Efficient Water Management: Drip Irrigation: Dhenber Lusanta

Efficient Water Management:
Drip Irrigation
Dhenber Lusanta
Copyright © AHR
Lettuce Training Workshops
Topics
● Water uptake by plants
● Water, yield and quality
1st part
● Types of irrigation
● Assessing soil moisture
● Soil moisture management
● History if drip irrigation
● What is drip irrigation
2nd part
● How drip irrigation works
● Drip irrigation system overview
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Sapat sa init at aliwalas

Sapat sa fertilizer
Sapat sa trellis
Walang damo
Sapat sa pesticides
Bakit maliit ang ani/mababa ang kalidad?
Tanong? Sakto ba sa dilig? (paano, kailan at
dami ng dilig)
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Generally plants need:
-Light
-Air
-Nutrients
-Temperature
-Genetics and
-Water
(Normal values of RWC 98% in fully
turgid transpiring leaves)
The plant cannot breathe or drink at the

same time
Good aeration through good land

preparation
stomata are closed to

prevent dehydration from
the plant's body. If stomata
are closed there is no air
inside which causes
photosynthetic activity to
slow down. It also causes
the slow entry of water
The plant has two systems:

1. The plant absorbs water
and nutrients from the soil
to the leaf
2. makes a “photosynthetic
product” from the leaf to
other parts of the plant.
(Please explain why it is in
needed of foliar fertilizer?)
Water uptake by plants

Water enters the cell along a water potential gradient from high water concentration
to low water concentration. Requires energy (sugar) to uptake water at the
expense of growth!!!
Effects on plant yield and quality
● Water stress caused by too much, not enough or

irregular irrigation reduces yield
● Irrigation management affects crop quality
● Different types of irrigation can achieve same result if

managed well
Water Stress Reduces Cantaloupe fruit
sweetness (Brix)
11
10.7
10 9.8 Water stress near harvest reduced fruit

Total soluble solids (%)
sugars (Brix) from 10.7 to 9 (16%)

9.1
9
9
7
No water Stress stress 1 Stress
stress during week before and
harvest before during
harvest harvest
Water stress and yield broccoli
18
16
14 Failing to supply the irrigation
12 required amount of irrigation
Yield (t/ha)
10 significantly reduces broccoli

8 yield (head weight)
6
4 Why ?
2
0
0 20 40 60 80 100
% of Crop water requirement supplied
From Periola et al. (1993) Acta Hort. 33:265 - 270
Sandy loam soil outdoor crop - Italy

Types of irrigation
Bottle irrigation
or Pitcher
(Olla) irrigation
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Gravity Drip
Bucket Irrigation
Systems
Subsurface
irrigation
a b
Solid set sprinkler irrigation
Inefficient water
use
Variable
applications
Good for leafy

vegetables
Wets foliage
(bad for disease)
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Sprinkler Irrigation layout
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Furrow irrigation
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Drip or trickle
irrigation
Drip irrigation
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Drip Irrigation layout
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Drip irrigation
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Measurement and Interpretation of soil

moisture
● Why measure soil moisture?
● Types of measuring equipment.
● Answering the critical questions of

when to water and how much to
apply?
Tensiometer
There is a porous
tip which allows
water to move into
soil, and creates
tension which is
read of the gauge
Interpretation of Tensiometers
Soil moisture Reading

Interpretation
status (kPa)
Nearly 0 Nearly saturated soil often occurs for a

saturated day or two following irrigation.
Field capacity 10 Field capacity.
Irrigation 20
Usual range for starting irrigations.
range
Onset of stress 30 This is the stress range for most
vegetable crops.
Extremely dry 80 Top range of accuracy of tensiometer.
TDR – time domain reflectometer
Can be used to
measure
volumetric water
content
Soil Capacitance Measures
Soil capacitance sensors

measure soil moisture in a
small volume of soil
around each sensor
They are suited to

continuous monitoring of
moisture at different soil
depths
Interpretation of Soil Moisture

Data
Irrigation
Soil moisture (mm)
No stress
Severe Stress
Stress
Time
How to achieve the yield and quality results
Two examples: Melons and leafy crops
● Principle 1: fully wet soil profile at planting
● Principle 2: keep plants stress-free during growth and

maturation of harvestable part
● Principle 3: water requirement can diminsh as plants

mature – may need less water to avoid waterlogging
Melons – planting to first flower
Fully wet the soil profile at

planting
● Roots can’t grow into dry soil, but you

can encourage the roots to explore
deeper soil as the profile dries down
● If you do have to water, then fully re-

wet the soil profile, avoid short
frequent irrigations unless the soil has
a very low RAW.
Melons - Flowering to Harvest
Keep the plants free of water

stress to harvest
● The best yields and quality

come from irrigating just before
the soil dries to the Onset of
Stress
● Irrigate fully to Full Point each

time by adding the RAW
Leafy Vegetables - Establishment
Establishment is critical –
sprinkler irrigation
● Keep the topsoil moist for the

first 7-10 days after planting to
maximise plant stand
● Water stress early can induce

premature heading (bolting)
Leafy Vegetables - Growth
Keep the plants free of

water stress
● Irrigate before the soil dries
down to the onset of stress
point
● Irrigate up to full point
(apply RAW)
● Avoid leaching Nitrogen
with excess water
Summary: yield and quality
● Water stress caused by too much, not enough or

irregular irrigation reduces yield
● Irrigation management affects crop quality
● Measure moisture to correctly manage water
● Plants use energy to uptake water. The drier the soil

the more energy the plant spends on taking up water –
at the expense of yield!!!
End of part
1 st
Thank You
Copyright © AHR
nd part
Rodel Morales
TOPICS
• Drip irrigation system • Valves

structure • Dosing unit
• Water source • Laterals
• Pump and pumping station • Connectors
• Filtration • End of drip lines
• Main, sub-main, distribution • Sensors
pipes and fittings • Controller
• Water meter and pressure • Accessories and ad-ons
gauge • Agro machinery
• Maintenance time table

• System flushing
• Preparation and use of hydraulic conditions checklist
• Chemical injection for maintenance
• water analysis
• Sampling drippers
• Rodent control
● Ancient time use clay pots

● 1865-66
✓ Afghanistan, using clay pipes to drain
the water in the field as experiment
● 1920’s
✓ Germany, use perforated pipes
● 1950’s
✓ Israel, Simcha Blass, develop drip
emitter and solid drip tubing
✓ 1960’s patent the product
✓ 1965 - “Netafim”
● Most efficient water and nutrient delivery system on growing

crops
● Deliver directly to the plant’s root zone
✓ right amount
✓ right time
Water
SAVE Fertilize
rEnergy
= Higher
YIELD
● Water and nutrients are delivered across the field in pipes called
featuring small units known as
● Each dripper emits drops containing water and fertilizer, resulting in
the uniform application of water and nutrients direct to each plant's
root zone, across an entire field.
● Drip irrigation system structure

✓ comprises different components, each one of them playing an important
part in the operation of the system
Schematic diagram
● Water source
1. Surface water
✓ river, lake, stream, wetland, reservoirs
and creeks
▪ high risk, introduce biological
hazards.
2. Groundwater
✓ water present beneath earths
surface
▪ low risk, higher quality than surface
water
▪ However, iron and manganese levels
should be measured
● Pump and pumping station (optional)

✓ Pressure low
✓ Huge land to irrigate
▪ Gravitational pressure (aka hydrostatic pressure)

✓ Pressure exerted by any liquid in a confined space
✓ 5 meters above the elevation of the pump's axis
gravitational pressure: 5 meters = 0.5 bar = 7.25 PSI
Note:
Poor pump selection can lead to high operating costs and shortened pump life
● Filtration
✓ critical in any drip irrigation system
✓ Effective filtration is essential for proper irrigation system
operation and long-term performance
✓ prevents the irrigation water from clogging the drippers
TYPES OF FILTER MOSTLY USE ON DRIP IRRIGATION

SYSTEM
• MEDIA FILTERS
✓ consist of a metal or plastic enclosure incorporating

small gravel stones or sand, which traps the dirt.
This filter includes a flushing system for washing
the gravel or sand and returning the dirt to the
water source
• SCREEN FILTERS
✓ mainly use as secondary filters

✓ surface water systems or as primary filters
with well or municipal water sources
✓ comprised of a cylinder with a net that
traps the dirt
• DISC FILTERS
✓ used with surface water systems,

wells or municipal water sources
✓ comprised of a series of grooved
plastic disks stacked together
✓ Equivalent screen size range from 40
to 400 mesh
✓ These filters enable deep three-
dimensional filtering
✓ More surface area than screen filters,
disk filters and better suited for higher
flow rates
– Water meter
✓ Provide information essential for
irrigation scheduling
✓ Monitoring of dripper clogging
• Pressure gauge
✓ Provide vital information concerning the irrigation
system
✓ Detection of leaks and clogging
✓ Management of filters, chemical injectors
✓ Keep the system in its maximum operating range
– Driperlines (Laterals)
✓ The heart of a drip irrigation system
✓ Dripperline design: wall thickness, dripper flow rate, spacing between drippers, spacing
between dripperlines, and specification of dripperline insertion depth (in SDI)
TWO TYPES OF INTEGRAL DRIPPERS
1. Non pressure 2. Pressure Compensated (PC)

compensated drippers drippers
((NonPC)
✓ working pressure remains within the
allowable pressure range
✓ drippers supply a flow rate that is ✓ provide uniform irrigation by
based on the working pressure maintaining a constant flow rate
regardless of the working pressure
Single lateral
Two laterals and one lateral

Single lateral
on pots
Maintenance time table

Two categories
1. Preventive maintenance 2. Corrective maintenance

✓ Mainly the removal of obstructions already present in
✓ Aimed to prevent clogging the drippers:
of the drippers
✓ Aimed at preventing clogging of the drippers
▪ Flushing the system ▪ Flushing the system and one or more of the following
practices according to the nature of the obstruction:
▪ Chemical injection
▪ Organic formation - treated with hydrogen peroxide
▪ Irrigation scheduling ▪ Mineral sedimentation - treated with acids (or a
combination of acid and hydrogen peroxide)
▪ Organic formation and mineral sedimentation - treated
with a combination of acid and hydrogen peroxide
System flushing
• Flushing the irrigation system reduces to a minimum the accumulation of
pollutants, pushing them out of the system.
Rule of thumb: Bigger to Smaller

“ADAPTING OR SHIFTING INTO DRIP IRRIGATION SYSTEM IS THE

SMARTEST DECISION YOU’VE EVER MAID IN YOUR LIFE”
-Irrigation experts-
Thank you!!!

Efficient Water Management: Drip Irrigation: Dhenber Lusanta

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Efficient Water Management:

Sapat sa init at aliwalas

Generally plants need:

The plant cannot breathe or drink at the

Good aeration through good land

stomata are closed to

The plant has two systems:

Water uptake by plants

Effects on plant yield and quality

● Water stress caused by too much, not enough or

● Irrigation management affects crop quality

● Different types of irrigation can achieve same result if

10 9.8 Water stress near harvest reduced fruit

sugars (Brix) from 10.7 to 9 (16%)

Water stress and yield broccoli

10 significantly reduces broccoli

From Periola et al. (1993) Acta Hort. 33:265 - 270

Sandy loam soil outdoor crop - Italy

Solid set sprinkler irrigation

Good for leafy

Sprinkler Irrigation layout

Drip Irrigation layout

Measurement and Interpretation of soil

● Why measure soil moisture?

● Types of measuring equipment.

● Answering the critical questions of

Soil moisture Reading

Nearly 0 Nearly saturated soil often occurs for a

TDR – time domain reflectometer

Soil Capacitance Measures

Soil capacitance sensors

They are suited to

Interpretation of Soil Moisture

How to achieve the yield and quality results

Two examples: Melons and leafy crops

● Principle 1: fully wet soil profile at planting

● Principle 2: keep plants stress-free during growth and

● Principle 3: water requirement can diminsh as plants

Melons – planting to first flower

Fully wet the soil profile at

● Roots can’t grow into dry soil, but you

● If you do have to water, then fully re-

Melons - Flowering to Harvest

Keep the plants free of water

● The best yields and quality

● Irrigate fully to Full Point each

Leafy Vegetables - Establishment

● Keep the topsoil moist for the

● Water stress early can induce

Leafy Vegetables - Growth

Keep the plants free of

Summary: yield and quality

● Water stress caused by too much, not enough or

● Irrigation management affects crop quality

● Measure moisture to correctly manage water

● Plants use energy to uptake water. The drier the soil

• Drip irrigation system • Valves

• Maintenance time table

● Ancient time use clay pots

● Most efficient water and nutrient delivery system on growing

● Drip irrigation system structure

● Pump and pumping station (optional)

▪ Gravitational pressure (aka hydrostatic pressure)