1807.] 
AMKRTCAN AGRICULTURIST. 
99 
would advLse those who make a practice of 
keeping their land clean oiUy where it is planted, 
and of allowing fence corners, etc., to raise their 
own crops of weeds, not to irrigate, because, if 
they do not keep their ditches and all water 
avenues clean and free from weeds, they will 
assuredly bring such crops upon their land 
ever)' time they water it, as will soon disgust 
them with the whole system. 
The first thing to be done is to get the water 
to the highest part of the land to be cultivated. 
Here this is done by communities; each com¬ 
munityhaving its own peculiar by-laws as re¬ 
gards compensation of the ilajor domo, division 
of the water, etc., all being governed by the 
general laws of the Territory as regards the 
election of the >Iajor domo, and the fines for 
delinquency in working the “Asoequias,” as 
the canals are called, or for stealing water, &c. 
The advantages of irrigating by open ditches 
arc many; principally, that you get your water 
on the land at a much higher temperature than 
from a well. I have seen persons here, when 
short of water, use their wells, and give their 
crops of cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, &c., such 
a “back-set” as often to lose the whole crop. We 
are here 8,000 feet or more above the sea level, 
and have to take the greatest care as regards the 
temperature of the water and the time for irri¬ 
gating, or it would be impossible to raise any 
of the more delicate vegetables. Again, by 
ditches, if well made at the outset, the advantage 
is that they arc always tJisre, whereas if one has 
complicated machinery it is liable to be out of 
order when needed, and before the repairs can 
be made the good time has gone by. 
In preparing for irrigating a garden, which 
can be laid under water from one line, as in 
figure 1, run the main ditch as near level as 
possible, because, as the water has to run in this 
ditch to feed all the smaller ones, it will cut 
away, if sloping, much more tlian the smaller 
ditches. Those ditches which slope much 
should be well paved or lined with plank. In 
figure 1, A, B, C, D is a plot of ground having 
a^slight fall from B to A, and a greater fall from 
Bio D, the lowest point being at C; w, the 
main ditch, entering the plot at B and leaving 
at A ; \ ’c and ’c are the cross ditches, num- 
get the upperhand while he is repairing borders. 
This ditch, to a practiced irrigator, is almost 
unnecessary, cxce[)t in cases where neighbors 
above him, using from the same stream, may let 
all the water upon him without w’arning; but, 
in any case, it is better to have it, as it can 
all terraced ; and if, wherever the fall increases, 
the beds be made narrower, much labor will 
thereby be saved. Next put in the flood-gates, 
(see figure 3,) and sink boxes in the cross 
ditches, at the points where you open the beds, 
or make holes and line them w’ith brick; these 
boxes, or holes, are so placed that when the 
border of a bed is opened for irrigation, the 
W'ater has to run over the hole to get in¬ 
to the bed, so that all sand which wmuld 
otherwise go into the bed is caught; and 
whenever these holes fill w'ith sand before 
you have "water enough in the bed, clean 
it promptly. It is better, where the lay 
of the land wdll admit of it, to wniter the 
beds from the lower corners. But always 
commence to water those beds which are 
the; highest, so that if a border breaks the 
"water will run into a dry bed; whereas, on 
the other hand, if you commence at the 
lower: beds, and the same accident should 
occur, the -water runs into beds already 
full, and may burst a dozen borders before 
you can stop it. Another reason for ir 
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Fig. 1.—plan of miilGATION. 
bmd in Hie order in wliieii tliey woald be need 
Xn irrigiiting the rvbole plot; n.s n ditc ‘ "f 
me Le Uie mein diteli, and .. need r 
runiiin" off tlmt part of llic stream wliicii is w r- 
niien irrigating; it is also used as acbmid 
f„r tlie whole stream when itrealta-e occum, 
ami the gardener lias fear that the wa 
be used also to irrigate the right band row 
of beds. The points where flood-gates are 
necessary to regulate the amount of w’ater are 
marked /; m is a walk, bridging the cross 
ditches at the points S, which must be enlarged 
or added to according to taste or convenience; 
but all walks or roads should be made on a level 
with the border above them, and in fact serve 
to form the border, as they give strength to the 
beds. 0 is a continuation of the ditch; n serves 
also as an outlet for the w'ater when one tier of 
beds has been -watered, until the next tier has 
been started. The same principle marked in 
this plot will apply equally to a garden of fifty 
acres or more, and the larger the garden Uie 
more will the labor be lessened by following 
some such system. 
Now let us suppose the main ditch dug, and 
water running through it: the first thing will be 
to make the upper row of beds (marked 1); com¬ 
mencing on the right hand, make the first bed; 
of course the land has been ploughed well long 
ao-o For vegetables of most kinds, no bed 
should exceed ten feet by twenty,and befo^ the 
first season is over the gardener will find that, 
by making small beds, he 
has saved much labor. The 
first line of beds is made 
with borders, or raised mar¬ 
gins, from six to nine inches 
above the level and at least 
six inches across the top, 
and the cross ditches finish¬ 
ed down to the lower edge 
of the completed beds, fi he 
next thing is to ascertain that 
they are perfectly level, a.nd 
this is best done by opening 
them, as in figure 2, and 
letting in the w'ater slowly, 
and if there is a corner high¬ 
er or low'er than the rest of 
the bed the water will surely 
find it for you. Leveling the 
beds well previous to plant- 
in is absolutely necessary, 
for if you have to irrigate 
very young plants,(which, in 
•11 /ritTP them a two w'eeks’ start 
many CUSM, -win g J 
over tlioso lea Ulc^ the plant, will be 
r:Ilrco«red witU sediment, wliiie other, 
'"mUe’berNo: 1 are filling yoh ^ 
in" the next row, and so on, unti yoi 
rigating from the top beds is, that while one bed 
islailing you can open as many below as you 
choose, and in this W'ay you are ahead of your 
work, always ready to spare a few minutes to 
remedy any accident, and also have perfect com¬ 
mand of the W'ater,—When the plants are strong 
enough to allow of a good stream being used, 
one man can, in this way, easily water from 
150 to 200 beds in a day. 
In figure 2, is show'n the method of letting 
on the water. First, break the border qf bed 1 
Fig. 3. —FLOOD GATE. 
at the point throwing the soil across the cross 
ditch c, so as to form the dam d then open the 
floodgate marked by the dotted line /, un i 
amount of water needed passes; and if the 
whole of the water running m the mam ditch, 
is used, shut the flood-gate in m; but it no , 
open all the flood-gates on the main ditch enoug i 
to allow the surplus water to pass ^ow 
while the first bed is receiving the watei op 
other beds in succession, as ^ 
and when the first bed has received sufi^uent 
draw the first dam over again to ^^3 P^e ^n t 
border and allow the water to flow into the next 
nevcTleav'T any of the beds open to tbe ditches 
^ ici *1 ftlov6iily fcislilon, 
when not irrigating. This i= a sloven y 
and often ft'om a heavy ram, or by thc 
of a flood-gate, is the means of luming 
left, and of iourse Hie plan., they conta m 
Fieure 3 shows the flood-gate in genei. - 
he,-eIitlsasguarebox,openaUhe.op,ey^^^^^^^^^ 
braces for slreiigthcmn„ , bottom, 
between ''oats nailed m 
imving a fiwme W ^ 
die »'■>'"'< „ pej or nail. It is set in 
ed at any J which the water 
it, place so that the e Mow the leTcl of the 
rtT inSed by the dotted line 1, i. By this 
ditch, maiKLu tn lift the gate 
means ^Imcs leh s-d. 
out of phice, am cross ditches, 
and so liolps the boxes in the cross 
