There is a good deal of this arid land which will have to be freed
from the sagebrush and smoothed over before it will be fit for
irrigation. This expense, together with building headgates and
lateral ditches, building flumes and seeding to alfalfa, will cost
from $15.00 to $20.00 per acre, depending upon the character of
the surface, the size of the sagebrush, and amount of flumes, etc.
Some, however, very smooth lands can be prepared for seeding at
less expense.