Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 14, 1969)
Page 4 Special Irrigation Issue GAZETTE-TIMES Irrigation Outlook Not All Optimistic BY HAROLD KERR Morrow County Extension Agent The potential for Irrigation in Morrow county is tremen dous. Many acres of fertile deep soil can be irrigated and can produce a wide variety of crops. The potential yields of such crops as potatoes, alfalfa, dry beans, sugar beets, mint, corn grass seed and many others are as good as areas where they are now being produced and in some cases, better, Many other crops are adapted to our climatic conditions and may have a place in the future of Morrow county ag rieulture. The traditional crops of dryland wheat and barley are in a depressed market state due to over production and a lagging demand for pacific- northwest wheat. As growers look to alternative crops for their farmlands they should remember irrigated agricul ture is not all a bed of roses Many problems face the wheat producer who antici pates converting to irrigated crops requiring intensive management and labor. A concern of soil and water spe cialists from Oregon Stat University, who are working closely with early endeavor to ungate former dryland wheat lands, is the low infiltration rate of our soils in this area. Many people have always felt that our soil would ab sorb unlimited amounts of water. Research work, however, has indicated that the soils are quite limited in their ability to absorb high rates of water in a relatively short time. This factor may prove to be one of the biggest prob lems facing irrigated farms. A second problem in apply ing water in this area is the age-old problem of wind. Un even distribution of water 1 due to high and fluctuating winds cause uneven crop growth, which may be ex tremely important in some crops, and affects yields of all crops. A third factor which affects all developing areas is es tablishing a reputation for producing a high quality, de sirable, product which can find a favorable position in todays market place. Once a marketing channel is estab lished for a new area it is mucn easier to expand pro duction and compete with tra ditional production areas tor that crop. Future dependable sources of water for long range de velopment provided at a fav orable price is also a factor to consider. Irrigation wells may be limited, thinking into the fu ture, as a source of irrigation water as some concern has been expressed in what the future may hold for ground water as a source of irriga tion water. Thinking on the positiv.' side, water development for ir rigation in Morrow county is almost assured and the early pioneers are paving the way for what, in the future, prom- scs to be a tremendous po tential for food and fibre pro duction for both man and livestock. The production of livestock feed and the development of an expanding livestock econ omy tor Morrow county may have more promise than many people realize. Livestock and livestock feed production are closely tied to most high production areas of the world, and be cause Oregon ships a high percentage of their feeder cat tle to other states. Feeding these cattle at home and ex porting meat products rather than feeder cattle and sur plus livestock feed seems a natural. - W-n 1 - L ANOTHER METHOD of easy-moving sprinklers is the tri matic sprinkler, mounted on wheels but with trailing pipes. Four sprinkler heads are mounted on the trailing pipes, which slide alcng the ground when the section is moved. Two men can move the entire section, but it requires long lengths of pipeline to connect with the section. (G-T Photo). Save Manpower With Tractor Use In Moving of Irrigation Pipe Israel Inventor of Drip Operation A new method of "drip" ir rigation has been developed in Israel which is said to be producing huge yield increas es in arid areas. The method utilizes a system of plastic pipes which trickles a con tinuing small amount of wa ter blended with fertilizer to the roots of plants. Surveys are reported to have shown that both the quality and quantity of vegetables and fruits produced have been very appreciably increased, and substantial savings in water use made possible. The necessary equipment is ex pensive reportedly $400 per acre of fruit orchard and up to $1,000 per acre of veget ables but yields have been increased up to 100 per cent in the case of vegetables. Manufacturer of the equip ment is Kibbutz Hatzerim, near Beersheba, Israel. As Printed in Oregon Farmer CAU COLLECT FOR INFORMATION i . Headquarters For Complete Overhaul ing of Irrigation Pumps and Motors. REWINDING - REPAIRS COLE ELECTRIC Tutullla Rd. 276-7761, Pendleton Gordon Geffo uses his trac tor hitch to change location of five portable sprinkler lines in new orchard near Wapato, Washington. He gets the job done in less than 40 minutes. There's no manual lifting of any kind. And there's no wading through mud. That's because he is using the new dragline sprinkler i system continuous welded sections of 2-inch steel pipe each 630 feet in length, with sprinkler heads spaced 30 fee apart. When it's time to change location, Geffe merely backs his tractor to the end of the pipe, lowers the three-point hitch, operates a locking lev er, then raises the hitch and drives through the orchard towing the long length of pipe behind him. The pipe can't twist in tran sit because a metal flange holds it firmly in the locking lever on the tractor hitch. There's no problem skidding the pipe and risers by trees. Geffe didn't so much as graze a tree all last season, even though the last riser on the long pipeline is traveling more than 000 feet behind the trac tor. Geffe's 40 acres of two-year-old trees are five miles from his home place and are half of an 80-acre block of new land which he and John Douglas purchased, divided and developed. Douglas also uses a drag line system. This permits the two men to irrigate the en tire 80 acres as a single or chard, trade draglines back and forth at orchard boundar ies to save distance in pipo moving. "When I planned the or chard I knew I would put in a sprinkler system to get bet ter water distribution and all the other benefits," said Gef fe. "But when I investigated the dragline system, I found ttiis would save me as much as two hours each time the sprinklers were moved be sides eliminating all the work of manually handling the pipe." "There's also less capital outlay with the dragline, mostly because it eliminates fittings required with 30 and 40 -foot lengths of portable pipe'" The Geffe, as well as the Douglas orchard, is supplied by a 15-horsepower electric pump pushing water through a central underground main. Lateral lines and risers are spaced 72 feet apart. Each ris er serves four rows of trees through a portable 30-foot rubber hose connection to the dragline. As Printed in Pacific Power & Light Company Farm NEWS Safety Prompters ALWAYS LOOK OVERHEAD WHEN YOU Handle Sprinkler Pipe Move Tall Equipment Here are two important farm safety rules that are worth keeping pasted in your hatband. 1. Never up-end sprinkler irrigation pipe under a pow er line. Aluminum pipe is i sure-fire conductor of electric ity. Contact with a live wire is almost certain to result in serious electric shock. 2. Always call PP&L when extra tall equipment must be moved under a power line we 11 send a service man to help you. There is no charge ior this service. It is part ot our safety program. Safety is no accident. It's wise to be careful with electricity. As Printed in Pacific Power & Light Company NEWS FARM Spring and Fall Pump Checklist There's a right way and a wrong way to start and stop large electric pump installa tions. Taking a little time to go through a checklist in the proper sequence could help eliminate some of an electric motor's major enemies: Dust, stray oil, moisture, bearing friction, misalignment, vibra tion, uneven wear, overload, and excess heat. Annual Startup Make sure main breaker of disconnect switch is open so control panel and motor is disconnected from all sources of electric power before any work is performed. Make sure all ground wires are Intact and connect ed to ground rod and motor and switches are grounded and bonded together. Check motor starter pan el and make sure all wire terminals and connections are tight. Inspect all contacts, both man and auxiliary, tci see if they are free from burns or pits and are making good contact. Have badly damaged contacts replaced. Inspect fuse holder con tacts, if provided, to see that the fuses are not loose which may cause excessive heating. Remove dust and other foreign matter from pump; motor, and switches. Wipe off the motor on regular inspections and oc casionally blow dust out of the wound section with fair ly low pressure (not over 40 lbs. pressure) clean compres sed air (free from grit, met al, or moisture). Inspect centrifugal pump housing for cracks or breaks, and make certain that all plugs and fittings are tight. Grease lubricated bear ings should be flushed and repacked. Do not overlubri- cate. It will cause excessive friction. Be sure motor windings are dry and free from con densed moisture. If wet, dry air should be circulated through motor until thor oughly dry. Do not run mo tor until windings are dry. Drain oil reservoir and flush. Refill with manufac turer's recommended new oil. Check periodically during pumping season for any dis coloration which will be an indication of possible trouble. Smokey Says: 'wk FIBE THE BEST OF FRIENDS... THE WORST OF ENEMIES' Which one of these will It be? 1 Inspect interior and im peller of centrifugal pumps. If pump has been in service several years check impeller for excessive wear. This can drastically change pumping efficiency. Rotate pump and motor shaft by hand to make cer tain there is no binding or excessive friction prior to closing the electric circuits. -After motor has started. check bearings for noise and unusual sounds. Have quali fied maintenance person check and repair if needed. Annual Shutdown Drain pump and lines. Close entrances to pump and motor to keep out dust, rodents, and insects. Fill oil reservoir on pump completely to eliminate con densation. Lock disconnect switch to OFF position. Do not cover or surround motor with plastic, as this causes moisture to condense within motor. Use canvas or similar cover. During winter time have worn and noisy bearings replaced. As Printed in Oregon Fanner pipe
