10 
Bulletin 58. 
The corroding effects of the alkali was observed, but not to the 
same extent, and the spots of ground showing it were not so large 
as in 1897. There was a small spot in which but few seeds germi¬ 
nated ; there seemed to be an abundance of moisture, the seed were 
found at a depth of an inch and a half, and the mechanical con¬ 
dition of the soil was good. This failure of the seed to germinate, 
for they did not come up at any time during the season, remains 
unexplained. It was observed that some beets in this part of the 
patch continued to come up for weeks after the first had made their 
appearance, especially after irrigation. It is very improbable that 
this was due to lack of moisture, for this was observed in a very 
wet portion of the patch, but not the wettest, nor indeed is it more 
strongly alkalized than some other parts of the plot. The analyses 
of the soils taken from these spots, and those of the ground waters 
also, show a larger amount of magnesia present than in other 
places within the plot; this is more markedly the case with the 
ground waters than with the soils. Experiments show that 
magnesic sulfate retards the germination of seeds, but neither the 
soil nor the ground water, nor.yet the water-soluble portion of the 
soil, shows a sufficient quantity of magnesic sulfate to account for 
this. The inorganic substances present do not suggest any solution 
for the failure of the seed to come up. 
THE WATER CONDITIONS. ' 
§ 12. The ground was very wet in the spring, so much so that 
it caused a delay of two weeks or more in planting. The crop was 
not planted till June 4; some of it not till June 13. This, however, 
was not due to the condition of the soil. The only irrigation that 
we were able to give this crop was given from July 8 to 10, and 
this was with seepage water, of which we had only a scant supply, 
so scant that we could not obtain any sample of off-flowing water. 
But a few days later, a heavy rain having fallen in the mountains 
to the west of us, more than doubling the flow of the river, a large 
quantity of water was turned into the Larimer County Ditch No. 2 and 
its laterals. One of our dams was washed out and the lower portion 
of our beet plot flooded. This happened between the afternoon of 
the 13th and the morning of the 14th of July. The drains for 
receiving the off-flow water were immediately opened and the water 
turned out of the ditch. Samples of both on and off-flow water 
were taken. The patch drained rapidly, the surplus water being 
removed in about three hours. This was the only irrigation that 
the crop received. The total rainfall for the months of July, 
August, September and October was 2.8 inches. The total amount 
of water received by the crop, from the time of planting till harvested, 
was about eight inches. The ground was wet at the time of plant¬ 
ing and the water plane was within less than two feet of the surface. 
