6 QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. [1 Jan., 1902. 
deluging the 1and with water, which is only partly used by the crops, whilst the 
unused portion lies on the subsoil, and, being unable to get away, becomes 
stagnant, and the crops will consequently be poor. 
There is one thing that few farmers know in connection with watering 
plants. Just ask somebody this question: ‘‘What good does watering plants 
do them?” ‘The answer you will probably get will be: “Oh! it makes them 
grow!” “Anything else?” you then ask. ‘ Well, no,” is the reply, “I don’t 
see what else is wanted.” 
If you give the matter a moment’s thought, you will see that there is 
something else wanted, and that something else the water supplies. Think of 
the quantities of visible and invisible substances floating about in the air, which 
are carried down to the fields by the rain. Think of the quantities of soluble 
plant food in the soil only waiting for water to dissolve them to pass through 
the roots of the plant into its various organs. Think of the numberless 
substances—animal, vegetable, and mineral—contained in river and well water. 
Why, when you water your crops, you are actually manuring them without 
knowing it, and there are cases in which you may obtain certain good crops 
without any other manure but river—or, better still, reservoir—water. 
So you see irrigation supplies both the needful moisture and also plant 
food. Further, it does not require a very wise man to see that irrigation assists 
the action of manure. Put some dry farmyard manure or bonedust on the 
soil of your garden in summer. There the manure will lie, doing little or no 
good to the plants. But let a shower of rain come, or do you water the 
manure every day. The water will dissolve some of the elements of it, and 
these, being in solution, are taken up by the roots. Here is a list of some of 
the advantages of irrigation :— 
It softens the consistence of the soil, rendering it more penetrable by the 
roots of the plants. It facilitates decomposition of organic or inorganic matter 
in the soil, promoting germination. It modifies the temperature of the soil. It 
furnishes more water to the plant and soil. It supplies moisture at 
the time most needed by plants and soil. It supplies moisture to the crops 
which require excessive moisture. It encourages early and rapid growth. It 
insures a larger crop and more crops. It insures a better quality to the crop 
of fruit. It furnishes a systematic method instead of irregularity. It permits 
of a greater variety of crops. It almost wholly eliminates risk from the opera- 
tion of transplanting. It economises time and labour. It adds much to the 
health, comfort, leisure, and life of a farmer. It economises space, and is used. 
to level the soil. It increases the area of fertile soil. It increases the quality 
of the soil by its deposits of sediment. It increases the commercial value of 
the soil. It increases the average rainfall. It favourably affects the climate, 
It gives greater security and permanence to the farm investment. It elevates 
agriculture to a higher plane. It advances the farmer to a higher rank. 
Water is absolutely necessary to plants and fruits to keep all the cells and 
tissues of every part in a state of moisture and motion. When the soil has no 
longer sufficient moisture to keep up this state of cell movement, the latter 
become hard, the flow of sap becomes Tee and, finally, the plant wilts and dies. 
But even should it revive after a shower or after being irrigated, it has already 
so suffered that it will rarely recover its original healthy action. 
The question as to how much water plants require has been answered by 
many scientific experimenters. Professor Storer, a very learned agricultural 
lecturer in an American university, tells us that enormous quantities of water 
are required for cultivated crops. In every 100 lb. of succulent (juicy) fruits 
and vegetables, such as melons, cucumbers, lettuce, asparagus, as much as 
95 lb. of water have been shown by analysis to be present inthem. In ordinary 
roots and vegetables, 90 lb.; in young grass, 80 lb. to 90 lb.; in grain plants 
in blossom, 75 lb.; and even in mature leaves of trees, 60 lb. in every 100 lb. 
Now, 1 inch of rain is equal to over 4% gallons of water on every square 
yard, or 22,617 gallons (or 101 tons) to the acre. Therefore, a rainfall such 
as we have in Northern Queensland of over 100 inches per annum, or, as in 
Southern Queensland, 50, 40, 20 inches, will give an enormous weight of 
