Lincoln County times. (Jerome, Idaho) 1911-1919, 1911-04-20
SlPH0N PLAN BEST
Allows Water to Flow Gently
Without Erosion.
BY This Plan Ditch Banks Are Not
Disturbed and Harden Until There
Is No Danger OF Brcak-Soil
Is Thoroughly Soaked.

had two seasons experience as an
irrigator in California before | tried
irigating in Idaho, writes Miller Pur-
Wis in the Breeders Gazette. On the
benches in the foothills of the coast
range in northern California. where
the soil is Il reddish clay. we simply
cut the ditch banks, regulate the
flow through the cut by laying two
stones in the opening and let the wa
ter run for a day or two. never think
ing of erosion tried this in Idaho
and within a few minutes all the wa
ter in the service ditch was going
down one lateral and washing deep
| channel through the ash soil.
Then someone told me that the
best way to do was to make a long
box-llke tube by mailing the edges OF
four plastering laths together and
sink this in the ditch bank. | was
told this would prevent the water
from washing its way into one lateral
and make 1t possible to divide evenly
the water among all the laterals in
| the field. ! made lot of these lath
boxes but they did not work on my
kind of soil as the fields were too
steep. A couple of young chaps. who
remembered something about physics.
concluded that they could carry the
water over the banks of the bitches
in siphons. They bought some ordi-
nary gaspipe threefourths of an inch
in bore. cut It into five-foot lengths,
bent the pieces over a wagon wheel
and tried them out Then they imme-
diately got busy making more siphons.
! then tried the siphon plan and the
water that came down the service
ditch became so gentle and obedient
that It went wherever | wished. in
any quantity | wished and with the
least possible erosion OF the land. II
gently flowed through the pipes and
trickled across the fields. soaking the
soil thoroughly without carrying more
than A small quantity with It. | have
watched irrigators trying all sorts OF
plans to prevent erosion in this soil
but not one OF them works SO well as
the siphons.
Necessarily my various service
bitches must run down hill. making a
swift current which rapidly washes
deep into the soil until the water in
the ditch Is not available. To pre-
vent this we use canvas dams OF
checks These are simply widths OF
common canvas fastened 10 a strip
They are long enough TO reach wei
across the ditch. An Illustration
shows the manner In which the can
; vas is fastened to the cross bar sc
as to allow surplus water TO run out
Mt the center Of the ditch In using
these checks the bar is laid across
the ditch. the canvas spread on the
, bottom and little earth puddled
along the edge Each check raises
the level OF the ditch. kills" the cur
rent and prevents erosion. also max
ing II easier to use the siphons by
raising the level OF the water. Tn,
same illustration shows the siphon'
in use. where two checks are clos,
together Just here the grade pitche.
down quite steeply and on the left be
tween the two checks is shown tn,
upper end OF a ditch which runs steep
~ down hill. II was necessary to rur
the ditch here to get below the cratel
shown in another illustration and I
= will be seen how steep the land lies
To save wasting land the ditch wal
run around this pile OF lava rock anC
comes to n dead end By raising thu
cross bar in one Of the checks NOR,
water can be held back, or lowering
! Il will let more water through thu
opening in the check. II was neces
, sary to regulate the flow of waite
p very nicely. II too little came dow
the siphons would draw the water on
and stop. If too much came dow
, the dead end Of the ditch would over
{ flow.
I By this system the ditch banks ar
: not disturbed and soon harden unit
there is no danger OF a break. y,
. putting the siphons in deeply or les
deeply the flow OF water they delive
4 can be regulated. There is no DANCE
that the water will wash out tn
q ditch bank where they are set an,
, the flow is so gentle that the ligh
n soil Is not carried down the ditch
. Cuts in the ditch bank must be file
/. as soon as one irrigation is finished
: lath boxes must be reset at every il
' rigation and often several times dun
ing one irrigation. but siphons can b
:. moved from place TO place at an
A time and are always ready to worl
o Since they have been introduced her
9 more and more ranchers are putin
4 Shem In.
n Land Values Increase.