IRRIGATION

General
Land leveling or land grading for irrigation is modifying the surfacerelief of a field to a planned
grade to provide a lIore suitable surfacefor efficiently applying irrigation water.Normally land
leveling requires moving a lot of earth over severalhundred feet. This should not be confused vi
th land pla.nin&, landSIIoothing, or land noating. They are usually accomplished with special
equipment to eliminate minor irregularities, and they do notchange the general topography of the
land surface.Rough grading is relloving knolls, mounds, or ridges and filling pockets or swales in
a field that is not to have a planned grade. Often no construction stake. are set and rel~ce is
placed on the "eY8" of the equipment operator to obtain the desired field surface. Rough grading
is seldom adequate for' lands to be surface irrigated.
Criteria for Land Leveling.
Criteria for land leveling v1ll be influenced by the soil, slope, climate, crops to be grown,
lIethods of irrigation, and the desires of the farmer. Land leveling should never be planned
without knovini the soil-profile conditions and the lIaxillUIi cut that can be l18.de without
seriously affecting agricultural production. Shallow soils that require strict limitations on
permiSSible depth of excavation do not permit much freedom to the designer. They pose a
difficult problem when combined with undulating topographT or steep slopes.
There are four basic methods and a great many variations of each
method of Land-leveling design in common useI These basic methods
are:
1. The plane method,
2. The profile method.
3. The plan-inspection method.
4. The contour-adjustment method.
Each of these has some advantages and disadvantages, but whenintelligently used, all
will provide satisfactory results.
The Plane,Methoq.
The plane method is so called because the resulting land surface has a uniform
downfield slope and a uniform cross slope. Thus, n tme plane surface results. It is a
very useful method for developing