IRRIGATION SCHEDULING
Use these irrigation scheduling practices to improve your yield with efficient water use.
By Jonathan Aguilar, PhD, PE O
ne of the many ways of conserving water, saving money and producing more with less water is by being mindful of
when and how much water to apply to the crops, plants and grass. This process is generally called irrigation scheduling.
Traditionally, irrigation scheduling has been based on the producer’s observations of plant water needs or calendar date irrespective of variation in weather conditions, growth stages and soil conditions. In areas where the potential evapotranspiration is greater than the rainfall amounts, generally in semi-arid to arid areas, the general notion is that producers are already behind so they shall continuously irrigate until the end of the growing season. Researchers have noted that farmers are reluctant to deviate from traditionally accepted scheduling methods regardless of relative merits of alternative scheduling methods until they are shown that improvements
in scheduling results in greater net returns.
USDA scientists defined irrigation scheduling as the process of making decisions on the irrigation amount and timing subject to the irrigation water supply constraints and in concert with labor and cultural crop practices with the goal to maximize profits per unit of inputs. Irrigation engineers in the southern High Plains coined a new definition for irrigation scheduling as being the process of delaying any unnecessary irrigation with the hope that the irrigation season will end before the next irrigation is needed.
These definitions highlight the challenges associated with maximizing profitability when irrigating with limited water supplies. This is particularly true in areas where well capacities from the aquifer or surface water and ponds are dwindling.
irrigationtoday.org
Spring 2024 | Irrigation TODAY 21
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