Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-05-27


and difficult analyses 1t is by such inves-
tipations as these that our communities
must be benefited by the resources which
the States places in the hands OF expert
enced scientists, and which will in time all
yield paying returns. As fast as these IN
vestigations are published they should
AT LEAST BE READ
By all interested farmers, otherwise they
will not have fully accomplished the de-
sired end. The water of K ern riverditch was
found to contain 962 grains of solid ma
terial to each gallon that OF Kern lake
81 so grains per gallon Tulare lake S 1875
grains Los Angeles river II. 50 grains per
gallon Sacramento river 6.69; and Kings
river Is grains per gallon. II we take
the water OF King river as standard OF
pure water, it would not furnish alkali
enough in half century to materially in
lure the soil. We can readily see that the
water Of Kern lake, with its 2ll.5 grains
OF solid matter per gallon, must be almost
a brine. Since carbonate of soda is the
most active of the alkalis found, we will
only give the relative amount OF it which
was found in the different samples of
water, and would recommend all who are
interested In the subject OF irrigation to
procure copy of the report and read the
entire article for themselves, as it would
be folly to expect to give even the conclu-
sions in the few lines we can devote to it.
The water of Kern river ditch contained
| % grains per gallon of carbonate of soda
Tulare lake 50 30 grains per galen; Sacra-
mento river 10. So grains, and Kings river
only @, 003 of a grain per gallon. To illus.
trate the difference in the value of waters
for irrigation purposes, which was my in
tention, | can do no better than to insert a
paragraph from the article In question.
Professor Hilgard says Comparing the
water OF Kings river with that of Kern
river, we find that, in the latter, the aggre-
gate amount of solid residue in the water
is less than one-half that found in Kern
river This, however, is doubtless largely
due to the season at which the water was
taken, it being then greatly diluted with
snow water. For purposes of comparison
We should probably
DOUBLE ALL FIGUREsi
Given for Kings river, thus raising the
total solid contents of both to nearly the
same figures. But even on this basis we
find that the amount of carbonate of soda
in Kings river water is utterly insignia.
can't, being not one hundredth Of a grain
per gallon, against about one and one
quarter grains per gallon of Kern river
water, while on the same assumption the
percentage of other salts is about the same
IL both. OF Kern river he says: g. AS
regards Kern river, the coincident result of
the analyses Of the two different samples
may be taken as conclusive and those
using its waters should keep in mind that
the evaporation adds annually to the alkali
already in the soil small but appreciable
amount, which in some cases may after a
few years prove the straw that breaks the
camels back !; and that, therefore, some of
the means mentioned above as remedies
against this kind of alkali especially should be
currently employed to keep it in allegiance.
Tillage after irrigation, the planting of
deep-rooted crops instead of grain, and the
use of gypsum as neutralizer of the worst
ingredlent-the carbonate of soda-are the
| means that suggest themselves as most
feasible while sub-irrigation, and especi-
ally the teaching out of the alkali from
time to time by long continued flooding,
measures for future use" From the fore.
going it is evident that the quality of water
used In irrigation is Of
THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE.
But this direct addition of alkali to the
soil is not the only way in which irrigation
water helps to accumulate the alkali in the
surface soil. From the soluble nature of
the alkali salts the subsoil is often largely
impregnated with them, when the soil may
contain so little as to be uninjurious to
vegetation. In such soils the downward
flow of liquid water has preponderated
over the capillary rise. The reason for
this accumulation in the subseil is most
probably that the permanent moisture was
at such depth below the surface that the
capillary power of the soil was too feeble
to bring the water to the surface, and the
summer rainfall was so light as to hardly
ever wet the subsoil to any great depth.
Such soils, soon after irrigation, and which
had previously shown no evidence of a su-
perabundance Of alkali, were found to be
covered with white coat of alkali of suffi-
cient strength to seriously injure the grain
| crops. This accumulation on the surface
was owing to the fact that during irriga
ton the earth was saturated with water to
| depth of ten to twenty feet, so that when
the surface evaporation set in the water
began to rise to the surface, bringing with
| it and depositing on the surface much
alkali which had previously been securely
locked up in the lower strata of the sub
soil. Such soils, and which require large
amount of water for
SURFACE IRRIGATION,
Unless properly and understandingly irri-
gated, will soon be completely marred, and
will leave the farmer no alternative but to
thoroughly leach the alkai from his soil
OF to neutralize it by the heavy applica-
ton of the proper mineral salts. But
even this last method cannot be regarded
as an infallible remedy for the accumula-
ton of the alkali from the subsoil for the
neutral alkali salts formed during the
chemical combinations which take place,
although not 80 injurious as the first, will
soon accumulate to such an extent in the
surface soil as to poison the soil to crops
and when the amount of alkali in the SUBJ
soil is large, will eventually have to be re-
moved by teaching. In sections of
the country where the lands are
saturated by heavy rains during
the summer months the damage
from alkali is generally very slight.
Under such conditions the soil may even
contain a very large per cent. of alkah,
but which is, as often as heavy rains occur
during the summer, washed back for some
distance from the surface into the subsoil.
By this simple washing back by summer
rains many soils highly impregnated with
alkali can be successfully cultivated. The
best practical available remedy for al
kali soils, where sufficient pure water can
not be had to thoroughly leach the soil, is
to keep them in state of thorough
tillage. In other words, never allow
crust to form over the surface of the
ground. For we have seen, when speak
ing of the capillary power of soils, that
the rapidity of rise, and hence rapidity of