The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1937-12-09
Irrigation is
Necessary Says
Dean Ellington

lUean ElungJOn
Irrigation farming is coming Int
its own in this state. As resul
of the federal program Of nationa
conservation, Of which irrigation o
arid and semi-arid lands Is an int
grail part, we are standing on tn
threshold of q decisive and signifi
cant development which will vital!
effect the social and economic life o
everyone in this state"
Speaking of the need for irriga
ton he said: During the next 81
years there will be demand fol
every available acre that Is capable
of the successful raising Of q crop
and the acreage involved In the
great Columbia Basin will be but 9
drop In the bucket as compared Il
the need" He stated that this is be.
cause lands of good quality are con-
tinually deteriorating through ero.
sion and overcropping until they are
eventually falling into the sub
marginal class. He added, 'Thous-
ands of acres are being abandoned
annually and many other thousands
should be. It inevitably follows that
to maintain a constant national cul-
tivated acreage new land must be
continually added"
Dean Ellington told of the assist
ance given to irrigation projects dur
ing the past IS years by the WASH
ington Experiment Station through
many studies made Of projects in the
Yakima Valley and other places. He
sketched the history of the Irriga-
ton branch station from the time
of its establishment at Prosser in
1919, and outlined some of the many
results obtained through studies
made by members of the staff.
Experiments Made
Among the more important exper-
iments made at the Irrigation
branch station, he said, were varie-
tai investigation of alfalfa and sweet
clover showing the adaptability Of
the varieties and strains of these
crops; soil fertility investigation;
studies on the reclamation of saline
soils; varietal studies with fruits and
vegetables that show that irrigated
valleys of the state can produce high
quality products that are particu-
larry adapted to some of the more
improved processing methods, in
Guiding freezing, canning and juice
preparation.
He also told Of feeding expert
ments at the station that have
shown the possibility and desirable
ity of using Gull crops such as squash
potatoes and rutabagas as feed for
livestock.
"The station has been handled as
a part Of the regular work of the
main experiment station system of
the state" Dean Ellington said, "as
a result there has been available to
1t the best thought and effort, not
only of the staff Immediately in
charge of the station, but of the
larger research workers at the main
experiment station which also has
the statewide viewpoint. Because
of this the station work has been
well planned and the results secur-
ed have been significant.
"The Irrigation branch expert
ment station has become q focal
point, the headquarters for all the
state research staff and many of the
federal agencies that are interested
in attacking the problem facing the
irrigation farmer"
Future Work Planned
The further investigations of the
duty Of water, crop improvement
and the maintenance Of soil fertil-
ity are but three of the major lines
Of research that win be carried on
at the station in the future.