Actually, my uncle had a place out west with these old irrigation canals still visible in the dirt. Just grooves worn by runoff, but they directed every drop to where it was needed. He always said the folks who set it up just watched where the water wanted to go. Now we spend millions burying giant tubes instead of working with the land. Saw a news piece where a city planted more trees and shallow basins to slow down rain, basically copying that idea. Funny how the simplest fixes are already written in the ground.