Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1912-03-15

ing to work out this feature by select
ing a large number of tracts on typt
cal farms In different parts of Idaho
and then divide each tract into three
different parts and apply different
amounts of water to each one. Water
was measured and varied in this man
ner on sixty different farms during
1910 and on as many more during the
past season. Several factors in regard
to the use of water have been very
strongly emphasized, the principal
ones being that the amount of water
required depends upon: Cd Thd
character of the soil and sub-soil. The
texture of the soil as regards poro
sity has more to do with the amount
of water used than any other one
thing and 1t has been found that
adobe soils may be irrigated with
total application of but two or three
acre inches while in some instances
from one to two acre feet are re-
quired to spread over and thoroughly
irrigate an acre of very gravelly soil,
At least 2-3 of this latter amount Is
almost invariably wasted as it either
passes into the ground water or per
colates beyond the reach Of the plant
roots. II coarse soil is underlaid
with an impervious stratum, the
amount of water necessary is ma
terially cut down, while IL the imper'
vious stratum is lacking, some irriga'
ton system must be used which will
flood the ground quickly before the
water has time to penetrate too deep
ly II high duty is to be secured.
(2) Climatic Conditions.-The an.
nual precipitation and it's seasonal
distribution, together with the temper
AZURE, humidity and wind movement.
all have a very evident effect upon
the amount of water required
(3) Diversiflcation of Farm
Crops.-Where farm Is all devoted
to one crop such as grain, hay or po-
tatoes. the greatest need for water
usually falls within a comparatively
short time. and there 10 but little use
for 1t during the rest OF the season.
while by dlversifying his crops, the
farmers need for water will be more
constant and he is better able to
make good use of continuous flow
of the ditch throughout the season.
a. Use of Rotation.-It is well
known to most irrigators that little
can be accomplished by irigating with
small heads of water, and a much
larger and better use is secured from
the water where larger heads can be
used. Rotation systems, by means OF
which farmer can exchange water
with his neighbor and use larger
heads for shorter periods, are now
being used with success In many To-
calities and the saving of water IL
very material.
80 Preparation of the Land
Maximum crop production can not be
secured without a uniform wetting of
the soil and this is impossible II the
land is not properly prepared and
leveled for irrigation. Rough. uneven
land 1t is plain to see, requires more
water than smooth land, for 1t has to
be held on the land long enough to
soak up the high spots. Careful prep
aration of the land Is an absolute
necessity If the best use is to be Sc
cured from the water
go Kind of crop grown whether
cultivated or non-cultivated and length
of season that 1t needs water have a
very direct bearing upon the amount
of water that will be required by the
crop. Spring grains, on account OF
their short season of growth. requires
considerably less water than alfalfa.
which grows from early spring until
late fall. Winter grains, all other
things being equal, require less irri
CATION water than spring grains. be-
cause of their ability to utilize more
of the moisture deposited In the soil
from winter precipitation. A crop
that can be cultivated will need con
siderably less water than a non-culti
waited 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
water as 1t Is to apply too little. and
every bit as harmful. The expert
ments carried on this year at Good
ing show up the results of over-irri-
CATION very clearly. We had twenty.
one different plots of wheat consist
ing of three varieties OF seven plots
each. These were planted and hand
led in exactly the same manner ex.
cept that different amounts OF water
we're 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 average depth OF ap-
proximately two and half 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 approx.
mately IT feet made yield of 1900
pounds per acre. after which the yield
decreased rapidly until the plot re-
ceiving an application of from 1.6 to
IT feet yielded less on the average
than that which received no water at
all. This shows strlkingly the effects
of oyer-irrigation on wheat and shows
in addition, as do all of the other ex-
periments that we have carried on,
that spring grains do not require
much water. 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. The one thing that
has been emphasized throughout all
OF the experiments Is that careful
of the ground for the ir-
rigation, at the outset, pays large re-
turns upon the amount OF money in
vested.
Steady Habits.