1862.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
303 
most prodigious results are produced: onions 
ire raised there weighing 2h to 3 lbs.; these are 
from Mexican seed; the American annual onion 
sometimes reaches 2 pounds weight. 
When the flooding process is used, all the 
ground is surrounded with embankments to re¬ 
tain the water, say 12 inches high. In these 
embankments there are openings for ingress and 
egress; the Water is let on, and allowed to re¬ 
main until the ground is thoroughly soaked; it 
is then drawn off. The result of this is the de¬ 
posit of sediment, baking of ground around 
the roots and tender plants, and an immense 
amount of labor to put the ground in order 
again. When this plan is applied to field cul¬ 
ture, you may calculate, if you can, the labor 
necessary to raise a large crop. By the time the 
ground is in order it is time to let on the water 
again, and so on through the season. This 
method was formerly adopted in Utah, but I am 
told is gradually going out of use, and much of 
their small grain is raised without irrigation. 
The writer saw at once that this plan would 
not suit on an extensive scale, and that it was 
not the best method on any scale. He therefore 
adopted a plan which is destined to supersede, 
in this territory, the plan of New-Mexico. 
Grounds requiring irrigation must be so arranged 
that the water will flow slowly through furrows 
prepared for the purpose, so as to give ample 
time for it to penetrate the entire soil. Head and 
tail ditches are constructed, at convenient dis¬ 
tances, to admit the water, and conduct the sur¬ 
plus to other points where needed. Corn and 
potatoes are easily irrigated by a central furrow 
made with a shovel-plow; small grains by fur¬ 
rows run 2 to 4 feet apart with a similar instru¬ 
ment. All small crops—roots, etc.—planted 18 
inches apart, admit a small furrow with a hoe. 
Thus the water can be applied to the roots 
without touching the top of the plant, or caus¬ 
ing the ground to bake. The demand for water 
can. always be known by digging with a hoe or 
spade about the plants. As there is a time for 
all things, so there is a time for the application 
of water. . The best rule is to keep the ground 
regularly moistened until the plant approaches 
maturity, when the supply should be diminished 
or cut off entirely until it is fully ripened. 
It is always best to have a pool at the head of 
the main ditch to collect and warm the water; 
the same result may be obtained by a long ditch 
and slow motion to the water; but this is not an 
absolute necessity when the water is applied to 
the roots alone, nor is it a necessity to irrigate 
in the evening or night only; on the contrary, 
the process may be continued all day, without 
any apparent disadvantage. In order to avoid 
the evil of second growth in potatoes, or the 
formation of small ones on the main tuber—I 
select those varieties free from any such constitu¬ 
tional tendency , (the blue Meshannock is objec¬ 
tionable on this account.) Round potatoes are 
generally best. Then I would make the rows, 
(drills or hills), 4 feet apart, plant deep, and hill 
but little; then by running a center furrow, the 
water will be absorbed in larger quantities, the 
roots kept moist longer, and the growth neces¬ 
sarily more regular. I am thus particular about 
the potato, because this crop is so easily spoiled 
by an , excess' of watef, becoming insipid and 
almost useless. Size with' loss of quality is 
gained at a great sacrifice, and notwithstanding 
the immense yield and enormous size of our po¬ 
tatoes, but few raised in this country are fit for 
table use; they are generally too knotty and 
watery. These defects are produced by plant¬ 
ing in lbw, moist, rich land, where the supply 
of water is too great and continued too long— 
until the frost kills the tops while the plants are 
in full vigor. It is an absolute necessity in the 
production of good potatoes, that the supply of 
water be withheld in time to stop the growth 
and allow the tuber to ripen before the tops are 
entirely killed by frost. 
I have kept no accurate account of the extra ex¬ 
pense of irrigation; but when I consider that the 
soil is made to yield its utmost capacity with uni¬ 
formity, and that the hands irrigating can always 
do extra work enough to pay expenses, l am de¬ 
cidedly in favor of systematic irrigation, and 
never shall own a farm without facilities for ir¬ 
rigating a considerable part thereof. To the ad¬ 
vantages already enumerated, may be added 
this, that the soil is continually enriched by the 
mineral, animal and vegetable matter contained 
in the water; while the extra crop produced al¬ 
ways enables the true farmer to return to the 
soil greater quantities of fertilizing manures. 
Reservoirs and ditches once well made, last 
for ages; the water may, in many cases, be used 
for threshing, grinding, churning, etc., etc., and 
afterwards applied to the land, and in many 
places the reservoirs maybe made both orna¬ 
mental and useful, by raising fish in them, and 
that too with little or no additional expense. 
There are here few farms without the means 
of irrigating at least a part. All our low 
lands are capable of being arranged for and sup¬ 
plied with water. Suppose every man who 
owns a living spring, rivulet, creek, or has land 
on the river bottom, to be in a state of readi¬ 
ness to use the water judiciously, what would 
be the result? 1st, scarcity would be an impossi¬ 
bility. In a season when rains seldom fall, crops 
must be short; and a farmer can make more on 
ten acres well tilled than his whole farm would 
pay in ordinary seasons, besides the security of 
seed time and harvest, Iread and meat. 2d, The 
moral effect on himself, family, and the world at 
large will more than compensate for the extra 
expense. 3d, The expense of culture is less, pro¬ 
portionately. 4th, Less land will produce the 
ordinary amount; the balance can rest. 5th, 
Smaller farms, better culture, and greater cer¬ 
tainty, will open the way for supporting a dens¬ 
er population, both of producers and consumers. 
Let any man who doubts these statements 
take one, two, or three acres, make the exper¬ 
iment, and report the result for the benefit of 
his fellows. Too little attention is given to this 
subject; frequently whole districts are in a con¬ 
dition of starvation, as was the case in Kansas, 
solely because they are not prepared to use the 
means nature furnishes bountifully. From my 
personal knowledge of the Kansas River and 
its tributaries, I do not hesitate to affirm that 
in the valleys of those streams four times the 
amount necessary to support the entire popu¬ 
lation of the State could have been produced. 
And yet Kansas begged for seed and bread. 
Except on rivers the water is easily diverted 
from its accustomed channel, and directed' where 
needed. In many places a few feet of spading, 
a small dam, and the plow does the balance as 
fast as a team can walk. The water itself fur¬ 
nishes' power to lift water for irrigation—wind 
mills may be 'made to do the work, and rather 
than the population should starve of beg, horses 
and cattle could be used to advantage where 
the water required lifting only a few feet. But 
usually the fall in the stream furnishes all the 
conditions necessary. With the great amount of 
fertile soil in our valleys, how easy it would be 
to secure ourselves against want and dependence. 
The fact is, by concentrating labor on the val¬ 
leys-in time of drouth, pinching scarcity need 
never be felt. This subject appeals not alone to 
the selfish propensities of humanity, but will 
be appreciated by the true philanthropist—one 
who comprehends the moral effect of plenty, 
both on the buyer and the seller, and the abso¬ 
lute necessity of a regrdar supply of food and 
raiment to human progress. 
Raising Turnips. 
It is altogether too late in the day to question 
the utility of the turnip crop. The raising of 
those varieties wanted for table use, is no unim¬ 
portant matter. We could almost as soon think 
of Thanksgiving dinner without tlie'turkey, as 
without the savory dish of early white Dutch 
turnips. Carefully stored in the root cellar, or 
put down in boxes of sand in the common 
house cellar, they will keep fresh and juicy all 
winter. For spring use, commend us to the 
purple-topped Swede, or rutabaga. We do not 
recommend any of these as being particularly 
easy of digestion; but, eaten in moderation, they 
serve as a good relish and accompaniment to 
other food. For stock feeding this root is of great 
value. For producing milk, for fattening, or 
for keeping up the general health of cattle, swine 
and sheep, through the cold season, their impor¬ 
tance is not easily over-estimated. It is a great 
economy to use them especially in seasons where 
there is a scarcity of other fodder. A leading 
English agriculturist once said that the failure 
of the turnip crop there would be a greater blow 
to the nation’s prosperity than the failure of the 
Bank of England. Nothing like this would be 
true for our own country, perhaps; yet it is a fact 
that the turnip crop is one of great importance. 
The first of this month is in time for sowing 
the Rutabagas and Swedes, but a longer season 
is desirable if wanted for stock feeding. With 
"other varieties we may follow the old adage, 
“ Twenty-fifth of July, sow turnips, wet or dry.” 
But this, like other adages, must be taken with 
qualification. Sow the seed in July whenever 
the ground is moist enough to give the seeds a 
quick start. The land should be rich, clear of 
weeds, light and warm: a black muck, rather 
sandy, is best. If a piece of newly cleared 
land can be found, turn it over and sow on that: 
the crop will be quite sure. The seed germi¬ 
nates quickly, and insects are less troublesome 
than on old land. Next best is*swarded ground. 
The soil having been worked line, sow in drills 
half an inch deep, fifteen inches to two feet apart, 
and at the rate of one and a half pounds to the 
acre. Abercrombie says: “ half an ounce to 
every hundred square feet.” The seeds, will 
germinate in from thirty six to forty eight hours. 
As soon as the plants are up, look out for 
weeds and insects. Work the drills with culti¬ 
vator or wheel-hoe, and the rapid growth will 
reward all the labor. When the plants have 
made rough leaves an inch broad, hoe them and 
thin out to six or eight inches apart. Continue 
the thinnings afterwards, until the roots finally 
stand eight or ten inches apart. If a little plas¬ 
ter is sown broadcast over the plants when well 
established, it will give them increased vigor. 
To destroy that great pest, the fly, some use 
soot, ashes, or, air-slacked lime, strewing it on the 
leaves when wet; but warm, moist weather will 
soon carry .the plants beyond the reach of flies. • 
Still, .if the insects persist, and the young plants 
are eaten up, dig up the ground and sow again. 
An Illinois farmer, speaking of the expense 
of living at the West says: “It will vary with 
the size of the family, and their propensity to 
gratify pride,—an expensive article in a new country. 
