The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1914-07-01
ENID PUSHES IRRIGATION PLANT
FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS AN
ACRE FROM TRAWBERRlEs
Large Area Is underIaId With Inex.
haustibIe Stratum ~ Water
Bearing Sand.

Several hundred acres are being irri-
gated from wells in the vicinity OF
Enid Beneath the city and extend
ing for many miles on each side. is
water-hearing layer of gravel and sand
at a depth Of about twentyeight 10
forty feet. In some places IL rises to
within twenty feet of the surface This
stratum carries an almost inexhanst-
ible supply Of water Some years ago
Enid installed pumping station.
which supplies the city with about
100000 gallons of pure water daily
The capacity of the wells is 2,00O,000
gallons. Progressive farmers took the
hint from this station and expert
mented with wells for irrigation pur
poses In every instance The wells
have supplied more than sufficient
water TO keep The pumps busy It is
thought that fully 10000 acres IN the
immediate vicinity OF Enid could be
profltahly irrigated from wells.
Charles King. whose cherries won
a gold medal at st. Louis, was one
Of the first to irrigate at Enid He
has installed an eight-horse-power gas.
oline engine. pumping 800 gallons a
minute through centrifugal pump
and he irrigates twenty acres. This
plant cost him $500 1t costs him about
SO an acre to irrgate thoroughly. His
lift is twenty-eight feet As an illus,
tration what irrigation viii do. Mr
King told the writer that he gave a
two acre field OF potatoes fonr-inch
watering once and they Welded 200
bushels an acre and sold for s1.25 a
hushel He has two large storage res.
ervoirs which he keeps filled. with a
windmill lie uses this water when
there is especial need of IT, The
ponds are stocked with bass.
Aroma strawberries on the King
farm brought $500 an acre or twa
acres With irrigation. Oue-fourth Of
an acre Of Golden Wax beans brought
| 5000 rhree-hundred pounds day
were sold during the height Of tire
harvest. The patch was irrigated ones
week. Mr.. King irrigated as long
ago as 1898. when he sold enough cab
bage off two acres % pax for a wind
mill and pond and had a balance Of
$3.50 left.
Principal stress is laid on his or
chard by Mr. King His apple trees
two years ago yielded 5000 bushels Of
choice fruit off Is acres which sold a
from S1.25 to $3.50 a bnshel Sons
stored Winesaps and Black Twig:
brought 81 bnshel after being helS
till April III vas not unusual to piel
fourteen to fifteen bushels Of perfec
Winesaps off one tree though the or
chard is only sixteen Years old. The
| orchard received three applications .
water in 1911 and this year it was wa
! tered five times. 1t has a large crol
of good fruit. The orchard has hat
four consecutive crops since irrisa
tion has been depended on to 8faFs'
! fruit on The King farm. Peaches an,
| pears also responded well TO irliga
4 tion. There is a five-acre block 0
Montmorencv cherries in which not
free is missing II has been irrigaie'
whenever the condition OF the sol
required it. II is Just coming into bear
ing and its owner says there is n
hetter crop for the Enid section II
intends to plant 200 more cherr
trees.
!. T. Fisher raised siOa worth {
| lettuce with irrigation on pate
forty by forty feet. Off another piec
twenty-five feet square he raised "a
worth of lettuce one season. He use
city water which costs him for hi
whole garden not to exceed $12S5
year. Mr.. Fisher follows lettuce wit
radishes. He has particular succes
with the Icicle which sells for 30
40 cents a dozen at Enid stores. !;
any time OF the season. Mr. Fisht
combines two systems Of irrigatio
Part of his garden is supplied with
concrete tile This tile is Joined
such a manner as to above the watl
tc escape at regular intervals and Sd
foot and introduces air as well
water into the ground Mr.. Fish
also uses surface irrigation on part
the garden He applies water throuE
the tile at any time of the day witho
damage to crops He natures radish
in twenty-one days from time Of plar
ing One crop or the lcicle radish {
d plat Of eighty feet square broug
S1iO and lettuce yielded at the ra
of $1,000 an acre.