 valley lands. 



For the western slope the 

 rainfall is given as 33 inches 

 for the mountains and 10.7 

 for the plains and valleys, 

 and for the eastern slope as 

 30 inches for the mountains 

 and 15 inches for the plains. 

 The tillable lands of the 

 state are in the main out- 

 side the mountains, and 

 the average annual rainfall 

 on these lands is near 13 

 inches for the whole state. 

 This rainfall comes mainly 

 in the mouths of April, May 

 and June, the precipitation 

 for the other months being 

 usually very small. It fol- 

 lows, from the small rainfall, 

 that crops can only be suc- 

 cessfully grown by irriga- 

 tion, and it is this idea that 

 has dominated the agricul- 

 ture and horticulture of the 

 state ever since the begin- 

 ning, nearly forty years ago. 



Irrigation being a necessity, the lands useful for ag- 

 ricultural purposes would be those reasonably level 

 tracts bordering the streams, and extending back only 

 as far as the water can be carried. The first ditches 

 were constructed cheaply, and for the irrigation of first 

 bottom lands only. A little later the idea of utilizing 

 the higher mesas gave rise to canal systems of great 

 magnitude, that have made productive vast tracts of 

 fertile soil. The period of canal construction east of 

 the continental divide has about ended, there being now 

 as many ditches as the streams can supply, or possibly 

 more. On the western slope, where the water supply 

 is greater, additional systems may yet be constructed. 

 The present most pressing problem on the eastern slope 

 is the conservation of the available water. Attention is 

 being given to the construction of reservoirs, and this, 

 •coupled with that economy in the use of water which 

 experience is gradually teaching, will go far toward 

 solving the problem, and it may yet be possible to con- 

 siderably extend the area now irrigated. Owing to dif- 

 ferences in latitude, altitude, and climatic conditions, 

 the irrigable regions of the state are naturally separable 

 into three divisions, and in considering the horticultural 

 features, it is best to recognize these divisions because 

 they differ in the range of horticultural productions. 

 The divisions are : 



1. The Northern, which embraces the drainage basin 

 •of the South Platte and its tributaries. Clear creek, 

 Boulder creek, St. Vrain, Little Thompson, and Cache 

 la Poudre. 



2. The Southern, embracing the valley of the Arkan- 

 sas and its tributaries. 



3. The Western, embracing all the cultivated valleys 

 of the western s.ope lying along the Uncompahgre, 

 Gunnison, and Grand rivers and their branches, and 

 being mainly in the counties of Montrose, Delta and 

 Mesa. 



The NoKTHEKN DiSTEiCT.— From such statistical in- 

 formation as is at hand, it appears that the commence- 

 ment of fruit planting in Colorado dates from 1863. In 

 that year William Lee, who owned a ranch on the bot- 



tom lands along Clear creek, between Denver and 

 Golden, planted a number of apple trees which he 

 hauled in a wagon from Iowa City, la. In the fall of the 

 same year, Messrs. Perrin and Wolff, of Denver, hauled 

 a load of trees from Des Moines, la., and such as sur- 

 vived the journey were planted on ranches about Den- 

 ver. In 1866, a representative of a Kansas nursery sold 

 trees and plants to many of the farmers along the St. 



ap- 



526. To shov^r horticultural regrions of Colorado. 





■y 



Vrain, and about the same time a few trees were 

 planted on the ranches along the Thompson. These 

 early attempts to start fruit culture in the northern 

 district were practically failures, for very few of the 

 trees lived. The long journey from the nursery to 

 the farm, improper preparation of the ground, lack of 

 care in the application of water, and in protecting from 

 stock, and the sentiment commonly expressed by the 

 majority of the inhabitants, that fruit could not be 

 grown in Colorado, were obstacles hard to overcome. A 

 few of the early settlers, however, having hope of ulti- 

 mate success, made a second attempt in 1870, and from 

 the plantings of that year have grown the many fine 

 orchards that dot the northern valleys. In the most 

 northern valley, that of the Cache la Poudre, planting 

 did not commence until about 1873, and except with 

 small fruits, very little was done in the 10 or 12 years 

 following, or until the success of the pioneers in plant- 

 ing demonstrated that the hardier fruits could be grown. 

 During the past 5 years the area in fruit has increased 

 rapidly, until now the farm without its orchard is the 

 exception. The apple is here, as in the other fruit dis- 

 tricts, the principal fruit, covering the greatest number 

 of acres and receiving more attention than all other 

 fruits. All standard varieties are grown, and the pro- 

 duct meets a ready sale. Plums are successfully grown, 

 and prove profitable, but the range of varieties is re- 

 stricted to those derived from Primus Americana and 

 a few of the hardier varieties of Prunits dotnestica. 

 Cherries of the Morello class are very productive, and 

 the demand for the fruit is encouraging growers to 

 plant freely. Throughout the district much attention is 

 given to the growing of small fruits and vegetables. 

 All kinds of berries find a ready market in the cities 

 and mountain towns, and the staple vegetables, such as 

 onions, cabbages and celery, are shipped in large quan- 

 tities to southern points. 



The Southekn District.— Here the counties most 

 prominent in fruit culture are Fremont, Pueblo and 

 Otero. The first planting was done in Fremont county, 

 and the following concerning the circumstances I quote 



