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DRY-FARMING CONGRESS, WICHITA, 1914 



Crop Irrigation. — A surprisingly large number of opportunities for 

 irrigating gardens in the dry-land districts are overlooked or neglected. 

 The supply for this garden irrigation on dry-land farms may be secured 

 in various ways, including the impounding of storm or flood waters in 

 artificial reservoirs, that pumped from windmills, and also that available 

 from streams. Many dry farms have natural flood water courses in which 

 small reservoirs may be made by constructing earth dams across them. 

 There is seldom a year in which much more storm water than would 

 be required perfectly to irrigate a much larger area than is found in the 

 usual farm garden, is not lost. By selecting a location for a gardsn below 

 the reservoir, irrigation may be made available whenever necessary. If 

 the garden is on a slope, it should be terraced, as in this way much of the 

 storm water may be prevented from running off. Many times, the garden 

 tract may be located on the lower side of the pasture, or an uncultivated 

 field, with the slope towards it. Then, by plowing furrows in the pasture 

 or field above the garden, storm waters may bs conducted onto the garden- 

 tract, practically every time there is rain. By constructing a ditch and 

 headgate at the upper side of the garden, this flood water may be turned 

 on or off at will. 



Windmill Irrigation. — Windmill irrigation has been found highly prac- 

 tical on many dry-land farms in connection with gardening. In nearly every 

 instance wells on dry-land farms will furnish through the medium of the 

 windmill, several times as much water as is required for domestic and live- 

 stock purposes. In connection with a reservoir and continuous pumping, 

 these wells will furnish an abundant supply of water for irrigating from 

 one-fourth to one acre of garden under the furrow method. The enormous 

 water loss due to surface evaporation, renders the construction of a reser- 

 voir with as little surface and as great depth as possible thoroughly de- 

 sirable. For earth reservoirs, the best depth has been found to be from 

 four to six feet, and to prevent seepage, it has been shown to be advisable 

 as well as practicable to cement-line many of these reservoirs." Puddling 

 by means of trampling the bottoms of these earth reservoirs with livestock, 

 has been found to render a major number of these constructions seepage 

 proof. This puddling of the bottoms and even the sides must be done while 

 the earth is thoroughly wet. ' 



Applying the Water. — When and how to apply water to these gardens 

 are questions troublesome to the dry-land farmer. In answer to these 

 questions, I would say that demonstrations have proved that irrigation of 

 the garden tract during the winter, is profitable. This is better accom- 

 plished by furrowing the tract with a lister or plow from three to four feet 

 apart in the land that has been deeply plowed only a short time before. 

 These furrows should be "laid out" so they can be filled, and the water 

 have time to soak in or penetrate, rather than run out at the other end 

 of the furrow. Through this winter irrigation, the ground is assured an 

 abundant early moisture supply, which will usually last for ordinary truck 

 farms until late spring or early summer. Winter irrigation places the 

 ground in excellent condition for the beneficial effects of alternate thawings 



