The Egyptian agricultural year has 3 seasons: The Inundation lasts 4 months from June through September. The Growing Season lasts 5 months from October through February. The Harvest Season lasts 3 months from March through May.
The Nile floodplain is enclosed by dikes to form large basins each containing at least 5,000 acres. Flood waters are regulated by sluice gates. Water is held 30 to 60 days until silt settles and soil is thoroughly saturated. Excess water drains into canals or lower basins. Fields are sown quickly to take advantage of soil moisture. Irrigation is not practical for grain crops so only one planting is made yearly. As there is no rain, cereals must grow and mature solely on water stored in the soil. If the Inundation fails, so do the crops.
When the Inundation at Cairo reaches full height, 1 acre-foot of flood water contains 4.14% silt by weight or approximately 10% by volume = 112,500 pounds per acre or about 2.5 pounds per square foot.
Nile silt averages 0.67% Nitrogen compounds, 0.34% Phosphate, 0.32% Potassium salts, and 1.53% Calcium Carbonate by weight. 1 acre-foot of flood water provides 753 pounds of nitrogen, 382 pounds of phosphate, 360 pounds of potassium salts, and 1,721 pounds of calcium carbonate per acre. These values are unexpectedly generous and may be in error.
[Editor’s Note: The math is not in error. The calculations are correct. The original laboratory results might be suspect. More likely, samples taken from the Nile at High Flood have little relation to the amount of silt actually deposited on basin fields. Substantial amounts of mud settle out as flood waters travel through canals and basins in series. The “real” answer will never be known as the modern Aswan Dam prevents the Nile from flooding].
Silt deposits vary widely depending on distance from the Nile. Riverside fields may receive 1 1/4 inches of silt while basins far from the river get only 1/5th to 1/4 inch or approximately 9,000 to 15,000 pounds per acre.
Canals trap much sit and must be dredged regularly to maintain sufficient volume for irrigation. When the Inundation is low or fields located at the edge of the floodplain, silt deposits are minimal, barely 1/16th inch or 3,800 pounds per acre, approximately 1.4 ounces per square foot.
Yearly silt deposits at El Mansura average 0.20% by weight of floodwater = 36 pounds of nitrogen compounds, 18 pounds of phosphate, 17 pounds of potassium salts, and 83 pounds of calcium carbonate per acre.
Silt deposits are insufficient to maintain soil fertility on most fields in the Delta. Crops must be rotated to sustain yields. Wheat followed by soup beans and then Egyptian clover is the most common rotation cycle.
The annual Inundation is periodic but not predictable. Water volumes vary widely while timing is more consistent. Floods peak in June at Luxor and October in the Delta. The typical flood is 1.5 meters or about 5 feet deep and lasts 4 o 6 weeks. Yearly change in river level is more dramatic: 45 feet at Luxor and 25 feet at Cairo.
When floods are normal, Wheat averages 33 bushels per acre, Barley produces 39 bushels per acre, Maize yields 103 bushels per acre, and Dried Beans make 35 bushels per acre. When flood waters are low, yields may drop 75%. High floods produce bountiful crops, up to 178 bushels of maize per acre. Record yields occur rarely, perhaps once every decade. 3 years out of 10, Nile floods are poor and Egypt starves. Extreme floods also come about once every 10 years and do great damage to irrigation systems.
There is talk of building a dam at Aswan to widen the flood and better regulate irrigation, but opinion is divided as no one has ever attempted a work of this magnitude. The demand for cotton is such that a dam might be financially practical if loans are made by a syndicate of European banks. At present, the cost of such a venture is far too great for the Egyptian Government to bear.
Irrigated Delta cotton yields 375 pounds per acre on Nile mud. Fields spread with 8 donkey carts = 1 short ton of pigeon manure average 768 pounds of fiber per acre. Fields distant from the Nile must be dunged because there is not enough mud to feed the crops. Irrigated fruits and vegetables under date palms receive 10 to 15 tons of common barnyard manure per acre.
The Nile valley is noted for its extreme heat and intense sunlight. Crops is open fields often fail even when irrigated. Consequently, Egyptian farmers plant date palms for shade. Wheat, alfalfa, and vegetables thrive under the palms.
Cotton grows in open fields and is often sown with Egyptian clover. Cotton is planted on the ridges and clover sown in the irrigation furrows.
Local weights and measures are similar to English usage. 1 Feddan = 1.03 acres. 1 Kantar = 99.05 pounds.
[Editor’s Notes: Original transcription from: “Trading Down the Nile”, circa 1870, by Johann Michael Kristoff Koperek, 1811 – 1908. JMK Koperek was a landholder, a student of the soil chemist von Liebig, and the owner of a trading house (import-export business). 1 short ton = 2,000 pounds. 1 long ton = 2,240 pounds].
Related Publications: Biblical Agronomy; Biological Agriculture in Temperate Climates; Crop Rotation Primer.
Would You Like to Know More? For more information on biological agriculture, please visit: http://www.worldagriculturesolutions.com — or — send an e-mail to: worldagriculturesolutions@gmail.com — or — send your questions to: Eric Koperek, Editor, World Agriculture Solutions, 413 Cedar Drive, Moon Township, Pennsylvania, 15108 United States of America.
About the Editor: Mr. Koperek is a plant breeder who farms in Pennsylvania during summer and Florida over winter. (Growing 2 generations yearly speeds development of new crop varieties).
Index Terms: Agriculture (in Egypt); Barley = Hordeum vulgare; Basin Irrigation; Berseem Clover = Trifolium alexandrinum; Companion Crops; Corn = Zea mays; Cotton = Gossypium hirsutum; Cotton Farming; Crop Rotation; Dried Beans = Phaseous vulgaris; Egyptian Clover = Trifolium alexandrinum; Manure (as fertilizer); Nile River (annual floods); Pigeon Manure (as fertilizer); Polycrops; Ridge and Furrow Irrigation; Soup Beans = Phaseolus vulgaris; Wheat = Triticum aestivum; Wheat Farming.
Original Publication Date: circa 1870, Vienna, Austria, by Johann Michael Kristoff Koperek, 1811 – 1908.
Update: August 2023, Venus, Florida.
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