When the very great value of a little
water on a dry-farm is considered, the figures here given do not
seem at all excessive. It must be remarked again that a reservoir of
some sort is practically indispensable in connection with a pumping
plant if the irrigation water is to be used in the best way.
The use of small quantities of water in irrigation
Now, it is undoubtedly true that the acre cost of water on
dry-farms, where pumping plants or similar devices must be used with
expensive reservoirs, is much higher than when water is obtained
from gravity canals. It is, therefore, important that the costly
water so obtained be used in the most economical manner. This is
doubly important in view of the fact that the water supply obtained
on dry-farms is always small and insufficient for all that the
farmer would like to do. Indeed, the profit in storing and pumping
water rests largely upon the economical application of water to
crops. This necessitates the statement of one of the first
principles of scientific irrigation practices, namely, that the
yield of a crop under irrigation is not proportional to the amount
of water applied in the form of irrigation water.
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