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Show FOR LESS IRRIGATION Excessive Use of Water Causing Much Damage. By Proper Cultivation of Soil, Surface of Ground la Kept Loose 80 That Moiature Is PrevenWd Prom Evaporating. The more I go over the state, the more I see the necessity of the people peo-ple being awakened to the fact that they muKt do more cultivation and less irrigation. There are vast areas of land all over the state that are being be-ing ruined by excestdve Irrigation. It Is caunlng large areas to become waiter wai-ter logged and swampy, says a writer In the licsert Farmer, it Is causing large areas to change from fertile fields to alkali bed. It Is causlDg vast areas to become over-run with weed. Hy proper cultivation of the soil, the surface of the ground Is kept loose so that the moisture which has soaked into It from rains and melting snows Is prevented from rising to the surface and thus evaporating Into the air. We can cultivate with less expense ex-pense than we can Irrigate and our ftoll by so doing Is always kept In better condition for crop production. Irrigation always has the tendency to produce shallow rooted plants because the roots always develop where they ran get the moisture. The roots of such planu will be able to get less food from the soil for the development develop-ment of the plant than will the roots of plants which penetrate to greater depths Into the soil because they will have less area from which to draw their food. Plants require a considerable amount of moisture for their proper development. It has been estimated that under normal conditions It takes about 750 tons of water to produce one ton of alfalfa bay, and about 60 tons of water to mature one bushel of wheat. An inch of ralnrall on one acre weighs a little over 113 tons, so that where the, annual rainfall is about 12 inches, 1,356 tons of water falls upon every acre of g.minil every year. This would be enough to produce. If It were all conserved and could be used by the plunts, 1.88 tons or alfalfa or 27 bushels or wheat. The only way In which we enn conserve this moisture mois-ture In the soil, so thiit the plants can use It when they need It, Is by thorough thor-ough cultivation. The cultivation, too, munt be done at the proper time, which is as soon In the spring as the ground can be worked without danger dan-ger of Injuring the texture or the soil, and after each heavy rain storm. It It Is left until some more convenient (time much moisture Is lost, last faring I Induced a farmer to plow two acres of land upon the same day during the last week In May. Boll samples were taken to the depth of eight feet Immediately after plowing and the moisture determined. The two acres contained about 16 percent, of moisture or 2,240 tons of water was held in the soli on each acre to the depth of eight feet. One acre was harrowed Immediately after owing and the other acre was lert rough without being harrowed for om week. After a week, roll samples wer again taken to the depth of eight fee1 The acre that had been harrowed h 1 1 lost 70 tons of water w hile the ac that bad not been harrowed hc.d lo t 77U tons of water, or enough o f duce one ton of alfalfa, or 15.4 bus Ms or wheat. Think for a tricircr.t, f you can, of the tho-ound of tous f water wa-ter that are bel.ig lost each da: each week and each yar In our state. Think of the vast amount of ilgat-Ing ilgat-Ing this would save, and the gi at Increase In-crease In yield wkkh this ould bring to our state. |