Rocky Ford enterprise. (Rocky Ford, Colo.) 1887-1950, 1912-05-17
ton of crops.

The year of 1912 seems to promise
great things for the irrigators of Col
orado. Duning the first three months
of this year, much more snow has
fallen and especially is this true in
the mountains OF northern Colorado.
There is at the present time much
more than the normal supply of snow
stored away in the ravines of the
mountains, and during the days to
come this snow in the form of water
and the irrigators on the dry plains
will be able to make use of it.
While in all probability our supply
of irrigation water will not be short
this season, yet we must not forget
the experience in the last two or three
years when the water supply in many
sections of our state was not sufh-
cient to do the work and the crops
suffered on this account. So when
our bitches ane filled this summer, it
will be well for us to use this water
in such a way, and prepare our ground
in such way, that when the dry
season comes we will be able to make
the short water supply do the work
necessary to mature the crops.
Many OF our farmers believe that
the application OF waten to the soil
has been worked out by them to. a,
fine point. andathat the duty OF water
for their particular soil can not be in
creased. This is not fact, and the
one thing for irrigators to now learn.
is to materially increase the duty OF
the water applied to the fields.
As an illustration of what can be
done, let me cite two instances:
A fruit grower in California re-
ceivcs one miners inch for ten-acre
tract of land He applies this water
to his fruit trees i'll such way that
this quantity OF water is sufficient to
keep his trees in healthy condition
and to allow them to bear normal
crop of fruit. In Colorado, however,
with different system OF irrigation,
the fruit growers OF this state do well
if they succeed in making an inch OF
water take care of three acres OF fruit.
Why is it that in California the
grower can do three times as much
with his water as the Colorado grow
er! The answer to this question Is
this: The California grower utilizes
practically every bit OF the water ap-
piled The Colorado grower wastes
at least two-thirds OF it. He irri-
gates the ground usually by means OF
a number of small burrows placed be-
tween the rows of trees and moisture
the entire ground between the tree
rows. The California grower runs
his water down a concrete-lined ditch
and places it around the base OF each
tree, where it soaks into the soil and
supplies the roots below the surface.
Little of it evaporates, and little OF II
escapes into the underflow. The roots
have access to practically the whole
amount. Whereas, by the more
wasteful method we have more evap-
Grafton, much of the water reaches
the underfiow, which produces in time
a seeped condition of the soil and
does much harm, while only small
quantity of it is available to the roots
of the trees.
The same thin is true to a greater
or less degree in irrigating the ordin-
ary farm crops. Few of our Colora-
do farmers prepare their fields in the
spring as they should, SO that a small
amount of water will cover and irri-
gate the entire field.
How many of the Colorado farm
ers use a Fresno scraper to any ex-
tent: How many of them take pains
in smoothing their fields? How many
have used this scraper to take off the
ridges, cut uOWn tHc kHOiis anu III
up the high spots? | ann sure that |
can count on the fingers of both hands
all OF the farmers know who make
a practice of this kind OF work. The
ordinary farmer plows his field, per-
haps discs it and harrows it, more
often only the harrow is used and
then the seed is drilled in. The seed
bed is not in nroper condition to allow
the seed to germinate as it should.
A poor stand is obtained and the far
mer wonders why. No attempt is
made to cut down the ridges and fill
up the holes, consequently when the
irrigation waters are placed upon this
field, you will find the farmer drown
ing out the low spots in order to
force the water over the high spots.
| have seen water one and one-half
feet deep in places on the field and
this was caused by the farmer at
tempting to force the water to the
top of ridge. With this ridge cut
off and the low spot filled up. depth
of rom four to FIVE inches OF water
should have covered the same field
nicely. Any intelligent man can see