CROP WATER

REQUIREMENTS
R.Vijayakumar

Lecture Contents
Objectives
1.
2.
3.
4.

Introduction
Crop water Needs
Influencing Parameters of Crop water needs
Measuring the Crop water

Leaning Outcome :
End of this session you will be understand the factors need to be considered
when irrigating a crop and able to calculate the particular crop water needs.

Introduction

All field crops need soil, water, air and light (sunshine) to grow
.

Constituent of protoplasm
Water forms over 90% of the plant body
A solvent
Transpiration carrier
Used for photosynthesis
Maintain the turgidity of cell walls
Essential for the germination
Essential in hydraulic process in the plant
Helps in the transpiration
Regulates the temperature
Helps in the chemical, physical and biological reaction in soil.

Source of water : Rainfall and Irrigation

Crop water Needs

The crop water need (ET crop) is defined as the depth (or amount) of water
needed to meet the water loss through evapotranspiration in crop grown
under optimal conditions (FAO)

Mainly depends on:

The climate
The crop type
The growth stage of crop

Then what about soil?

Influencing Parameters of Cro

p water needs
Climate:

Reference crop evapotranspiration (ETo)

mm/day

ETo is the rate of evapotranspiration from a large area,

covered by green grass, 8 to 15 cm tall, which grows
actively, completely shades the ground and which is not
short of water
- sunshine
- temperature
- humidity
- wind speed
Crop & Growth :

Crop factor (Kc)

-crop type
-growth stage

Crop factor /Coefficient

Measuring Crop water (Etc)

ET crop = ETo Kc.
Example : Calculation of the crop water need (ET crop) to
tomato

Procedure

Step1: Indicate on table,, the ETo values and the duration of the
growth stages.

Step2: Estimate the Kc factor for each of the 4 growth stages

Procedure

(cont..)

Step3: Determine the Kc on a monthly basis

Kc Feb = 0.45

June =0.85

Procedure

(cont..)

Step4: Calculate, on a monthly basis, the crop water need, using

the formula:

ET crop = ETo Kc (mm/day)

Step5: Calculate the monthly and seasonal crop water needs

Summary
If you want calculate Irrigation requirements

Rainfall (-)
Runoff (+)
Groundwater recharge (+)

Question Time

?
Thank you