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FLOODING ALKALI SOIL
TO SAVE IT
By JOHN Z. DAVIDSON
O N E of the fears that has beset
some growers in the
irrigated regions of the
West is that eventually the
alkali with which the surrounding
country in many places is impregnated
will gradually be brought in
upon the soil through the medium of
floods or by the irrigation water itself,
thereby ruining the soil and that what
was once a rich and fertile area will be
reclaimed by the desert.
A test that was recently performed by
the Agricultural Experimental Station
located at Berkeley, California, would
seem to offer proof that not only this
condition can be remedied but that pronounced
alkali districts that have been
passed by as unavailable for cultivation
may be reclaimed.
A tract of land near Fresno, California,
was abandoned as unprofitable because
of the accumulation of alkali in the
soil. The land had been planted originally
to grape vines. The alkali destroyed
the vines. The owner then attempted to
save his soil by planting first alfalfa,
then grains. These proved a failure, too.
The land was then abandoned agriculturally
for several years.
In 1913, however, it was proposed that
the land be scientifically reclaimed. The
basis of the idea was to drain off the
alkali. To that end a drainage system
was installed. At an average depth of
seven feet a series of drain pipes were
put in. They varied in diameter from
six to twelve inches. The fall allowed
was comparatively slight, being only one
foot in a thousand feet.
At the lowest part of the area a sump
was dug. Here, as the water collected
from the land, it was pumped out by
means of a motor-driven pump.
The next step toward putting the land
in shape was by repairing or restoring
the original system of irrigation canals.
The cost of doing this was approximately
sixty-six dollars an acre.
From time to time, the 150-acre tract
was flooded, the water covering it varying
in depth at different times.
Attempts to grow grain proved slightly
successful. The cost of sowing the seed
and of harvesting the crop pretty nearly
paid for itself.
With this much encouragement, the
workers renewed their efforts and the
following year thoroughly flooded the
area as before. Only, this time, the
period of irrigation was kept up continuously
through the spring and summer
months into the fall.
This process of flooding was repeated
the next year. The additional cost over
the first year of flooding approximated
one hundred dollars an acre. There
were some unusual features involved,
however, which caused the increase in
cost; otherwise it would not have been
above that of the first year.
Last year, 1916, one hundred tons of
hay were grown on the one hundred and
fifty acres. An alfalfa crop is expected
for the year 1917. The land can be improved
still further by methods similar
to those here described, and can be made
to bear excellent crops.
The cost probably would not have been
nearly so great if the work had been
undertaken immediately after the discovery
of the presence of alkali.
Here is a method that if applied in
time will save many an area of valuable
land. It is based on the simple principle
of solution, that is, most soil alkalis are
capable of being dissolved in large quantities
of water. Then, when the water
is drained away, they naturally are carried
with the solvent.
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