The Portland daily press., 1883-01-16
Concerning Irrigation
By Henry Reynolds. MD.

~ Is not Supplled IN Su1hclent quantity TO
meet the wants of the plants they suffer in
consequence. The carefully concluded ex-
periments made by Mr. J. B. Lewis of Eng
land have shown that in wheat raising every
pound of dry matter produced, 200 pounds
of water has evaporated and that for every
pound of mineral matters assimiated by
the crop, 2000 pounds of water passed
through the plant Leguminous plants,
like beans or clover, require much more
abundant supply of water than wheat. To
meet this demand of the plants for water
Mr.. Lewis declares the usual supply Of rain
water is totally inadequate Experiments
performed at the Montsouris Agricultural
Observatory, in France, confirm those of
Mr.. Lewis. 1t was found that for each
pound of grain produced in nine expert
ments from 727 TO 1903 pounds of water
were evaporated by the plants. Taking the
minimum quantity OF water evaporated for
each pound of grain produced there would
be required for crop of irty bushels of
grain per acre, supply of water, for evapo-
ration though the plants alone, sufficient to
cover the field to the depth of four inches.
required for each pound of grain produced
in experiments at the same place in 1878
crop of wheat yielding forty bushels per acre
would require an amount of water sufficient
to cover the field 20 the depth of seventeen
inches. Taking into consideration the
large amount of water evaporated from the
surface of the soil in addition to that re-
quired for the plant, it is evident that a
large supply is required in order to fully
meet all the wants of the growing crop.
REGULAR SUPPLY OF WATER ADvANTA-
GEoUs.
A sufficient or regular supply of water
for growing plants can only be ensured by
finding some means of furnishing at times
an artificial supply. There is seldom a
season during which there are not many
weeks when an increased supply of water
would be advantageous, and greatly promote
the growth of the plants. Occasionally
there are some drouths during which many
crops are almost ruined for the want of
water. Sometimes for instance a drouth
will set in just before it is time for potatoes
to set for crop, it continues so long that
the tubers can not attain to a marketable
size and the crop is ruined The drouth
may come at about the time the grain of
wheat or corn is filling and be so severe as
to reduce the yield one half or more. Even
the fruit crop may be affected by drouth,
causing the apples to fall prematurely or
arresting their growth. The hay crop is often
severely injured for the want of rain and
sometimes the cropis reduced to seventy-five
per cent. below the average. There is not
crop usually raised on the farm which may
not be more or less serious injured for the
want of sufficient supply of water. It is
evident that it would be a'great advantage to
the farmer to have supply of water under
his control so that he could use it whenever
he saw that it was needed.
ADVANTAGES OF IRRIGATION.
Bymeans of irrigation the farmer is enabled
to furnish the needed supply of water to his
crops. But irrigation is very little nsed by
farmers generally. Many seem to think that
irrigation is needed only in those countries
where it is impossible to raise crops without
its aid. 1t is indispensable in such localities,
but the remarkable results obtained by its
yantageous for farmers in more favored local
tiles. Prof. johnson in the Transaction of
the Highland Agricultural Society of Scot.
land 1647-8 speaks of all experiment in irri-
CATION which was very successful, with water
which contained very little mineral or veg
atable matter. The results were the pro-
duction, on what was formerly almost
worthless land, at an outlay of $3.50 on five
acres, yielding an average of five and half
tons of hay per acre. The lands which be-
fore was worth less than two dollars per
acre, was then estimated as worth an annual
rental of SIS to 800. Another Instance of
the advantages of irrigation occurred at
Stoke Park, England in 1871 where 40 acres
were irrigated so as to temper the soil when
dry weather came in, about the last of
March, supplying moisture regularly, and
in sufficient quantity to prevent the surface
from crushing Two crops of hay estimated
at five tons per acre were taken from this
ground and afterwards in August, 120
Highland bullocks were turned in, averag-
ing three bullocks to the acre. These re-
manned until November, receiving no food
but the irrigated grasses, and were kept in
first rate condition. On the contrary 430 acres
unirrigated became so withered and bare from
the summer drouth as to afford scarcely any
food to cattle or sheep. In 1878 on six acres of
this same irrigated land 200 sheep were kept
in hurdles in a fattening condition without
other food then the grass Instances have
been reported where from sixty to eighty
bushels of wheat have been obtained from an
acre by irrigation. Near the bank of the river
Esk in Scotland ''there was copious clear
spring of water that had for ages run down
a hollow on the bank of river; the rill
from it was carried along the top of a grassy
bank, and allowed to run on one spot and
then on another alternately. The water
was let on in autumn and continued through
the winter and spring and the result the
first year was strong crop of grass" which
was sufficient to make nearly five tons of hay
per acre.
IRRIGATION IN THE UNITED STATES.
In this country not much attention has
been given to irrigation except in some of
the States and Territories on the Pacific
coast and in the Rocky Mountain region. In
the Eastern States very little attention has
been given To it. In the few instances
where it has been tried it has proved highly
beneficial. A farmer in Maine turned the
water from spring on field that cut only
half ton of hay per acre, and thereby in
creased the yield to one and a half tons per
acre. The New England Farmer recently
gave an account of the results of irrigation
upon the farm of o. A. Hillman, Marlboro,
Mass. The water of brook which flowed
through town of eight thousand inhabi-
tants, and served in part as a sewer, was
used for irrigation of thirty acre field The
water was distributed by means of numer
GUS bitches. During several years past, an
annual yield of about there tons of hay per
acre, at two cuttings, with the application
OF no other fertilizer has been obtained and
the field continues to increase in productive
naas The water is kent runnin0 unon