Jimma University

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Chapter 3
Soil Water and Irrigation
Practice

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Introduction

 Soil plant water relationships relate to the properties of

soil and plant that affect the movement, retention and use
of water.
 Soil serves as a storehouse of water.
 Irrigation water and rain water become available to plants
through the soil.
 The water stored in the soil pores within the root zone
constitutes the soil water.
 An understanding of the relation ship between soils and
water is essential to make the most efficient use of water
in crop production.
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Soil – A system

 Soil is a three-phase system consisting of solid, liquid and

gases.
 The minerals and organic matters in soil constitute the solid
phase.
 Water forms the liquid phase
 The soil air forms the gaseous phase
 Soil serves as a medium of plant growth.
 Soil components when exists in proper amounts offer a
favorable condition for plant growth
 Uses of soil
 Uses of water
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Soil – A system

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Soil Physical Properties Influencing Soil – Water Relationship

 The important physical properties of soil affecting the soil-

water relationship relate to soil characteristics that governs
 entry of water in to the soil during irrigation or rain,
 water movement through the soil,
 retention of water by the soil and
 availability of water to crop plants.
 The two main physical properties of soil influencing soil-
water relationship are
 soil texture
 soil structure

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Soil Physical Properties Influencing Soil – Water Relationship

 Soil texture refers to the relative sizes of soil particles in a

given soil.
 The sizes of particles making up a soil determine its texture.
 Soil structure refers to the manner in which soil particles are
arranged in groups or aggregates.
 The structure of soil is dynamic and it changes constantly
with soil management practices.

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Cont…

 Description of Soil Texture

 Physical Characteristics of Textural Classes of soils
 Soil Structure

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Volume and Mass Relationships of Soil Constituents

 Soil has solids, liquid and air and their relative masses and
volumes are required for proper soil and crop management.
 A schematic diagram of soil shown below may be useful to
define the volume and mass relationship of the three soil
phases.
 The diagram shows the presence of the three phases in
relative proportions both in masses and volumes

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Volume and Mass Relationships of Soil Constituents

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Cont…
Volume Relations Mass Relations

Va Air Ma
Vp

Vw
Water Mw
Vt Mt

Vs Solids Ms

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Dry Bulk Density

 Dry Bulk Density is the weight of oven dry soil per unit
volume of soil.

Ms 3
 dry  in g / cm
Vt

 Typical values: 1.1 - 1.8 g/cm3

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Apparent Specific Gravity

 Apparent Specific gravity refers to the ratio of dry
bulk density of soil to that of density of water.
 It is dimensionless /unit less quantity/.

Dry Bulk Density of soil , DBD  dry

Asg  
Density of Water w

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Particle Density
 Particle density denotes the mass of soil solid per unit
volume of soil solids.
 It is also called true density or true specific gravity of soil.

Ms
p 
Vs

 Typical values: 2.6 - 2.7 g/cm3

 What is the main difference b/n DBD and PD

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Porosity

 Porosity can be defined as the ratio of the volume of

pores/voids to the total volume.
Vp Va  V w Vt  Vs vs DBD
n    1   (1  ) * 100
Vt Va  Vw  Vs Vt vt Ds
 It is influenced by texture and structure of the soil.
 The more finely divided are the individual soil particles, the
greater is the porosity
 Typical values: 30 - 60%
 R/n b/n Porosity and SMC

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Void Ratio

 Void ratio refers to the ratio of the volume of

pores to the volume of soil solids.

Vp
Va  Vw Vt  Vs Vt
e    1
Vs Vs VS Vs

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Soil Wetness

 Soil wetness refers to the relative water

content in the soil.
 It is expressed on
I. Weight basis (Mass Wetness),
II. Volume basis (volume wetness)
and
III. Depth basis.

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1. Mass Wetness

 It is the ratio of mass of water to mass of soil

solids.
 It is commonly called gravimetric soil
moisture content on weight basis.

Mass of water Mw
Mass Wetness   m 
Mass of solid Ms

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1. Mass Wetness

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2. Volume Wetness
 It is the ratio of volume of water to total volume of soil

 Soil water content on volume

basis ,%    
SMC v    VW x100  ( Vw
v v
V V  V
)100
  t S P

 Volume wetness, = Mass wetness. x Apparent specific

gravity

SMV v  v   v   m * ASG

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Cont…

Volume of Core  Volume of soil  r 2 h

Ms
 dry 
Vt
 dry
Asg 
w
 Soil water content  v   w   W W
on volumebasis,%   SMC v  SMC w * Asg  1 2 2
  r h w

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Cont…

Volume of Core  Volume of soil  r 2 h

Ms
 dry 
Vt
 dry
Asg 
w
 Soil water content  v   w   W W
on volumebasis,%   SMC v  SMC w * Asg  1 2 2
  r h w

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Equivalent depth of water

 Equivalent depth of water is the volume of water per unit

land area.
 It refers to the depth of water formed if the water existing in
the soil is squeezed and collected without affecting the soil
structure.
 The soil water exists distributed in the soil pores in a given
volume of soil.
 v AL
d  v L
A

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Cont…

 Solved problems
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Cont…

 Solved problems
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Classification of Soil Water

 The water below the water table is known as
ground water
 The water above the water table is known as soil
water.
 There are three kinds of soil water.
 Gravitational/Free water
 Capillary water
 Hygroscopic water

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Gravitational/Free water
 Gravitational water is that part of soil water moving through
soil interstices under gravity.
 It is the water in the soil macro pores that moves down ward
freely under the influence of gravity.
 Gravitational water is not available to plants because of the
rapid disappearance of the water from the soil.
 The upper limit or maximum level of gravitational water is
when the soil is saturated.
 For coarse sandy soil gravitational water will drain in one
day but for fine clay soil it will drain with in 2 to 3 days.
 The water tension at this stage is 1/3 atmosphere or less.
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Capillary Water

 Capillarity water refers to water retained by soil after

cessation of the down ward movement of water
(gravitational water).
 It is water held by forces of surface tension and
continuous film around soil particles and in capillary
spaces.
 The water is held at a tension of 1/3 to 31 atm. and
much of it is in fluid state.
 The capillary water supplies the whole or largest part of
water available to plants.
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Hygroscopic Water

 Hygroscopic water refers to the soil water held tightly to

the surface of soil particles by adsorption forces.
 It is water that an oven dry soil absorbs when exposed
to air saturated with water vapor.
 It occurs as a very thin film over the surface of soil
particles and held tenaciously at a tension of 31
atmospheres or above.
 The water is held by adhesive force.
 Much of it is non-liquid and moves as vapor.
 It is unavailable water to plants.
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Figure: Diagrammatic Representation of Kinds of Soil Water

Tension of thinnest film

about 10000 atm
Zone of progressive thickening of
water film
Solid-liquid interface

Tension of thickest film

Soil Solids around 1/3 atm

Capillary
Water (Water Gravitational water
of Cohesion)
Hygroscopic Water thinnest film
about 10000
(Water of Adhesion) atm

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Soil Water Constants

 Soil water content/ soil moisture varies constantly under natural
conditions.
 Soil water is always subjected to certain forces such as pressure
gradients and vapor pressure differences that cause it to move.
 In order to describe the soil water status under certain conditions
of water equilibrium some terms referred to as soil water
constants are used.
 The soil water constants include:
1. Saturation Capacity
2. Field Capacity
3. Permanent wilting point
4. Oven dry soil

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Saturation Capacity

 Saturation Capacity is the percentage water content

of a soil fully saturated with water & all its pores
completely filled with water under restricted
drainage.
 It is also called maximum water holding capacity.
 Complete saturation occurs in surface soils
immediately after heavy irrigation or rainfall.
 The soil water is in free state and the tension at this
stage is zero.

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Saturation Capacity

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Field Capacity
 Field capacity of a soil is the moisture content after gravitational
water has drained off and/or has become very slow and the
moisture content of the soil become more stable.
 It denotes the water content of a soil retained by an initially
saturated soil against force of gravity. This stage is reached when
the excess water from a saturated soil after irrigation or rainfall
has fully percolated down.
 Field capacity refers to the moisture content of a soil 1 to 2/3 days
after heavy rainfall or irrigation depending up on the soil texture.
 Soil water tension at field capacity ranges from 0.1 to 0.33
atmospheres in different soils.
 It is the highest point of available water range, as the soils cannot
retain any more water above this point against gravity.
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Field Capacity

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Permanent Wilting Point (PWP)

 It refers to the soil moisture content at which plants do not get
enough water to meet the transpiration demand and remain wilted
unless water is added to the soil.
 It is the moisture content of the soil when plants growing on that
soil starts to show signs of wilting due to moisture stress.
 At the permanent wilting point the films of water around the soil
particles are held so tightly that roots in contact with the soil can
not remove the water at a sufficiently rapid rate to prevent wilting of
the plant leaves.
 Permanent wilting point is considered as the lowest limit of
available water range.
 Soil water tension at PWP ranges from 7 to 32 atmosphere
depending on several factors
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Permanent Wilting Point (PWP)

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Oven Dry Soil

 Oven dry soil is used to describe the soil water status when
a soil sample is dried at 1050 c in a hot air oven until sample
loses no more water i.e., for 24 hrs.
 The equilibrium tension of soil water at this stage is 10,000
atmosphere.
 All estimations of soil water content are based on the oven
dry weight of the soil and the soil at this stage is considered
to contain zero amount of water.

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Oven Dry Soil

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Figure: Schematic Institute of Technology,
Representation of Soil WaterJiT
Constants

and Soil water Ranges

Saturation
Unavailable
Gravitational Water
Water
Field Capacity

Available Water Capillary Water

Permanent Wilting Point

Unavailable
Water Hygroscopic Water

Oven dry/Absolute wilting

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Determination of Field Capacity (FC) and Permanent Wilting
Point (PWP)

 There are two methods

 Method 1: Gravimetric Method – Field Method
 Method 2: Pressure plate – Laboratory Method
 Determination of Field Capacity (FC)
  Determination of Permanent Wilting Point (PWP)

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Determination of Field Capacity (FC) and Permanent
Wilting Point (PWP)

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Typical Values of Soil Moisture at FC and PWP

ρb θFC θPWP
Soil Textural in θsat θsat (Mass θFC (Mass θPWP
Class g/cm3 (Mass %) (Vol %) %) (Vol %) %) (Vol %)

Sand 1.65 23.03 38 9.09 15 4.24 7

Sandy loam 1.5 30.67 46 14.00 21 4.00 6

Loam 1.4 33.57 47 22.14 31 7.14 10

Clay loam 1.35 32.59 44 29.63 40 19.26 26

Silty clay 1.3 39.23 51 32.31 42 19.23 25

Clay 1.25 43.20 54 36.00 45 21.60 27

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Soil Moisture Ranges

 The soil water ranges are the available water range and
unavailable water range.
Available Water
 The water held by soil between field capacity and permanent
wilting point and at tension between 0.1 to 0.33 and 15 atm.
 It is available to plants and is termed as available water.
 It is the moisture available for plant use.
 It comprises the greater part of capillary water.

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Cont…

 In-order to calculate the amount of available water the

following parameters must be known.
 the soil moisture content in weight basis at FC and PWP
 the dry bulk density of soil and apparent specific gravity
 the soil moisture content in volume basis at FC and PWP
 the effective root zone depth

Available water in weight basis, AW w%  FCw%  PWPw%   fc( w)   pwp ( w)

Available water in volume basis, AW v%  FCv%  PWPv%   fc(v)   pwp (v)
 
Available water in depth basis, AW d  FCv%  PWPv % Asg * Drz  ( fc(V )   pwp (v ) ) * ASG * DRZ

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Soil Moisture Ranges

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Cont…
Unavailable water
  There are two situations at which soil water is not available
to most plants
 When the soil water content falls below the permanent wilting
point and is held at a tension of 15 atmospheres and above.
 When the soil water above the field capacity and held at a
tension between zero and 1/3 atmosphere.
 Water in the former situation is held tightly or tenaciously by
soil, while that in the latter situation moves down ward under
gravity.
 Water under both the situations is termed as unavailable
water.
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Root Zone Depth

 Root zone depth is the maximum depth below the surface of

soil from which a particular crop derives water for use and
develops its root system.
 Crops uses water for its growth in different proportions from
the root zone depth.
 Root zone depth in irrigated fields are dependent on soil
types, crop types, distance of water table from the ground
surface and the amount of water applied during irrigation.
 In general crop plants develop most of their roots and derive
most of their moisture supplies from the upper portion of the
root zone depths.
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Root Zone Depth

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Measurement of Soil Moisture Content

 Soil moisture content refers to the amount of water stored

and present in the soil at the time of measurement.
 The significance of measuring soil moisture content are as
under:
 For proper scheduling/design of irrigations
 For estimating the amount of water to apply in each
irrigation
 Refer to the handout for details

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Estimating Depth and Frequency of irrigation on the basis of soil
moisture regime concept

 Water or soil moisture is consumed by plants through their

roots.
 It is necessary that sufficient moisture remains available in
the soil from the surface to the root zone depth.
 The soil moisture in the root zone can vary b/n Field
capacity (upper limit) and permanent wilting point moisture
content (lower unit)

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Cont…

Field Capacity MC

Readily
Available Available M.C(Capillary
Water Water)

Optimum MC

Moisture Content
Of soil
Permanent wilting point MC

Non- Available
MC(Hygroscopic water)

Oven dry level

Time

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Cont…
 It is necessary to note that the soil moisture is not
allowed to be depleted up to the wilting point, as it
would result in considerable fall in crop yields.
 The optimum level up to which the soil moisture
may be allowed to be depleted in the root zone
without fail in crop yields has to be worked out with
experimentation.

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Cont…
 Irrigation water should be supplied as soon as the
moisture falls up to the optimum level (fixing
irrigation frequency) and its quantity should be just
sufficient to bring the moisture content up to its field
capacity, making allowance for application losses
(fixing depth).
 The optimum soil water regime means the range of
available soil water in which plants do not suffer
from water stress and all the plant activities occur at
an optimal rate.
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Cont…
 The optimum soil water range is also called Readily Available
Water, RAW.
 The readily available water is that portion of the total available
water, which can be easily extracted by plant roots. It differs from
one crop to another.
 It has been found in practice that about 20- 75% of the available
water is readily available .
 The optimum level or critical soil water level or allowable depletion
value (p) up to which the soil moisture may be allowed to be
depleted in the root zone with out fall in crop yield has to worked
out for every crop and soil by experimentation.

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Cont…

 The allowable depletion value (p) varies with the type of crop
and evaporative demand.
 Water will be utilized by the plants after irrigation and soil
moisture will start falling.
 It will be recouped or refilled by a fresh dose of irrigation as
soon as the soil moisture reaches the optimum level.
 This sequence of operation can be shown in the following
figure.

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Cont…

Irrigation Interval/ frequency

Field Capacity level

Readily
Available Available
Moisture Moisture

Optimum MC /critical
Moisture level
content of
soil

PWP level /
Pwp Mc

Time

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Infiltration of Water into Soils

 Infiltration is the entrance or movement of water from the surface

into the soil. It refers to the vertical entrance of water from the
surface in to the soil.
 The infiltration characteristics of the soil is one of the dominant
variables influencing irrigation. It essentially controls the amount
of water entering the soil reservoir as well as the advance and
recession of the overland flow.
 Infiltration rate is the soil characteristics determining the maximum
rate at which water can enter the soil under specific conditions.
 Accumulated infiltration or cumulative infiltration is the total
quantity of water that enters the soil in a given time.

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Measurement of Infiltration
 Cylinder Infiltrometer
 Cylinder infiltrometer are metal cylinders which are formed of 2mm
rolled steel sheet metal.
 Two cylinders are mostly used, one outer and the other inner cylinder.
 The most commonly used cylinders are of the following dimensions.
 Inner Cylinder
 Diameter = 30cm
 Height = 25 cm
 Outer Cylinder
 Diameter = 60 cm
 Height = 25 cm

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Cont…

 In this method the infiltration characteristics of soils can be

determined by pounding water in a metal cylinder installed
on the field surface and observing the rate at which water
level is lowered in the cylinder.
 Since by definition infiltration is the vertical entrance of water
from the surface in to the soils, the lateral movement of
water should be minimized.
 This can be achieved by using double ring cylinder
infiltrometer. The lateral movement of water from the inner
cylinder is avoided or minimized by pounding water in an
outer/ guard cylinder of buffer area around the inner cylinder.

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Cont…

A A

Plan

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Cont…

25cm
G GL

L
10cm

30cm
60cm
Section

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Cont…

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Cont…

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Cont…

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Cont…

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