74 VEGETABLE GARDENING 



1 1 8. The benefits of irrigation. — Irrigation is an insur- 

 ance, for rainfall is uncertain, and the gardener never 

 knows when it may become necessary to start the pumps 

 or open the water lines to prevent loss. It is a great 

 satisfaction to realize that one can be practically inde- 

 pendent of the natural rainfall. 



Seeds cannot germinate without moisture. It often 

 occurs that plants do not come up promptly because of 

 a lack of moisture. This trouble may be easily avoided 

 by an up-to-date system of irrigation. Again, trans- 

 planting is often an uncertain operation. Hot, drying 

 winds and bright sunshine, after planting, may cause 

 an almost total loss of the plants, while irrigation would 

 save them. 



Absolute control of moisture conditions makes it pos- 

 sible to secure large yields, better quality and earlier 

 maturity. These three advantages are of immense im- 

 portance from a business standpoint. All classes of 

 vegetables should grow unchecked, and this is impossi- 

 ble when moisture is wanting. 



Drouths occur in all sections almost every year. They 

 are disastrous to satisfactory returns. It happens not 

 infrequently that $200 or even more an acre is lost dur- 

 ing protracted drouth. This would rf.ore than pay for 

 the installation of the most approved system and the 

 application of water during the period of drouth. 



It has been previously stated that the rate of applying 

 stable manures and commercial fertilizers may be re- 

 duced when irrigation can be practiced. This may not 

 be the best business policy, but it is unquestionably true 

 that irrigation is often worth much more than any 

 amount of manure or fertilizer that can be applied. 



Numerous experiments have been made that show the 

 value of irrigation. For example, at the Michigan Sta- 

 tion an experiment was conducted on a lo-acre plot. 

 Tomatoes and potatoes were irrigated four times and the 



