Irrigation. 
By A. H. Bourlay. 
Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen: 
I have been appointed to give an ad¬ 
dress on irrigation. My experience in this 
line is limited to the overhead system on 
vegetables. This is a more expensive 
system; to install than some others, and 
has not the advantage of drainage as well 
as irrigation which the subirrigation sys¬ 
tem has. I believe the subirrigation is by 
far the most preferable where it is prac¬ 
tical. 
Our land being a clay with only a few 
inches of top soil, we cannot lay tiling deep 
enough to allow cultivation, and when laid 
in the clay the water will not spread out 
through the soil, a few feet on each side 
only being dampened. 
We tried flooding but soon found 
where there was much fall our ground 
was washed and in small dips and hollows 
too much water collected and the crops 
were damaged more than by drought, 
where other spots did not get enough. 
Overhead or sprinklers would also have 
to be used where the subsoil of clay or 
marl is too deep down to hold the water 
and cause it to spread. 
With us no artesian water can be had 
and where clear water from the lakes is 
not available wells have to be sunk. I say 
clear because if the supply contains seeds 
or floating particles one has to use strain¬ 
ers, and strainers in the pipes cut down 
pressure and if strained at source of sup¬ 
ply, I find the strainers are continually 
clogged as the current draws everything 
towards them. With wells this trouble 
does not occur. We get water at a depth 
of 90 feet and upward but several wells 
have been sunk over 200 feet and no wat¬ 
er obtained, so it is as well to- be sure of 
water before doing anything. The amount 
of lift and location of supply being im¬ 
portant factors in the amount of power 
needed to get pressure. When buying an 
engine it is economy to get one larger than 
you think you will need; an engine not 
run to its full capacity will last longer and 
give better satisfaction, and allow for ex¬ 
tensions. With plenty of power so as to 
get 30 to 40 pounds to the square inch and 
nozzles two and one-half to three feet 
apart on the laterals, every forty-eight 
feet apart thorough wetting can be given 
in a few hours and followed, in a few 
days by a working, is better than frequent 
light wetting for vegetables. Sometimes 
one soaking is enough to make a crop, 
whereas without it there would have been 
a failure. 
The lay of the plant depends largely on 
the shape of the ground to be irrigated; 
one wants to have the rows or beds run 
with the fall of the land and the laterals 
should run the same way that it is the 
most desirable to run the rows or beds. 
