The Blackfoot optimist. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1907-1918, 1911-12-28

neighbors and use larger heads Tor
shorter periods, are now being used
with success in many localities and
the saving OF water is very material.
90 Preparation of the Land.-Max-
imum crop production can not be Sc
the soil and this is impossible if the
cured without uniform wetting OF
land is not properly prepared and lev
eled for irrigation. Rough, uneven
land it is plain to see, requires more
water than smooth land, for it has to
be held on the land long enough to
soak up the high spots. Careful prep
aration of the lands an absolute nee
essity if the best use is to be secured
from the water.
(6) Kind OF crop grown whether
cultivated or concentrated and length
of season that it needs water have
very direct bearing uupon the amount
of water that will be required by the
crop. Spring grains, on account
their short season require consider
ably less water than alfalfa which groN
from early spring until late fall Win
ter grains, all other thing being equal,
require less irrigation water than does
spring grains, because of their ability
to utilize more of the moisture depos-
tied in the soil from winter precipita-
ton A crop that can be cultivated
will need considerably less water than
non-cultivsted one because Of the
great saving that can be made by the
reduction of the evaporation through
cultivation.
1t is as easy to apply too much wat
er as it is to apply too little and every
bit as harmful The experiments car
| ~,s~ III 10 49, csl, ~,
the results of over-irrigation very clear
ly We had 21 different plots of wheat
consisting of varieties of plots
j each. These were planted and hand
led in exactly the same manner except,
that different amounts of water were
applied to each plot, all three varieties
being handled alike as a check one
upon another. The water applied to
each of the three series of plots was,
varied all the way from nothing upon
the first plot of each series to an aver
age depth of approximately az feet
where the greatest amount was ap-
piled With the dry farming where
{ no water was applied, the yield was;
approximately 1000 pounds per acre.
AS the amount of water was increased
the yield also increased until the plot
receiving an application of approxi-
mately IL feet made yield of 1900
4 pounds per acre, after which the yield
decreased rapidly until the plot receiv-
ing an application of from 1.6 to II
feet yielded less on the average than
that which received no water at all
This shows strikingly the effects of
, over-irrigation on wheat and shown in
, addition. as do all the other expert
ments that we have carried on, that
4 spring grains do not require much wat
:, er. Alfalfa and clover throughout all
Of the experiments have responded to
the use of larger amounts of water
and have been found to require fully
so per cent more than grains. Space
or time will not permit me to 90 more
, in detail in regard to the experiments
which have been carried on, but any
one who is interested may receive more
complete inform ton by writing me at
, Boise, Idaho. The one thing that has
been emphasized throughout all of the
{ experiments is that careful preparation
: outset pays large returns upon the am
{ Of the ground for the irrigation, at the
! cunt Of money invested.