12 
The; Colorado Expe;rime:nt Station. 
of Trr 0F X y ATER USED T ° Grow Potatoes. The number 
t , A/ ca ions and amount of water used per acre varies with 
e min f°, f Il S ? T? am T ° Unt ° f rain falL With avera S e seasons 
UD the nl! r f0r . May ’ and ear] y J ul y is sufficient to bring 
up the plants and grow them till the tubers begin to form. Irri- 
ren °;r^, b r n must b , e c T tmued at intervais of o ne wee k to 
less the T he K C1 " 0P ! S devel °P ed - Fo ur or five irrigations un- 
be . a dl T one will carry the crop through. A 
is best ° opinion Pf evalIs as t0 tlle amount of water that 
growers hold? ’? - lrrl & atln f Potatoes. Most of the successful 
fs iter? c t lat 111 general to ° much rather than too little water 
show the Some measurements taken on the E. R. Bliss ranch 
show the amount of water actually used in growing a crop of 
potatoes both on alfalfa land and on old potato land The an- 
mad? a? folT P ° ta |°, field w l dch was preceeded by aifalfa were 
ehveiw of 1 Z i Y 257 , T Water ran hours with a 
i 06 fL l 4 5 fee P6 1 SeCOncL August 1 and 2 - 2 7 hours with 
1.96 feet per second. August 8 and 9, 24 hours at 2.1*1 feet per 
n Ml 80a ^ l6> 30 h ° UrS at 2 '37 feet p 3 er second, 
n all 893,916 cubic feet of water was used. This field was 1218 
feet one way by 639 feet the other. This gives an area of 
S.TA? “ , ' 7 ' 88 “ d * ^of ..ter It, i„ 
II o k f r 3'/6 niches. The ram fall by months from April 
till October was: April, 3.04 inches; May, 1 73; June no- Tulv 
2 - 2 4 . tigust, .64 and September, 2.31, or 11.05 inches' The Sep' 
Sy er did a litt7e a if m ° Stly in , the J atter part 0f tbe month and pro- 
rainfah ' V left L?/ t0 6 . P ° tat ° cro P- If the September 
a mail is left out, the precipitation that should be counted as 
2 faU U 2 fh the . gr0wth of the cr °P will be 8.75 inches. The 
used 01 the croii f‘m S , US , ^ inCheS aS * e total water 
three years TtMs ET ^ ? 1&d P!‘ ev,ousI y been in alfalfa for 
ee years. It is Billings loam soil (clay loam) with Quite a 
lai ge pei cent of sharp granitic gravel. The soil is about two 
drainage The field eeP ’ with gravel > 80 it has good 
•» r-/»d 8 s n "„ c &ka^: 
atoes June 1st. The yield of Pearls on this field was above nn 
sacks pei acre which is near the maximum for the season. 5 
The field adjacent to this one which had grown potatoes the 
year before gave somewhat different results as to amount of water 
required, yield of potatoes and time of ripening 
d he applications on this field were iust nrevimie .u 
on the alfalfa land potato field. The firstIT £uS m 
a discharge of 4.05 feet per second and the second 18 hours a 
1.96 feet per second, the third 16 hours at 2.31 feet pe. second 
