I attended high school in Phoenix in the late 1960s. There was a widespread irrigation infrastructure that consisted of gated ditches running throughout residen

I attended high school in Phoenix in the late 1960s. There was a widespread irrigation infrastructure that consisted of gated ditches running throughout residential areas. This was way before drip irrigation or other water conservation measures were a thing. These ditches were supplied with water on a scheduled basis. One watered one's lawn by shutting off your downstream neighbor's ditch gate and opening yours on schedule. After your hour or two of flooding, your upstream neighbor would do the same, leaving your deeply flooded yard to absorb the water. This was a 2 or 3 times/week thing. It was horribly inefficient in terms of evaporation losses. About the only positive aspect I recall is socializing with our neighbors in the after-midnight hours that we usually drew for our turn at the floodgates.