Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1915-03-24

'tbN NNiN WNAh III 'hfAh'"A 'fAl'NA
and physical makeup. Some soils are par
ticularly adapted TO the production Of Ger
tain varieties Of plants and there are other
crops that will thrive upon a wide range Of
soils.
In Southern and Southwestern Texas al
falfa will prove a better crop upon the
heavier. well drained soils than upon the
lighter sandy soils. This j. largely due To
the les time and expense required IN pre-
venting weeds and noXiou~ GRASSES from
coming in and crowding out the alfalfa.
Therefore ia choosing 4 l%ocation for AZ
falia production the ~ilt loans or clay
loans. such n are already or may be well
drained upon the surface and from below.
should be- selected. III one own, Il farm
consisting Of a sandy type and wishes "a
grow alfalfa. IL should he drilled IN rows
from II to - inches apart. and the crop
cultivated ~ any ether field crop.
Insofar n topography Of the surface j.
concerned. alfalfa may be grown under IT.
system selected and Installed l. adapted Ia
the conditions. Ii the land lies very uni
form and haS little slope il may he irri-
gated from head bitches with few struc-
lures. but ii there ~ considerable slope.
particularly If the slope Il IN more than
one direction. there must be- checks, drops
and gates a. control the flow. else the di~-
tribution will b. uneven and unsatisfactory
and the surface will be- crndcd in places
and fills will occur elsewhere. resulting in
an excess 81 moisture 1T some points and
Too little IN other places.
The surface slope may w too great Ia
satisfactorily distribute the moisture, like
wise il may be- too flat 60 yet the water
over and the excess Of the ground. The
surface ~ the newly ploughcd and planted
field readily ab~orb~ the moisture and
there j. usually no difficulty IN getting the
proper. supply into the soil. but upon old
fields the slope of the surface ~ which IL
barge. the result u usually n flow over
with little penetration. 4 large amount col
lecting NJ the lower end. passing on to other
land or into the drainage.
The field ditchc~ should have ample a.
pacity and BE- well constructed. r. lrri-
gate alfalfa one should have a head uf al
least one second foot or 100 gallons per
minute. II structures have been supplied
q much larger quantity may bc economic
ally used. Two. five or even ten second
feet. if under control. will prove more
economical IN use than one second foot.
The cross section III the ditch will w rc.u-
lated BY the slope and resulting velocity.
but for several reasons II j. not wise to
allow much grade. and the head ditch
should have 4 bottom width Ut from . IT,
q feet, side slopes | - ~ , IA 1. a wafer
depth uf from | ID , feet. and the crown
of the lcvec~ should be- at least six inches
above high water line. The width Of the
crown should ~ at least two feet. These
specifications Will require more land than
is nowu ~ually allotted to farm l@atcral-.
but such construction will prevent much
worry and los IN irrigation. for ditchc~
do not break when empty. rather when they
are carrying the maximum and usually
when a break cau-c~ the most inconvcni-
ence and los. When land really become,
- valuable ~ to be- necessary u cconu-
mizc in weight ot lcvee, other means. such
~ concrete. will be- found "a b. the better
plan to reach thi~ economy.
A. remarked. the grade given the head
ditch should ~ slight. The better plan /,
to lay il out III level stretches. \ check and
drop being supplied ~ the end Of each
level stretch. the gIadc being regulated at
the drop. Tins permits 1T the u~c Of open
ing through the ditch lcycc. nf gates III
the lcvee, or ~ small SYMPTOMS taking wa
inc, Of one -izc delivering equal amounts
~ water. The type III opening used will
depend upon the method Of distribution.
That j.. it the bed system IT, selected. either
q small box opening or . four or SIX inch
syphon should hc installed. II the furrow
system j. used, ! IL to l IL inch pine
through the lcvcc. or 4 metal or flexible
syphon Of about the same diameter. should
be- provided for each furrow. In every in
stance checks IN ditch should w. provided
Ia maintain Il level water surface ~ means
Of which an even distribution may be- oh
tanned.
There j. = certain length Of time re-
quired for each type Ut soil to absorb Y
certain quantity 81 water. For work IN
alfalfa the above statement j. practically
true, il We except the first two or three
irrigations after seeding. or the time until
the plants have produced 4 sod and the soil
has become settled.
The truth Of the above statement neceS-
states d regulation of the length If the
furrow or bed IL suit the type Of soil II
the field. There j. another element also