The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1903-05-12
PUT THEORY
IN PRACTICE
WINTER IRRIGATION TO BE TRIED
IN MONTANA.
HAS MUCH WORK OUTLINED
EiWood Mead Tells Of Agricultural
Departments Plans Concern
in the State.

i Winter irrigation is to be made the
subject of thorough study in Montana
this year by the irrigation bureau of
| the department OF agriculture. 1t
is a popular belief of those who have
given the matter thought that if soil
can be filled with water in winter the
amount OF rainfall in the semi-arid
regions during the summer will prove
! sufficient for the production of crops
without the introduction of more wa
ter. To give this belief test is the
| intention OF the bureau.
A few days ago Elwood Mead, chief
OF the irrigation Investigations of :se
department OF agriculture at Washing
ton, was at Helena. While there he
met by appointment Professor Fortier,
| director OF the experiment station at
Bozeman, and the two had consulta.
tion with the governor and assistant
state examiner in regard to field work
to be done in the state this year by
the department. In an interview Mr..
Mead said:
This branch of the department OF
, agriculture, co-operates largely viii.
the state agricultural experiment sta
tions and enables them to extend their
studies beyond what their means
would permit; so that the work we
are doing and propose to do in Mon
tana is entirely cooperative with the
station at Bozeman.
Helping Ditch Builders.
"One of the things our branch of the
department proposes to do this year
is to measure the amount of water
used in irrigation and the effect OF
different methods of applying water
in the quantity needed. In this man.
ner we will measure the water used
on $4,000 acres of land in the Bitter
Root valley We will also make meas
urements to determine the losses to
canals by seepage and losses to can
ais and reservoirs by evaporation.
These results will be published in
bulletin form and distributed among
the farmers. The object is to show
what can be done with the water sup
ply and furnish facts that ditch build
ers will need in planning new works,
and assist farmers who come into the
west from the eastern states by CIV
ing them the facts as already proven
by experience in their new homes.
II we can help to increase the area
irrigated by an inch OF water, then
we have done that whichs justifies
the establishment of the department,
and we feel sure that we can do this.
Winter Irrigation.
Another thing we are arranging to
do this year is to study what can be
done with winter irrigation and the
use of the flood waters of the little
streams that come down out of the
hills. There are comparatively large
areas in Montana where crops can be
grown without irrigation. We believe
there are other areas where, if we
can fill the soil in winter or save the
water that goes to waste in the spring,
crops can be grown regardless OF !
whether there is water for late irri-
cation. We are going to arrange with
farmers to winter-irrigate tracts in
those sections where we believe such
irrigation will grow profitable crops
The location OF these trials has not
yet been determined, but they will
probably be made in the Gallatin and
Prickly Pear valleys and in the vi
cinity of Great Falls. /
we are going to gather statistics
OF ory farming and make reports on
the methods and yields. Work similar
to this will be carried on m Oregon
and California, and this will give us |
al cpor-'.nity to co.n%:-re results.
Drain seepaye Water
"One of the branches of the work
is the preparation of plans for the
n nd o<or
in irrigation. l have just come from
the Yakima valley, where some of the
older irrigated lands will have to be
drained, and where our drainage ex-
pert, G. G. Elliott, is now at work.
He will probably visit the Yellowstone
valley later in the season and look
over some of the lands there that have
been filled up with seepage water"
Montana Will Share.
Mr.. Mead was on his way east from
a tour of the coast states. He spoke
of the outlook for all the western
states and said:
Il have lived in the west 20 years,
but never have I seen a time when
the prospects for rapid settlement and
extension of the irrigation system
were more favorable than they are
today. Settlers are coming into ev-
cry one of the arid states, and many
of these are farmers of the east who
have come with money and are able
to buy lands and improve them at
once. Take the case of California.
That state is filling very rapidly and
this year there will be more new ir-
rigatOrs in the state than in any pre-
vious year in its history.
''In the Yakima valley of Washing