r>4 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
every 3 feet, or as often as needed. If 
the mixture is just right, no openings 
need be made, as I have seen an opening 
made of both cement and day tile 
and watched one fill up as rapidly as the 
other when the water was turned on. 
With a supply of water, and the cement 
expense provided for, this system can be 
put iu at a less expense over clay tile of 
about 1-3 or about $100.00 per acre, every¬ 
thing hired. And with a man furnishing 
his own labor the cost can be reduced to 
figures much less scary than the average 
cost of irrigation. 
By H. B. Stevens. 
Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen : 
When the subject of irrigation is men¬ 
tioned, to our mind at once comes the pic¬ 
ture of a large irrigation ditch, and 
ground, being flooded with water as we 
see accounts of its being done in the 
West; where their soil is firm and will 
permit of water flowing over without 
soaking in too fast. With a sigh we say to 
ourselves, but that is not for Florida. 
Yes, even that is possible in some parts 
of Florida. Other parts have sub-irriga¬ 
tion by means of tiling laid under ground, 
through which the water is turned. 
To most orange growers, the question 
is, can we have irrigation at all, when we 
cannot use ditches as is done in the West? 
If we turned to the dictionary we will find 
that the first definitions given for the 
word Irrigate, is “to water, to wet, to 
moisten, to bedew,” and surely we can do 
something along this line. Then the ques¬ 
tion at once comes, will this kind of irri¬ 
gating amount to enough to make it pay ? 
At times, yes, if applied properly and 
well followed up. When it is dry enough 
in Florida to> make watering necessary, 
and we begin to water, we must keep it up 
until sufficient rain falls to wet the ground 
deeper than we have been doing with our 
watering, otherwise the water we have 
been putting on will only serve to draw the 
fibre roots to the surface, to get the mois¬ 
ture. We stop watering, and not suffi¬ 
cient rain coming, these roots die, and our 
trees are worse off than if we had not be¬ 
gun the watering, but if the watering is 
well followed up, the benefit will show in 
the trees and crop. 
If trees are to be planted, then the irri¬ 
gating plant is very useful in pushing 
them along, and may be the saving of a 
good interest on its cost, in lessening the 
number of trees to be replaced the next 
year, so making a saving, in time, and 
cost of trees. 
If spraying is to be done the irrigating 
plant is a great help. 
If the whitefly is to be fought with fun¬ 
gus* the irrigating' plant can help to has¬ 
ten its growth by being used to moisten 
the leaves. 
The cost of piping a grove and keeping 
up a steam plant, deter many a grower 
from putting in one. To such as do not 
have to go too deep for water, I would 
recommend a plan that would lessen the 
cost. 
Instead of piping the entire grove, have 
a number of wells, at proper distances, 
