River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1904-01-28
FROM "OUT WEST.
Irrigation In Washington.

he OdSCdUE MOUNTAINS QlVlQC lIlC
state of Washington into two sec
tons which differ as much in eli
matte conditions as in Typographical
aspect. This mountain wall, 5000
feet high, precipitates the moisture
from the clouds driven from the
Pacific by the prevailing winds, so
that east of the mountains the rain
fall is light, and lightest in the
southern part of central Washing
ton, where the altitude is lowest.
The basin of the Columbia river
slopes to the south and so varies
greatly in elevation. Near the north
ern frontier of the state the eleva-
ton of this basin is 1900 feet, while
along the southern border the val
leys are not over 500 feet above the
sea. On the higher lands good
crops of wheat, oats, barley and po-
tatoes are successfully raised with
out irrigation, the rainfall being
usually sufficient to bring these
crops to maturity with satisfactory
yield, but in the low-lying valleys
resort must be had to artificial wa
tering in following successful farm
ing.
South and west of the Columbia
river and east of the Cascades there
is an extensive area of good land,
the most of which can be brought
under irrigation ditch service, and
here canals have been dug and wa
ter conveyed to the land. Along
these bitches enormous crops are
raised and a profitable system of cul-
tivation inaugurated. In Yakima
county there is probably more land
under irrigation than in all the rest
of the state. Here the land lies well
to admit Of irrigation and the \ a
kima river and its tributaries fur
nish abundance of water that can be
readily rendered servicable by easily
constructed bitches. The land is
covered with vigorous growth OF
sage brush, which must be eradica-
ted before the la-aJs can, be brought
under cultivation. The cost Of
clearing the land of sage brush is
not great, about three dollars an
acre. To eradicate the brush bar
of railroad track iron is hauled over
the ground by two two-horse teams,
one hitched at either end of the rail.
This tears the brush out by the
roots. The brush is then raked in
to piles and burned, after which the
land can be plowed with one team
Of two horses. Then the ground is
smoothed off with such appliances
as are best fitted for the purpose.
When the ground has been fitted to
allow water to run over it, shallow
bitches, five or six inches deep and
about the same width, are made
three feet apart with contrivance
similar to that used east for marking
out corn ground. The water is let
on to the land three or four times
during the season of growing crops.
This method of farming necessitates
a great deal of labor, but those prac
ticing it claim that the results show
it to be the most profitable. Above
the first cost of the land and the ex-
pense of providing water, the cost
of preparing the land for crop I'M
der irrigation must be taken into
account. It is claimed that land can
be cleared, plowed, depressions filled
and the surface made of uniform
slope and ditched for from $1,000 to
$I2. SO an acre.
Farmers who cultivate land in
Yakima county under irrigation re-
port remarkable success. They can
raise all cereal crops, including corn,
but such crops are not as profitable
as the raising of alfalfa, timothy,
clover, potatoes, vegetables, melons
and hops. Alfalfa is raised with
little labor except in the cutting and
stacking. Three or four crops of
alfalfa are cut in season, with an
aggregate of nine to twelve tons to
the acre. This is most pro6tably
fed to stock, horses, sheep and hogs,
but may be sold at price varying
according to the demand from $4 90
to $1,000 ton in stack, or baled
and shipped at considerable advance
of price. Fruit raising is leading
object on these farms, and orchards
are numerous in the Y Yakima valley.
We give below few facts as to the
RAISING of crODs in this valley, and