Title: An Investiatjon of Furrow Advance Rates Under Surge FlOW Irrigation Abstract Approved

The intermittent or cyclic application of water to furrows or borders, a method known as "surge flow irriga-tion", can significantly improve the advance characteris-tics of surface irrigation. Numerous field studies have shown that the advance of furrows is considerably more rapid when irrigated by surge flow than by the conven-tional, continuous flow method. In addition, the advance rates of surge flow have been found to be less variable among furrows than by those of continuous flow. Further-more a large difference between surge and continuous flow is generally seen in the volume of water required to complete the advance phase. These facts have led research-ers to conclude that surge flow may be capable of signifi-cantly improving the efficiencies of surface irrigation. Two field experiments were conducted in souther