DAIRYING.

Dairying is extensively followed on the irrigated lands, particularly
in Kittitas county, where the cool atmosphere is very favorable,
and the farmers find that turning timothy and clover, alfalfa and
grain hay into butter fat is more profitable than wheat-raising.


PREPARATION OF LAND.

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.


DISPOSITION OF CROPS.

The hay crops are in large part sold on the ground and fed to cattle
and sheep which have summered in the mountain ranges and are carried
through the winters on the farms in the valleys. What is left after
supplying this demand is baled and shipped by rail to the markets
on Puget sound, Portland or Spokane. The Sound country is also the
chief purchaser of the fruits, although many winter apples, on
account of their superior quality, are shipped to eastern markets.