Show f y LING THE LANDI LANDI LAND I lunt of Grading and Smooth- Smooth Smoothing for Irrigation t. t Ion V Varies anes i iP ing I. I P I Great Mistake Not to Prepare h Is Properly in First Instance nd d Ground rr Can Be Readily Crops so 50 I 1 I Irrigated K NELSON AS lAS 5 if nf ot Idaho Agricultural Expert Expert- t I file e amount of ot grading and smooth- smooth ie need for the ver that land lanel may the coTer water varies B. B of ot Irrigation iI atlon ton 1 h the be lay Iny of ot the land land- Some fields J such a uniformly even surface re e are work besides little that very 3 slope over is required Often Orten knolls occur that must be beJ er e sped ped J ij ed of oft off and depressions that must jelled lIed ilea where the land is vcr very rough j h i grading will be required There few tew fields nelds which will not require Je moving of ot dirt with scrapers me parts of ot Idaho leveling is done while In other places there knot f not been enough The surface Tf as as we ve know has accumulated hua hua hu hu- a a and Is well aerated and thus Iced t d to the growth of at plants With it i is different Whenever the surface soil Is scraped fit felt requires a year ear or two or more feng lt ring such ground Into a state On this account no more reng should be done than is proper propel Irrigation Where the lit sils Is deep heavy grading ma may be beI benl I nl but where It It is shallow le grads grad- grad s should be limited the purpose of leveling and grading to 10 so 60 fashion the land that water ay be evenly distributed over it ten fen however some extra leveling advisable to do away with ditches would otherwise be required and it would cut up the land In Irregular spas pcs pes it Ills itis Is a great mistake not to level the i 31 well in the first instance so that ops ops can be readily Irrigated for if iffs is rs' done properly at the outset it Is isae ise ae ne e for all time On the other hand Ifs also a mistake to grade ely ely lY when there Is no real necessity The The best time to level is in summer in k fall as the soil Is dryer then J d hence not so heavy to move and andere andere andr ere ere r Is no trouble about the thea a 1 In spring when the soil is moist I wet et leveling cannot be done so The location of the ditches is deter- deter ned ed by the lay of the land and the tem stem Stem of applying water to be in- in ailed In general we may sa say that thatis js is S desirable to run the ditches at slit ht angles to the line fen fences es when when- henr er er r the lay of ot the land will permit Such ditches of at course will not notre note re e a uniform grade Where ditches z located in th that t way the fields are and hence all aU farm oper- oper i lons ns ls can be easily performed Often vay Ray be well wen even to make fills so soo Ita o make malee ditches straight rather an following curved lines On On many farms the lay of at the land landuch landuch uch such that the ditches cannot be ben betat tat n at right angles to the line fences itt 1 n conform in a measure to the gours flours making irregular irregular- shaped id Us ds unavoidable Under such condis condi condl- JIS s make the ditches on a grade of ot oln om 08 to 15 part of foot per it f 0 I Is As s 's s a general thing we should figure figure Irrigate Irrigate with the general shape of I e land as by so doing water can I more Inore evenly and expeditiously dis dis- over the land As regards E e i location of at the ditches and the thelIs hails toils lIs of the system of applying wa- wa teach Leach each farm Is a problem in Itself p here liere re the whole farm tarm has one gen- gen 41 al 11 slope It is a simple matter to denine deL de de- L nine mime lne where the ditches should go fan n however there are various Pes and the system of at ditches must e constructed to suit |