For over 60 years John L. Merriam has been involved with educating, writing, developing up-graded techniques in surface irrigation, evaluation procedures, precise terminology, etc. emphasizing the need for a water source at the farm level flexible in frequency, rate and duration to permit the farmer to optimize his total farm management program.

He has developed the following aphorisms as guides to thinking about flexible farm water supply systems. See and hear the Merriam Flexible Irrigation aphorisms by clicking on the links below:

1. It is not just the volume of water delivered, but the way it is delivered to make it usable. A small stream delivered at night will not be adequately distributed. A stream too large to infiltrate in the allocated time is impractical. A stream for a duration related to the soil intake rate and deficiency and adjusted in flow rate for conditions, can be optimized.

2. The engineer must think like an educated farmer. When and what size stream does the irrigator need to have available to best utilize the water? How does the control of the delivery affect the irrigation labor and investment? How does the control of the irrigation affect the rest of the farming operation? The great importance of daytime-only operation.

3. The farm and the project are one financial unit. Only farm-generated funds pay the farm and project expenses. Project funds invested to simplify on-farm operations and expenses, may be properly invested.

4. A supply flexible in frequency, rate, and duration under control of the irrigator at the point of application is essential to permit optimized irrigation and farm management. The application of an irrigation as to timing and amount, is only one aspect of farm management. It must not be restricted for optimization of the total farming program. Consideration of the amount and convening of labor and the irrigation method should not be economically restricted by the supply. Different crops, soils, and irrigation methods have different irrigation needs at different times.

5. Don't limit the future by what is built now. Inadequate initial capital investment may make it uneconomical to upgrade later. A conveyance or distribution pipeline can have doubled capacity permitting daytime only operation for only about 15% more cost for pipe. Later upgrading might require twice the cost and be uneconomical. Staged construction is often uneconomical and must be studied carefully. Service area units can be treated independently.

6. Partial knowledge can be a dangerous thing. The knowledge that pipelines save seepage may encourage their usage with a minimum capacity while the concept that larger capacity can permit improved operation for small increases in investment may be unknown. The distribution is not realized that large capacity flexible daytime only systems are farmer oriented though a project operation may be called flexible with only moderate fluctuation in a 24-hour period.

7. Learn by doing. The flexible system must be used and evaluated in operation and maintenance by educated and observant farmers and operators. Application of conventional operations to potentially adequate systems leads to deterioration and unsatisfactory conditions.

8. An equal share is not a fair share. The applied volume must be modified to conform to the needs of the soil, crop, method, labor, management, etc. Flexibility and education of the users is essential.

Please contact the Fund for Furthering Flexible Irrigation if you have any questions.