East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1911-01-19
WEST UMAT|L[A PROJECT ONE OF
BEST N THE ENTIRE UNITED STATES

! side of the river for the irrigation o
lands in the upper valley OF Lost riv
er.
The principal industry of this coun
try has been stockraising, but alfal
IA, grain, fruit and vegetables may b,
grown as soon as the land is irrigated
Some OF the most important pre-
liminary surveys that have beer
made by the reclamation service dur,
ing and since 1908 are the MaIheun
project, involving 10000 acres, fol-
which s2,000,O00 was set aside pro,
visionally at one time; Silver creek
10000 acres can be reclaimed by the
construction OF ninety-foot dam;
and in 1909 Investigations were car.
ried on for the west extension of the
Umatilla project.
| Probably more money has been
| spent in Malheur county in the devel-
! opment of irrigation by private enter
| prise than in any other county in the
state. There are about $4,000 acres
under irrigation now and with stor-
age of water in the reservoir sites
along the Malheur and Owyhee riv-
ers, Bully creek and Willow creek
100000 acres in addition to this may
be reclaimed. A lage ditch twenty
five miles in length and with a ca
pacity OF 200 cubic feet per second
takes water from the Owyhee river.
Twenty-Five bitches divert water from
Bully creek, and eleven from the NAL
heur river.
In Baker county twenty-five per
cent of the Powder river valley is ir-
rigaed by the regular summer flow
of the Powder river, and is almost
entirely in private ownership. The
largest storage development in he
valley Is that Of the Baker Irrigation
company, 4 dam 1000 feet in length
and fry feet high is now under con-
sruction, and will when completed,
store enough water to reclaim 10000
acres.
In Umailla county several large
bitches have been built where the
crops depend on the flood water dur
ing the spring overflow. Nineteen of
these bitches divert water from the
Umatilla river. There has been no
irrigation development in the state
west of the Umatilla project except in
Hood River county. and there irriga-
ton is also necessary for the highest
development of the soil.
Methods of Applying Water.
Whatever the source or supply of
the water, a large number Of bitches
to convey it to all parts of the coun-
TRY is necessary.
The form of these bitches depends
on the implements used in excavating
and the size determined by the
crops to be grown, the method to be
adopted in watering them and the
regulations governing the delivery of
water to the ditch. The capacity of
ditch depends as much on the fall
or grade as on its size. Having OBJ
tanned a suitable grade, the chief
points to be remembered are the vol
ume to be carried and the nature OF
the soil The smaller the volume the
greater the grade required. In a fine
sand there must be a flat grade to
prevent securing, while in a hard soil
a velocity of three feet per second may
be used without eroding the bottom
When excessive grades cannot be
avoided by windink around the high
places, the speed of the water may be
checked by the insertion of drops at
the proper intervals.
In laying out permanent bitches an
effort should be made to locate them
in the right place. Sufficient water
should be conveyed from the source
of supply to the highest point of the
farm, and from there distributed to
the varous subdivisions. Where de-
pressions occur, the water may D2
carried across in a cement pipe lalo
in the form of an inverted siphon.
Every farmer must have a headgate
to contol the water from the main
canal into his private ditch and weir
to measure it. After his supply
bitches nave .een built, the fields
srsded aid ieveled, then the laterals
should be located and constructed for
the distribution Of the water.
The field may be watered from the
laterals by placing a temporary dam
in the channel, which stops the flow
in that direction, and causes 1t to
flow over the low places in the bank.
| This system, called the Flooding sys-
tenn" may be used where the soil Is
heavy: where grain and forage crops
are to be raised and when rotation
/ Of crops is desired.
| Nearly all crops that are planted In
rows and cultivated are irrigated by
means of burrows. Head d-ditches
| that are fed from the main supply
ditch Of the farm are made after the
field is leveled and graded. The dis
| tance between any two consecutive
! head-ditches depends on the soil, fol
| in sandy soils they should not be more
than 900 feet apart, and in hard
| soil they may be from 400 to 500 fee
apart Each furrow is fed by
wooden spout placed two or three
inches below the surface Of the water
The cost of irrigating by this method
IL about the same as by flooding from
the field laterals.
The check method Of irrigation
confined mainly to alfalfa, consists
in dividing up a field into rectangu
lar checks, each comprising from one
half an acre to one and one-hal
acres. Around the margin Of eaci
e.. -,