El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-04-19
Irrigation Of Trees and
Vines

" AL441Eh IrulE shall be grOWI
w with OF without irrigation /
local question and must b,
determined by local conditions, such d.
the minimum of local rainfall, the char
acter and depth OF the soil and subsOn
the situation and lay OF the ground
and the kind OF fruit tnat Is to be grown
Investigate Special Conditions.
The amount OF rainfall that Is su11I-
cient Tor one kind OF soil may be quite
: insufficient Tor another. in the one
case the soil may be deep and reJentIYe,
ID the other deep and porous; in the lat
ter case the moisture Is likely to be lost
either by teaching or evaporation. Or
the soil may be retentIYe but shallow.
Or there may be a hard stratum with q
considerable slope, quickly carrying OF
enc moisture that could be stored il this
was not the case. Again the soil may
be situated so as to be supplied by the
drainage OF slopes above. As viii be
seen, there needs TO be a thorough inves-
tigatiOn Of soil conditions and surround
ings.
When to Apply Water.
How much moisture to supply by lrrI-
cation is also a question that hinges on
these conditions. When to supply the
moisture and how much at a time Is a
matter that must be decided by the
grower and Is only learned by experience
But do not wait until the tree or vine
begins to show signs OF distress.
Better do down near the roots ana
find out; If there IS not sufficient mOIS-
ture for the soil TO stick together when
compressed IN your hand, moisture IS
needed.
Danger of OverirTigation.
The best results to be obtained from
irrigation are thrifty growth OF wood
and good healthy colored foliage, not an
abnormal growth, which Is apt TO lack
hardness and produce large sized, but
inferior, watery fruit lacking in favor
and keeping quality. Irrigation, like
many other good things, may be over
done.
The best use of irrigation water Is a
question requiring intelligent study and
application on the part OF the fruit grow
er. but VII pay large dividends for the
time spent in attaining this result,
Intelligent use of water and proper
tillage 90 hand in hand. and are depenOs
ent on each other. The best tllage pos
sible on the richest soil on earth, viii
only result In a desert, without water.
But, with proper tillage, a small amount
of water on favorable locations will pro
duce fruit, where without tlllage the
amount OF water would be entirely N
adequate
The Proper Amount Of Water.
Prof. WicksOn in his California Fruits
and How to Grow Them speaking OF
deciduOus fruits. says: 1t seems to be
a warranted deduction, from all data
known to the writer, that ten inches OF
water applied at the right time to soils
of GOOD depth and fair retentIveness,
and accompanied by good tlllage Tor con
servatiOn IS an adequate supply Tor I'VE
months of growth and frultlng, even
when the rainfall Is only about enough
TO prevent drying out during the winter
season. Some growers report use OF less
than this. Certainly less viii do for I
Young trees under favorable conditions
Winter Irrigation.
Prof. WicksOn Is considered the high 1
est andsbest authority IN California on 1
growing fruit, and If the above apphes I
there II Will here. In California the 4
Deriod OF heaviest rainfall Is IN the VIM
ter months Here It Is during the grow
ING and fruiting season and IN the time
of wear that MIGHT almost supply me
necessary amount, If 1t came at regular
so it all could be made to do
the maximum amount Of good But IN
winters Of extremely small rainfall TWO
or three light irrigatlOns may be neceS-
sarv TO carry the tree OF vine through
in a vigorous condition.
At all times the supply OF moisture
must be adequate TO the demands OF the
tree. If available when needed, and
]
need not exceed the above mentioned
figure. But take particular note that
his figure is based upon conditions, and
,mong these conditions time Is great
actor. Unless these conditions are com
1lied with. more water Of necessity must
De used. The above figure only shows
what can be done under the best cond-
lions.
Methods
As to the best method OF irrigation,
conditions again VIII have to determine.
In California many patented schemes
nave been tried, mostly by means OF
pipes made from porous
materials. or provided with openings 20
distribute water at proper intervals; but
10 great amount Of this piping IS now
n use as most OF it has had serious
aults, besides being quite expensive
The method that gives the most salts ]
action Is the deep fuTrOW system. In 1
young trees a single deep fur-
ow on each side Of the line Of trees IS
sufficient. Later. as the tree grows and I
he roots reach out further, more burrows
must be added These burrows should
De spaced so that the water extending
aterallv VIII meet the water from the
text furrow IN a reasonable length Of a
ime and without using an excessive 4