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So who was the genius who decided to farm in Arizona?


Ralphie

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The Papago Indians centuries before Arizona existed. They were farmers rather than hunters and developed the technique of laying out irrigation ditch system. Further developed after The US purchased the territory and Statehood. There is a reason Phoenix streets are on 1 mile grids as they follow the old ditch irrigation system. It was interesting as driving along a field, no sprinklers for irrigation where lack of humidity would evaporate much before hitting the ground. Rather, water running in a ditch along the road, and farmers would place siphoning pipes at each crop row to irrigate the field.

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4 minutes ago, dinneR said:

You watched 60 Minutes, eh? I didn't understand the gourd farmer? What is the purpose of a gourd? If there is a shortage of water to grow food, it's a problem, but a gourd? Why should I care?

Yeah!  Eff the gourds, give me my celery, carrots, and lettuce!  

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One of my soil profs at the University of Arizona indicated he knew several producers that did not use leaf tests to determine fertilizer needs of the various crops. Their reasoning was that the cost of fertilizer was just a drop in the bucket compared to the money they made from a good crop or the money they lost from a poor crop. So they just applied fertilizer without testing.

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16 minutes ago, sheep_herder said:

Many acres planted to cotton in North Texas were converted back to pasture as the aquifer began to dry up many years ago.

Many acres next to the new subdivision where I bought a house were a cotton field that was converted to a sheep pasture. Hot air balloons would occasionally float over the house and land in the field.  Then came a church and a high school with a football stadium and is now all houses.

On the positive side, it probably provides a nice block to prevent the wind driven tumbleweeds from rolling into yard of whomever owns the house now and spreading thorns all over the place to guarantee flat tires on my bike if didn't insert a "Mr Tuffy" liner.

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1 hour ago, Razors Edge said:

As long as I get my fruits, veggies, and nuts - uninterrupted - I'm pretty happy about it.  Even cotton. I wear some cotton stuff. Heck, need them raising animals too, as can't get enough beef, pork, chicken, etc..

Ok, Calvin. :D  Sheesh, you were made for the comics!  They all seem to fit you!

 

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1 hour ago, 12string said:

Just unfathomable, how much stuff we do in the wrong places.  And all of the resources it takes to support doing those things in stupid places.  And now that we know doing that is untenable - let's do more!

People are stupid.  Get out of the deserts!

How have you adapted your shopping habits to avoid all those stupid sources?

Ask your kid to tell his kids to get working on the problem, but in the meantime, ENJOY life.  

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1 hour ago, 12string said:

Just unfathomable, how much stuff we do in the wrong places.  And all of the resources it takes to support doing those things in stupid places.  And now that we know doing that is untenable - let's do more!

People are stupid.  Get out of the deserts!

So, what do you propose they do with the deserts? Any takers?

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2 minutes ago, 12string said:

I grow my own veggies, In a place suited for growing without diverting a river thousands of miles.

What to do with the deserts?  Who says we have to "do something" with them?  We just shouldn't be building huge cities and farms in them

So you don't buy any vegetables from the store in the winter?

The Colorado River cascades from the Rocky Mountains into the arid deserts of the Southwest. It’s the primary water supply for 40 million people. About 70% of its water goes toward irrigation, sustaining a $15 billion-a-year agricultural industry that supplies 90% of the United States’ winter vegetables.

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2 minutes ago, dinneR said:

So you don't buy any vegetables from the store in the winter?

My freezer is stuffed already.  We didn't finfish last year's garden until late June.

I buy a few things in the winter, but around here a lot comes from South America.

We're going to all stop buying those veggies soon - permanently.

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42 minutes ago, 12string said:

My freezer is stuffed already.  We didn't finfish last year's garden until late June.

I buy a few things in the winter, but around here a lot comes from South America.

We're going to all stop buying those veggies soon - permanently.

So how do we feed the country if 90% of winter production is gone?

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49 minutes ago, 12string said:

I grow my own veggies, In a place suited for growing without diverting a river thousands of miles.

What to do with the deserts?  Who says we have to "do something" with them?  We just shouldn't be building huge cities and farms in them

I don't think this has happened recently. As I mentioned earlier people have had to shift their species used in crop production even in North Texas as the aquifer has dried up. However, living where you do you might consider North Texas a desert, some do. One never knows with a slight shift in climate patterns even you might encounter water shortages in the future.

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26 minutes ago, Philander Seabury said:

Hopefully pecans are not the water hogs that almonds are. 

Pecans generally grow in higher rainfall zones. However there is a large pecan grove in Las Cruces, NM. At one time, they used geese to control the grass in the orchard and then sold the down from the geese. Met a fellow on a trip to Portugal in the early 80s. He was quite agitated that almonds were grown in California. He wanted them to all be grown in Portugal. He might be smiling about the current situation.

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I am right in the middle of Papago agriculture. Most of what I see is corn, wheat and potatoes. There is some cotton but I think it has been curtailed somewhat in recent years. 
This part of the valley has natural ground water. Part of the reason the Papago reside here. My understanding is there is some level of water management on the groundwater, but I haven’t heard details. I want to learn more. 
There is a growing, but quiet water conservation movement. The ponds here are supplied with gray water as are the car washes. More new builds and neighborhoods are discouraging the traditional lawn. It’s baby steps but the conversation is becoming more open. 

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Keep in mind, that with irrigated agriculture in arid regions, one normally has greater control on amount and timing of water applications. External rains can sometimes be detrimental if it arrives at the wrong time relative to the plant growth cycle. A lot of legume seed is produced near Moses Lake, WA, as they have deep sandy soils that can be flooded during the early part of the growing season, and plants can generally complete their growth cycle without additional sprinkler irrigation or rain.

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