Forage production of cool season pasture grasses as related to irrigation

A significant portion of the irrigated acreage in the intermountain western U.S. is comprised of cool season grass pastures. Droughts, coupled with increasing demands for limited water supplies in the region, have decreased the water volumes available for irrigating these pastures and other crops. Consequently, relationship between crop yield and irrigation (water production functions) should be defined for various species and cultivars to help growers and water managers make appropriate selections based on water availability.During a 3-year study on the Colorado Plateau, a line-source irrigation system was used to evaluate the relationship between applied water and dry forage production of orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.), tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.), meadow brome (Bromus riparius Rehmann), smooth brome (Bromus inermis Leyss.), two cultivars of intermediate wheatgrass (Elytrigia intermedium [Host] Nevski), crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum L. Gaertn. X desertorum [Fisch. ex Link] J.A. Schultes) and perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.). Irrigation treatments, including precipitation, ranged from 457 to 970 mm in 1996, 427 to 754 mm in 1997 and 490 to 998 mm in 1998. There was a positive linear relationship between yield and irrigation for all cultivars when averaged over all years but the relationships varied between cultivars and years. Orchardgrass, meadow brome and tall fescue produced more dry forage than the other grasses at the highest irrigation levels in all years. These grasses also produced the greatest rates of yield increase per unit of irrigation (average of 0.0129 Mg ha⁻¹ mm⁻¹) and exhibited greater yield stability from year to year than the other grasses at irrigation levels above 700 mm. The intermediate wheatgrasses produced more forage than the other grasses under limited irrigation (less than 600 mm) but the average production rate with irrigation (0.0066 Mg ha⁻¹ mm⁻¹) was only about half that of the aforementioned grasses. The average rate of forage produced per mm of irrigation was intermediate in the smooth brome (0.0096 Mg ha⁻¹) and lowest in the crested wheatgrass and perennial ryegrass (0.0048 and 0.0034 Mg ha⁻¹, respectively). These results suggest that orchardgrass and meadow brome be included in irrigated pastures receiving more than 700 mm of water annually while the intermediate wheatgrasses be selected for pastures receiving an annual water application of less than 700 mm.     

Influence of season to season variability in weather on irrigation scheduling of wheat: A simulation study

Summary There is an increasing demand from farmers for irrigation scheduling advice. Where rainfall and evapotranspiration vary little from year to year, advice on a fixed irrigation schedule based on mean climatic data can be given. However where significant year to year variability in weather occurs a more flexible approach using actual weather data to predict the current level of soil water and mean climatic data to forecast the future rate of depletion and hence irrigation date may be needed. A technique for deciding the most appropriate scheduling approach was tested by using a simple model of crop growth combined with a soil water balance model to simulate year to year variability in scheduling advice. This technique was applied to irrigated wheat using a set of climatic data from 1968 to 1978 for Griffith in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area of New South Wales, Australia. A typical sowing date in early June was used and simulated irrigations were scheduled at an allowable soil water depletion (ASWD) of 62 mm for maximum yield and 93 mm for 80% of maximum. The analysis predicted that weather variability between years would cause the number of irrigations to vary from 2 to 7 for ASWD=62 mm and 1 to 4 for ASWD=93 mm. The interval between irrigations varied from 12 to 30 days, for ASWD=62 mm and from 16 to 28 days, for ASWD=93 mm. The first irrigation occurred between 76 and 131 days from sowing for ASWD=62 mm and from 100 to 140 days from sowing for ASWD=93 mm. The date of the last irrigation was similarly variable. This high degree of variability in the times and frequency of irrigations indicated that in south-eastern Australia accurate irrigation scheduling advice can only be given by using a flexible model using both actual and mean climatic data. A fixed schedule based on mean climatic data would lead to an inefficient use of water caused by the mistiming of irrigations.     

Measuring conveyance efficiencies to improve irrigation water management

This paper presents a study of conveyance efficiencies of Canal de Salvaterra, in the Sorraia Irrigation Project, Portugal. The Canal and the Project are briefly described and the water measurement techniques and structures utilized are analysed. Results comprise the main aspects of the inflow-outflow balance with identification of water losses and conveyance efficiencies. Analysing the results showed that irrigation efficiencies are higher during work days and labour hours and lower during weekends and at night. This identified the need to improve operation and management of the irrigation system, adapting inflow to demand according travel time and response time of the conveyance (and distribution) system, of the different main sections of the system.     

Yield measures of irrigation performance in Pakistan

Customary evaluations of irrigation performance based upon crop yield per unit area do not reflect an adequate assessment of performance in water scarce environments such as Pakistan. Yield per unit water is a complementary and sometimes more appropriate measure. This note illustrates the different evaluations based upon yields of irrigated wheat and rice in Pakistan.     

Water use and lint yield response of drip irrigated cotton to the length of irrigation season

A 2-year experiment was conducted at Tal Amara Research Station in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon to determine water use and lint yield response to the length of irrigation season of drip irrigated cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.). Crop evapotranspiration (ET_crop) and reference evapotranspiration (ET_rye-grass) were directly measured at weekly basis during the 2001 growing period using crop and rye-grass drainage lysimeters. Crop coefficients (K_c) in the different growth stages were calculated as ET_crop/ET_rye-grass. Then, the calculated K_c values were used in the 2002 growing period to estimate evapotranspiration of cotton using the FAO method by multiplying the calculated K_c values by ET_rye-grass measured in 2002. The length of irrigation season was determined by terminating irrigation permanently at first open boll (S1), at early boll loading (S2), and at mid boll loading (S3). The three treatments were compared to a well-watered control (C) throughout the growing period. Lint yield was defined as a function of components including plant height at harvest, number of bolls per plant, and percentage of opened bolls per plant.Lysimeter-measured crop evapotranspiration (ET_crop) totaled 642 mm in 2001 for a total growing period of 134 days, while when estimated with the FAO method in 2002 it averaged 669 mm for a total growing period of 141 days from sowing to mature bolls. Average K_c values varied from 0.58 at initial growth stages (sowing to squaring), to 1.10 at mid growth stages (first bloom to first open boll), and 0.83 at late growth stages (early boll loading to mature bolls).Results showed that cotton lint yields were reduced as irrigation amounts increased. Average across years, the S1 treatment produced the highest yield of 639 kg ha⁻¹ from total irrigations of 549 mm, compared to the S2 and S3 treatments, which yielded 577 and 547 kg ha⁻¹ from total irrigations of 633 and 692 mm, respectively, while the control resulted in 457 kg ha⁻¹ of lint yield from 738 mm of irrigation water. Water use efficiency (WUE) was found to be higher in S1 treatment and averaged 1.3 kg ha⁻¹ mm⁻¹, followed by S2 (1.1 kg ha⁻¹ mm⁻¹), and S3 (1.0 kg ha⁻¹ mm⁻¹), while in the control WUE was 0.80 kg ha⁻¹ mm⁻¹. Lint yield was negatively correlated with plant height and the number of bolls per plant and positively correlated with the percentage of opened bolls. This study suggests that terminating irrigation at first open boll stage has been found to provide the highest cotton yield with maximum WUE under the semi-arid conditions of the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon.     

Canal maintenance: a key to restructuring irrigation management

Farmers becoming involved in canal mainentance is a recent trend in many government-managed irrigation systems. Before being able to assess the pitfalls and perspectives of this trend, it is necessary to examine in detail the issue of canal maintenance itself, an issue which has received relatively little attention. The paper focuses on canal maintenance in an irrigation system in Western Mexico, and finds that canal maintenance differs in several aspects from water distribution. A first difference is that water distribution often results in competition among water users along the same canal, whereas the need for canal maintenance may bring these people together in cooperation, which may help to forestall possible conflicts over water supply. A second important difference is that water distribution is directly productive, whereas canal maintenance involves the reproduction of the canal system, the (often considerable) costs involved being investments. In the case study reviewed, canal maintenance gave rise to certain relationships between different groups of people, and between them and the canal infrastructure, relationships which may not have been uncovered if only water distribution had been studied. It is argued that interventions aimed at handing over management responsibilities to water users would be more effective if such locally specific expressions of cooperation and initiative of the actors involved are taken as a starting point.     

Soil salinity related to physical soil characteristics and irrigation management in four Mediterranean irrigation districts

Irrigated agriculture is threatened by soil salinity in numerous arid and semiarid areas of the Mediterranean basin. The objective of this work was to quantify soil salinity through electromagnetic induction (EMI) techniques and relate it to the physical characteristics and irrigation management of four Mediterranean irrigation districts located in Morocco, Spain, Tunisia and Turkey. The volume and salinity of the main water inputs (irrigation and precipitation) and outputs (crop evapotranspiration and drainage) were measured or estimated in each district. Soil salinity (EC_e) maps were obtained through electromagnetic induction surveys (EC_a readings) and district-specific EC_a-EC_e calibrations. Gravimetric soil water content (WC) and soil saturation percentage (SP) were also measured in the soil calibration samples. The EC_a-EC_e calibration equations were highly significant (P < 0.001) in all districts. EC_a was not significantly correlated (P > 0.1) with WC, and was only significantly correlated (P < 0.1) with soil texture (estimated by SP) in Spain. Hence, EC_a mainly depended upon EC_e, so that the maps developed could be used effectively to assess soil salinity and its spatial variability. The surface-weighted average EC_e values were low to moderate, and ranked the districts in the order: Tunisia (3.4 dS m⁻¹) > Morocco (2.2 dS m⁻¹) > Spain (1.4 dS m⁻¹) > Turkey (0.45 dS m⁻¹). Soil salinity was mainly affected by irrigation water salinity and irrigation efficiency. Drainage water salinity at the exit of each district was mostly affected by soil salinity and irrigation efficiency, with values very high in Tunisia (9.0 dS m⁻¹), high in Spain (4.6 dS m⁻¹), moderate in Morocco (estimated at 2.6 dS m⁻¹), and low in Turkey (1.4 dS m⁻¹). Salt loads in drainage waters, calculated from their salinity (EC_dw) and volume (Q), were highest in Tunisia (very high Q and very high EC_dw), intermediate in Turkey (extremely high Q and low EC_dw) and lowest in Spain (very low Q and high EC_dw) (there were no Q data for Morocco). Reduction of these high drainage volumes through sound irrigation management would be the most efficient way to control the off-site salt-pollution caused by these Mediterranean irrigation districts.     

Furrow irrigation erosion and management

Irrigation-induced furrow erosion reduces topsoil depth and pollutes surface waters. A variety of interacting factors, including inflow rate, slope and soil type, are known to affect furrow erosion. Data are inadequate to understand the furrow erosion process sufficiently well to recommend irrigation practices that maintain high levels of water quality and conserve soil. We performed furrow erosion field studies on two soils (a loamy textured alluvial soil and a clay loam cracking soil) with slopes ranging from 0.3 to 0.8%. Three inflow rates per furrow were applied in each of three irrigations. We found net rates of soil loss in the upper part of the furrow that were up to six times higher than the average net rate for the whole furrow. The soil loss was related to the inflow rate by power functions. High inflow rates on furrows with slopes greater than 0.3% caused unsustainable soil losses. However, at least in the loamy textured soil, it is possible to maintain high irrigation uniformity and application efficiency (within the range 80–85%), while keeping soil losses within a sustainable limit. An analysis of the sediment load data made in the frame of a simple conceptual model helped to explain the dynamics of the furrow erosion process and to establish the basis for modeling furrow erosion.Communicated by A. Kassam     

Yield related interpretations of irrigation uniformity and efficiency measures

Summary A number of irrigation performance parameters have been used to quantify irrigation uniformity and efficiency. These parameters are usually regarded as performance indices only, without a physically significant interpretation. Common irrigation uniformity and efficiency measures can be related to expected yields from non-uniform irrigation of certain hypothetical crops. Calculation of these measures is equivalent to, or closely related to, calculation of expected yields with non-uniform irrigation for the water-yield functions of Fig. 1. This relationship between performance measures and expected yield lends physical significance to irrigation uniformity measures, and suggests useful generalizations of traditional uniformity and efficiency measures that are directly related to crop yield.Contribution from the U.S. Salinity Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Riverside, CA 92501     

世界灌溉管理机构的变革

1　概　况目前 ,世界灌溉与开发管理机构正经历着最为困难的时期。灌溉开发的一个时期正在结束 ,新的时期正在来临 ,变革时期的问题显得更为严峻。灌溉开发与管理可大致分为三个时期。开发建设时期　大约从 195 0年起 ,世界许多国家开始进行大规模的水资源开发 ,这一时期 ,世界灌溉面积显著增长。改进管理时期　 1975年前后 ,人们将注意力转移到提高灌溉效率上来 ,部分原因是大多数条件优越的工程已经开发完毕 ,新建灌溉系统的造价上升 ,已建灌溉系统的运行效率不高。这样 ,人们的注意力和投资逐渐转移到系统更新和各种旨在提高灌溉管理效率…     

Soil management to prevent earthworms from riddling irrigation ditch banks

Summary Earthworm activities were observed under subdued light in lucite fronted soil filled boxes in which bean plants were growing. They formed their burrows by ingesting a relatively small core of soil about 2 mm in diameter and expanding these holes to a diameter of about 5 mm by flexing their muscles. The compacted zone extended about 4 mm from the radii of these burrows. As shallow bean roots of young plants extracted water from the upper portions of the soil, worms moved downward to moister soil. During furrow irrigation, worms moved toward the water source through existing burrows. A few of them burrowed new holes to the furrow and emerged and swam in the water for up to 20 min before burrowing back into the mud in the bottom of the furrow. In columns with sections packed with pressures of 50, 100, 200, 300 and 600 kPa, worm burrowing was reduced in sections packed at higher pressures and was practically negligible in the sections packed at 600 kPa. Visual comparison of porosity in the compacted soil surrounding earthworm burrows and the soil compacted at 300 and 600 kPa indicated that the worms are able to compact soil with a force between 300 and 600 kPa. Worms were not able to survive long enough to burrow through 15 cm of a subsoil with organic carbon content less than 0.2% that lay between them and topsoil. Both compaction and use of subsoil for the banks show promise for reducing earthworm burrowing and water loss from ditches.     

Growth and yield of soybeans under wet soil culture and conventional furrow irrigation in south-eastern Australia

Summary An experiment was conducted to determine the growth and yield responses of two soybean cultivars (Ridley and Sab40) grown on raised beds with continuous water applied in furrows (wet soil culture, WSC), and with conventional furrow irrigation applied at soil water deficits of 35 mm (F) and 70 mm (I). The early growth and leaf area development of both cultivars was reduced by both waterlogging (WSC) and water stress (1) effects compared to the frequently irrigated (F) treatment. Both cultivars acclimated to the WSC conditions and resumed active growth rates comparable to the F treatment. Excessive dry matter accumulation into leaves and stems of Ridley under WSC resulted in severe lodging and significantly reduced grain yield compared to Ridley under F irrigation. The physiological analysis presented showed that under WSC Ridley had a substantially lower light use efficiency compared the F irrigated crop during reproductive growth. It is hypothesised that lodging during this period reduced photosynthate supply as a result of detrimental changes in the pattern of leaf illumination throughout the canopy. The cultivar Sab40 did not lodge under WSC and grain yield was not significantly different from the F irrigated treatment.Further studies on the response of lodging resistant cultivars and different sowing time by plant arrangements to WSC are required to fully assess this technique under commercial conditions. More importantly, studies on soybean production in relation to crop water use and deep drainage losses on a range of soil types are needed to demonstrate that irrigation water applied is used as efficiently as conventional methods.     

Yield response of greenhouse grown tomato to partial root drying and conventional deficit irrigation

Greenhouse grown tomato was used to test partial root drying (PRD), a newly developing irrigation technique to save irrigation water, in Spring- and Fall-planted fresh-market tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum L., cv. Fantastic) cultivar. The PRD practice simply requires wetting of one half of the rooting zone and leaving the other half dry, thereby utilizing reduced amount of irrigation water applied. The wetted and dry sides are interchanged in the subsequent irrigations. Six irrigation treatments were tested during the two-year work in 2000 and 2001: (1) FULL, control treatment where the full amount of irrigation water, which was measured using Class-A pan evaporation data, was applied to the roots on all sides of the plant; (2) 1PRD30, 30% deficit irrigation with PRD in which wetted and dry sides of the root zone were interchanged with every irrigation; (3) 1PRD50; (4) 2PRD50, 50% deficit irrigation with PRD in which wetted and dry sides of the root zone were interchanged every and every other irrigation, respectively; (5) DI30 and (6) DI50, 30 and 50% deficit irrigations, respectively. The defined deficit levels were all in comparison to FULL irrigation. During the first year study in 2000, only three treatments (FULL, 1PRD30 and 2PRD50) were tested. Five treatments with exception of 2PRD50 were included in 2001. The FULL irrigation treatment, in Spring-planted tomato having a 153 day growth period, yielded 110.9 t ha⁻¹. The resulting irrigation-water-use efficiency (IWUE) was 321.8 kg (ha mm)⁻¹. The 1PRD50 treatment gave 86.6 t ha⁻¹, which was not statistically different (P ≤ 0.05) from the FULL irrigation (the control) and had 56% higher IWUE. Although yield differences were not statistically significant in Fall-planted tomato, the highest fruit yield was again obtained under FULL irrigation treatment (205.2 t ha⁻¹) over a growth period of 259 days after transplanting. The PRD treatments had 7–10% additional yield over the deficit irrigation receiving the same amount of water. The PRD treatments gave 10–27% higher marketable tomato yield (>60 g per fruit), compared with the DI treatments. Abscisic acid (ABA) concentrations measured in fresh leaf tissue was the highest under PRD practice relative to FULL and DI treatments. The high ABA content of fresh-leaf tissue observed in the work supports the root signalling mechanism reported earlier in plants having undergone partial root drying cycles.     

Compaction of sandy soils for irrigation management

Summary Several irrigation management experiments were conducted at different locations on sandy soils in Haryana State to overcome excessive permeability, poor soil moisture retention and storage in the root zone. Subsurface compaction to 30–40 cm depth created by 6 passes of a 1,500 kg tractor-driven iron roller, 24 to 48 h after irrigation, was found to be beneficial in reducing irrigation requirement. In general, yield of different crops was not affected significantly by surface rolling, except that of mustard which increased significantly. Slight increase in subsurface compaction, about 0.1 g cm^–3, increased the soil moisture retention and reduced the infiltration rate and saturated hydraulic conductivity. Hydraulic conductivity was a better parameter than bulk density for evaluating the effect of rolling. The depth of irrigation water applied in rolling treatment was about 58–74% that of the no-rolling control. Compaction thus reduced water input to these sandy soils without adversely affecting the crop yield.     

Towards gender balance in irrigation management

Women form the majority of the water users in Kisumu District in Kenya, yet they were generally not participating in management on scheme level. The Provincial Irrigation Unit, Nyanza Province therefore experimented with a gender-sensitive approach in the preparatory phase of their assistance to schemes. The experiments comprised of a special meeting for women, a requirement that a minimum of 50% of participants in preparatory meetings have to be women and a discussion with all water users on gender issues of scheme committee elections. The measures were successful in the sense that they improved the percentages women present in preparatory meetings and committees. Performance of the women leaders was simular to the performance of male colleagues. Furthermore the knowledge on project matters increased, as well as the relative participation of women in project activities.Joitske Hulsebosch worked together with PIU Nyanza between 1991–1993 as researcher/consultant. Doris Ombara is employed by the Ministry of Agriculture and posted at the PIU Nyanza as extension officer with special attention for gender aspects.     

Performance measure for improving irrigation management

A measure to evaluate performance in irrigation systems is analyzed using the mean square prediction error concept. In the context of irrigation system management, the term error means the deviation of actual performance from a reference performance. The measure assesses performance in terms of the management objectives of adequacy and dependability of water delivery and an equitable distribution among various water users. It provides an understanding of the management capacity to schedule and distribute water in an irrigation system. Application of the performance measure is demonstrated by evaluating performance of an irrigation system in the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan.     

Yield and economic return of vegetable crops under variable irrigation

 Field experiments were conducted for 2 years (1997 and 1998) on sandy loam soil in northwestern Botswana to study the effect of five levels of pan evaporation replenishment (20, 40, 60, 80 and 100%) on marketable yield, yield components, irrigation production efficiency and economic return of winter broccoli, carrot, rape and cabbage under a drip irrigation method. The highest mean marketable yield (2 years) of broccoli (19.1 t/ha), carrot (58.9 and 32.9 t/ha), rape (61.8 t/ha) and cabbage (97.2 t/ha) was recorded at 80% of pan evaporation replenishment. The irrigation production efficiency of broccoli (5.9 kg/m³), rape (14.6 kg/m³) and cabbage (23.6 kg/m³) was maximum at 80, 20 and 60% of pan evaporation replenishment respectively. Irrigation replenishment up to 80% of pan evaporation loss did not influence the irrigation production efficiency for total and root yield of carrot. The results revealed that a further increase in irrigation amount resulting from 100% of pan evaporation replenishment did not increase the marketable yield of crops but reduced the irrigation production efficiency significantly. The seasonal water applied and marketable yield of broccoli, carrot, rape and cabbage showed quadratic relationships (R ² = 0.85–0.98), which can be used for allocating irrigation water within and between the crops. The net return increased with the increase in pan evaporation replenishment. The results revealed that the rape crop is the most remunerative, followed by cabbage, broccoli and carrot. Received: 2 November 1998     

An heuristic algorithm for short term irrigation scheduling using hosereel-raingun systems

Growers who irrigate need to answer three questions throughout the growing season — (i) when should each field be irrigated; (ii) how much water should be applied; and (iii) which field should be irrigated first. An heuristic solution procedure has been developed to produce realistic irrigation schedules, within a practical time, for growers using hosereel-raingun irrigators. The financial implications of the irrigation schedules are analysed over a short term period (typically 7 days). The constraints are limited availability of equipment, labour and/or water. Use of the model is illustrated with a common situation faced by a U.K. grower.     

Design and management nomograph for furrow irrigation

There exist capabilities for analyzing the behavior of surface flow and the ultimate distribution of infiltrated water in furrow irrigation. The corresponding synthesis, i.e., the selection of appropriate combinations of inflow rates, cutoff times and length of furrow — design and management, currently not so well established, is treated herein. A design-management nomograph is proposed for free draining graded furrows. This is a plot of efficiency, time of cutoff and uniformity coefficient contours each given on a length-flow rate space adjacent to one another, for a furrow with given infiltration characteristics, flow geometry, slope, roughness and required depth of application. The nomograph can be used to determine the combinations of length, time of cutoff and flow rate that would yield in optimum combination of efficiency and uniformity.     

Opportunities and constraints to improving irrigation water management: Foci for research

Potential areas for research to improve irrigation water management and irrigation water utilization are identified, and their likelihood of adoption discussed within the context of existing constraints.