Irrigation............

David Brown

Kydex Sheath and Holster Artist :)
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Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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Irrigation wow this is something I though I left on the farm :rolleyes:.
Late nights watching water.

I get my "turn" at 3:30 am, and I am last in line so I have to open the gate for the rest of the folks.

I finally get to use one of my tactical lights :) woo hoo.
 
Oh this does not happen in Arizona too often :)
a lawn so big you have to flood irrigate it :eek:
 
I am sure you are gonna find a few things that are different from Arizona. Hopefully you are enjoying the change of scenery.

Garth
 
Dave, your on so much Dew I figured you just watered it yourself;):D

Seriously though what do you mean by waiting your turn etc? Ive never lived out west so most of what you said went right over my head:D
 
Ohhhhhh Dave I feel for ya Brother....I live in New Mexico and raise Pecans so I know all about flooding!!!! Be sure to check your property borders to make sure they are secure and all the water doesn't run out or flood the garage/shop....
A Good Miners headlight is a must for late night watering in case you need to shore up a border with your shovel and can't hold the light with your hands..

T...the story is we get water by ordering which comes from the Rio Grande river (not sure about Dave) so we have water allotment by the ACRE FOOT...I flood 20 acres takes about 10-12 hours...you have to open a canal gate and regulate the flow of head pressure in order to not over flow the border around the field...My neighbor and I start by building a fire in a pit put on the steaks and drink beer...you might get a call at 2:00am on Wednesday morning or 4:00pm Sunday night depends on how many are watering in your district....We Pay Handsomely for the water Here out West due to the ongoing Drought so we have to get every drop to ensure a good crop of Pecans/Cotton/Lettuce/Onions/Chile Crops....this year our allotment was 1/2 acre foot BAD!!!

However today I'm in Hawaii on Vacation...My watering for the Month is Finished....:cool:
 
Irrigating in the pouring rain, now I feel stupid :)
 
Dave, your on so much Dew I figured you just watered it yourself;):D

Seriously though what do you mean by waiting your turn etc? Ive never lived out west so most of what you said went right over my head:D

In Irrigating you get your water at a certain time or "turn" so if some one leaves there gate open about 25% it steals your water pressure thus making your turn longer, and so on down the line, it seams simple but irrigating is complex.

Now on this little 2 acre yard not so much but and 80 acre alfalfa field in Blythe California, like I used to irrigate that is a different story.

In Blythe it gets 120+ about 1 month or so out of the year, 100+ for about 5 so..........

when you under water its bad because the alfalfa will die from lack of water.

If you over water it acts like a magnifying glass and cooks the alfalfa so too much is bad.

You also have to shut the water off about 250 feet from the end of the field in your "check" (the space between borders) because there is about 900 feet of water coming down the field and you have to calculate the absorption of the soil, the wind if it is blowing, the heat for evaporation, and the pressure it is coming out of the gate............like I said complicated.

You also have to have level ground.

The best part is if you have dirt ditches a gopher hole can cause a "blow out" and boy you have not lived until you fix one of those at 2 in the morning with a shovel and plastic grocery sacks.

It is so bad there is a bounty for their tails from the irrigation district of 2.00 ea. Muskrats are 5.00 and a Beaver is 50.00

Beavers in Blythe who knew, but they plug up the drain ditches and are a huge problem.

So that is probably far more than anyone wants to know about irrigation.

:)
 
The whole irrigation thing blew my mind when I moved to AZ. People flood their yards with standing water for days at a time. You open your gate off the main canal at a pre designated time, and flood your yard. It's interesting to say the least. All the yards here are built like bowls with a perimeter "lip" to hold the water.
 
This still sounds like some drunk guy got lazy and decided that flooding would be a great way to water his lawn. :p
 
Turn on a sprinkler? What is that, the only thing we ever used a sprinkler for was to run through when I was growing up. I think I've only every watered the yard once or twice in my life. Typically, it is just left to the rain. On a dry year, I will get the irrigation hose out and water the garden but that's about it.
 
What Really hurts is the water bill paid annually....I do 80 acres of pecans and they suck down the water. We had one water allotment this year from the river the rest was pumped from wells by diesel converted to natural gas...Dave is right you have to know when to close the Gate or your neighbors will be floating!!!!
I do like the fact that during the 105 degree days the Orchards are 15-20 cooler and great shade for Pig Roasting.....:D
 
Turn on a sprinkler? What is that, the only thing we ever used a sprinkler for was to run through when I was growing up. I think I've only every watered the yard once or twice in my life. Typically, it is just left to the rain. On a dry year, I will get the irrigation hose out and water the garden but that's about it.

Run through the sprinkler....We used to water ski in the irrigation canals pulled by the most beat up pickup just in case it decided to take a dip in the ditch...:D
 
Running through sprinklers was such a good time, but I doubt that I'd find the same joy out of it now. Oh, to be young again.
 
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