Ex.No.

1
Measurement of irrigation water, volumetric, ‘V’notch, parshal flume,
water meters.
Measurement of irrigation water is the prelude for the precise application to the
crops and is useful to manage the over or deficit irrigation. In every irrigation project,
water is supplied from the reservoir to the field through main canals, distributaries,
branch canals, sub-canals and water courses. Different devices are used to measure water
flow in channels.

Water Measurement

A. Measurement of still water

Water in storage stage are measured by volumetric method that involves

determination of the volume by area occupied by the water multiplied by the average
depth of water.

B. Flowing water measurement

Methods used to measure water in the farms can be grouped into (a) Volumetric
method, (b) Volume metering method (c) Velocity area method, (d) Using measuring
structures and (e) Tracer method.

a)Volumetric method

In this method the flow is collected in a container of known volume for a

measured period of time. Only a bucket of known volume and a stop watch are required.
Volume of bucket (litres)
Discharge =
Time required to fill up the bucket (second)

This method is used to measure small discharges of water applied to the field.
This method can also be used to determine discharge from a pump or Persian wheel and
calibrating orifices and weirs and deriving formula to calculate discharge through them.
 This method may also be used to measure the flow of water of a stream in to a tank or

reservoir.

Fig1. Measurement of water by direct method

b) Volume metering methods
Water discharges through pipes may be measured in volume by meters such as water
meters. These devices are in the pipe outlets.

Water meter
A water meter contains a multi -blade propeller that rotates in a vertical plane.
The propeller is linked to a numerical counter which adds the flow and display in
volumetric unit. The meter is fitted in water pipelines. The water flowing through should
be free from debris. Water meters are costly and at farms this may not be preferred.

c) Velocity Area Method

The rate of flow passing a point in a pipe, a ditch or channel can be determined by
multiplying the cross sectional area of water flow section at right angle to the direction of
flow by the average velocity of water.
Q = A.V
Q = Discharge (m3/sec)
A = Cross sectional area (m2)
V= velocity (m /sec)
Velocity can be measured by float, current meter or tracer method.
i) Float Method
This method gives an approximate flow rate. When water is flowing in a uniform
sized channel the cross sectional area is determined at different points of the channel. The
channel should be fairly long (25-30 m long, 0.5-0.7 m wide). Place a small float (a
wooden piece, a heavy cork with a nail at centre, etc. that will float partially and move
uniformly in the direction of flow), a few meter up stream and record the time the float
takes to reach a certain distance. Take several observations to reach at a good average
velocity. Calculate the discharge (Q=A.V).
ii) Current Meter Method
Velocity can be accurately determined by a current meter. The current meter is a
small instrument containing a revolving wheel or vane that turns by the movement of
water. The current meter is suspended by a cable for measurement in deep streams or
attached to a rod in shallow streams. The number of revolutions of the vane is recorded.
These current meters, in general, provide more accurate measurements than the orifices
and weirs do.

d) Direct discharge methods

i. Orifices
Orifice is an opening with closed perimeter and of a regular shape through which
water flows. Generally, rectangular or circular orifices are constructed, which may of
three types. They are of inlet at higher level than the outlet, inlet at a lower level than the
out let and submerged type. If the stream of water coming out of orifice discharge in to
air, the orifice is said to have free flow and if the discharge is under water, it is called
submerged orifice. The depth of water producing discharge is called the head.
Free flow orifice: It can be used to measure relatively small streams like the flow in to
border strips, furrows or check basins. The discharge is calculated by the formula:
Q= 0.61 x10-3 x a √2gh
Where,
Q= discharge through orifice (lps)
a= cross sectional area of orifice (cm2)
g= acceleration due to gravity (981 cm/sec2)
 H= head of the water causing the flow (cm)
Submerged orifice
Submerged orifices may be divided into two type: those having orifices of fixed
dimensions and those in which the height of opening may be varied. A standard
submerged orifice has fixed dimensions. The opening is sharp edged and usually
rectangular, with the width being 2 to 6 times the height. Discharge though a standard
orifice may be obtained using the above equation.
Submerged orifice can be conveniently used for measuring small discharges. They do
not require a fall in the level of the bed of the channel as is required with weirs.
Submerged orifices have the disadvantage of collecting debris, sand and silt above the
orifice, preventing accurate measurements.
ii. Weir
A weir is a notch of regular form built across the stream through which water
flows. Weirs may be built as stationary structures or these may be portable. In canals of
moderately small flow, weirs are set to measure water. Weirs may be made of wood,
strong tin plates, galvanized iron sheet or zinc plated canvas. Weirs may be rectangular,
trapezoidal or triangular. Partially filled orifice is also a weir. It is desirable to install the
weir at a point where there is a drop in the elevation of channel bed to make the flow free.
According to crest the weir may be sharp crested in which water is passing
touches only a line, or broad crested having either a rounded up-stream edge or crest so
broad that the water is passing comes in contact with a surface. The sharp crested weir is
more accurate than broad crested ones.
A weir consists of a weir wall of concrete, timber or metal with a sheet of metal
plate fixed to it. Weirs are divided into two broad groups. They are Sharp crested weirs
and broad crested weirs. Sharp crested weirs of three types depending on the shape of the
notch. Rectangular, trapezoidal and cipoletti weirs. Another type is 90o triangular weir
(V- notch). Rectangular and 90o V-notch is commonly used on farms.

The basic formula for calculating discharge through a weir is

Q= C x L x Hm
Where,
 Q= discharge
C= coefficient, depending up on the nature of crest and approach conditions
L=length of weir crest
H=head on the crest
M=exponent depending upon weir opening.

i) Triangular Weir (900 V notch)

The 900 triangular or V-notch weir has a greater practical value than any other
weir. Since it requires a greater loss of head, it is better adapted to measuring flows not
more than ½ litres per second. It is relatively accurate at very low flows. It is easy to
construct and install.
Q= 0.0138 H5/2 (litres/sec)
H= Height above the crest (cm)

Fig-2 900 V-notch

Advantages and Disadvantages of Weirs and Orifices
Measurement of flow is easy and accurate through weirs. Weirs can be easily
constructed by a local carpenter with cheap materials. Weir heads can be cleaned easily.
Since a large fall of head is required, weirs are used in slopy land and not plain lands. To
avoid accumulation of debris and silting up of the upstream continuous cleaning is
necessary.
Orifices are usually larger in size than the weirs. These can also be constructed
easily. These can be used in relatively plain lands to measure flow since loss of head
required is less. This has also the problems of silting up and accumulation of debris as in
weirs and needs continuous cleaning too.
Parshall Flume

The flume has three section, the upstream (converging section). The throat section
and the downstream section (diverging section). The upstream section is the entrance
section. The floor of the upstream section is level and the walls converge throat section.
The walls of the throat section are parallel and the floor is inclined download. The walls of
the downstream section diverge towards the outlet and floor is inclined slightly upward.
The down section is the discharge section.
The size of the flume goes after the width of the throat of the flume. Sizes ranging
from 225 cm to several cm in throat width have been calibrated and tables of discharge
developed. Parshall flume can be made to any capacity required.

Fig-3 Parshall Flume

The discharge equation for the Parshall measuring flume is:

Q = C Wh n
Where,
W is throat width
Q = the discharge, l/s
h = height at convergent section,
C is coefficient and n is the exponent
The generalized formula is
W 0.226

Q= 4 W.ha 1.522
 Parshall flume of brick cement structure can be permanently made at the
measurement site. Portable ones can be made of wood, thick tin or galvanized iron sheets.
While constructing, sufficient care should be taken to maintain dimension of different
sections, slope, width, etc. The calculated discharge needs to be calibrated with actual
discharge and the equation adjusted in all weirs and flumes.
Cut throat Flume
This flume has no throat section. It is an improvement over Parshall flume. The
flume has a flat bottom, vertical walls and zero length throat section. It is easy to
construct and operate. Flow in this flume can also be free or submerged. Under free flow
conditions vertical depth occurs in the vicinity of minimum width (W) which is called the
flume neck. Upstream depth Ha determines the discharge.
To measure flow in pipes venture tube, Collins flow gage or Cox flow meter is
used. By these instruments flow is measured at one point in the pipe. Flow varies
depending on if the pipe is flowing full or partially full.

Exercise
1. A farmer has no devices to measure a small stream to irrigate his vegetable plot.
He used a drum of 0.9 m2 having a depth of 1 m. It took 15 minutes to fill the tank. Find
out the flow rate of the stream.
2. An area of one hectare is irrigated in 40 hrs with a discharge rate of 250 litres per
minute, what is the average depth of irrigation?
3. Irrigation requirement of a 100 days duration crop is 40 cm. How much area can
be irrigated with a flow rate of 20 litres per second for 10 hrs in a day?
 Ex. No. 2
Use of commonly used formulae in irrigation practices and working out
problems
The application of water for irrigation involves use of formulae and related units for
solving the problems from its storage level to field through various conveyance means. Different
units and their conversions help in understanding of the irrigation practical applications.

Water is measured only in its liquid form under two conditions under field
conditions:
1. At rest: This is called volume measurement such as litre, cubic metre, hectare
centimetre (ha-cm), hectare meter (ha-m), acre inch, acre foot, etc.
Water standing to a height of 1 cm over an area of one hectare (10,000 m2) is
called one hectare centimeter (100,000 litres = 100 cubic metre). Water standing to a
height of 1m is called one hectare meter (10,000 cubic metre=10 million litres).
Water standing to a height of one inch over an area of one acre is called
one acre inch, (3630 cubic ft = 102739 litres). If this water is spread over an area of one
hectare it will stand to height of 1.027 cm (1 acre inch = 1.027 ha- cm).

2. Water in Flow: It is measured as flow volume per time, i.e., litres/second, m3/sec
(cu mec), or cubic ft/second (cusec), ha cm/h, or acre inch/h. A flow of one cubic foot/
second for an hour is approximately equal to one acre inch. A flow of 27.80 litres per sec
for an hour is equal to one ha cm.
Mass volume relationship in soils

Soil has volume and weight. Unlike solid substances considerable volume in the
soil is occupied by air in pores. Hence, its mass volume relationship needs consideration

Mass (g)
Density (D) = = g cm-3
3
Volume (cm)
Sometimes density is expressed in terms of specific gravity which is the ratio of the
weight of any volume of substance to the weight of an equal volume of water at 40C, i.e.

Density of substance =g cm-3

Density of water at 40C
In the metric system since the density of water is 1, specific gravity is numerically equal
to density.

i) Bulk Density

As mentioned above any volume of soil represents the volume of real soil
particles and volume of pore space. Hence, the volume of only soil particles is less than
the total volume occupied by the bulk of soil. Hence, density of soil expressed as

Mass of dry soil (g)

Db =
Volume of soil (cm) 3

It is not the real density. Hence, it is called the bulk density i.e density of bulk
soil. If mass of 1 cubic cm soil is 1.56 g its bulk density is 1.56 g/cm3.
ii) Real Density (Particle Density)

If the particles in any volume of the soil are compressed they will occupy less
volume; since their weight remains unchanged and the volume decreases, the density will
increase. This density with reference to volume of particles only is called real or particle
density.

Mass of soil (g)

Particle Density (Dp) = = g cm-3
Volume occupied by soil particles only (cm3)

Bulk density varies with the moisture content in the soil. To avoid this, generally
mass of the dry soil is taken. Due to variation in sand, silt and clay per cent and organic
matter the bulk density of soils varies.
 Total porosity can be defined as percentage of bulk volume not occupied by
solids. Hence total porosity per cent (%).

Particle density – Bulk density x 100

=
Particle density
This represents the volume per cent of pore space but does not characterize the
size distribution of pores. In an average soil, porosity varies around 50%. Sandy soil have
usually less (25 – 45%) and loamy and clayey soils usually more (45-60%).Porosity
varies with the size of the particles and state of aggregation.

iii) Moisture content

It refers to mass of water relative to mass of dry soil particles.

Moisture per cent = Mass of water

Mass of dry soil x 100

This is also otherwise called gravimetric water content.

iv) Volumetric water content (Vm) in percentage can be calculated if the soil
bulkdensity (Db) is known.

Vm= Ww – Dw x 100 x Db
Dw
Vm =Sm x Db

The amount of water in soil can be expressed in depth per unit soil depth.

Depth (cm) of water per unit soil depth (Dm) = Sm x Db x Ds = Vm x Ds

Relationship between duty and delta

Base period: it refers to the entire duration of the crop in days from first irrigation for
preparatory cultivation to the last irrigation.
Delta: It is the total depth of water (cm) required by a crop during its duration in the field
denoted by by the symbol Delta. It is calculated by dividing the volume of irrigation
water by the area irrigated. It is expressed in hectare – metre (ha-m) or in million cubic
metres (M m3)
Duty: It is defined as the area irrigated per cumec of discharge running for base period B.
It is usually represented by the letter D.
Determination of the surface area of canal cross sections
The cross section of the canal has a trapezium shape. Thus the formula to
calculate its surface is similar to the formula used to calculate the surface area of
trapezium.
Surface area of the canal cross section = 0.5 (base +top line) x canal depth = 0.5 (b+a) x h
Where
Base (b) = bottom width of the canal
Top line (a) = top width of the canal
Canal depth (h) = height of the canal or water depth
Determination of the surface area of farm
When the shape of the fields is regular and has, for example, a rectangular shape,
it is not difficult to calculate the surface area once the length and width of the field is
measured. In the case of fields having irregular shape, it should be divided into several
regular shapes of square, rectangle, triangle, etc. and the formula is applied and the area
of these shapes is summed to find the total area of the farm.
Units of volume
1 dm3 = 1 litre and 1 m3 = 1000 litres

Exercise

1. Find the porosity of a soil having a bulk density of 1.3 g/cc and real density of 2.6 g/cc.

2. What would be the quantum of water when 3 cm of rainfall occurs in one hectare area?

3. One cubic metre is equal to how many litres of water?

4. One hectare – centimeter (ha-cm) is the volume of water necessary to cover an area of
one hectare to a depth of one centimeter. Find out the volume of water in litres.
 Ex.No.3
Observations and practicing land shaping

Land refers to the soil surface and the below and above spaces of the surface. The
above space is the atmosphere. The surface includes the topography, vegetation etc., a
land need to be evaluated for the suitability for the irrigation projects involving various
methods of applying water. Some of the factors influencing on the suitability for
irrigation are, Soil depth, texture, water holding capacity, permeability, water table,
topography , slope, soluble salt content, Exchangeable sodium percentage and a neutral
PH.
Keeping the land in its natural condition and preparing the same for irrigation
may be very difficult as it will not result in efficient application of water. Natural
conditions of land surface have to be changed essentially for the scientific method of
water application. Hence the land has to be reshaped by grading and leveling it. The
object in making and preparing a suitable field surface is to regulate and control the flow
of water to check the possible soil erosion and to provide for surface drainage.
Development of land for irrigation includes land survey, land clearing, land shaping and
finally the field layout.
Land survey
The first step in survey is to divide the land into grids. Grids are net work of
equally spaced horizontal and vertical lines especially for locating points when placed
over a map. The size of the grids vary with unevenness and accuracy needed for lvelling.
The second step in survey is taking levels at each grid point with a dumpy level adopting
the usual method. The levels at each grid point are marked on a map. For easy study,
contour lines are marked on the map at suitable intervals. The interval of contour lines
depends on the slope of the land.
Land clearing
The land needs to be cleared before its grading survey is taken up and subsequent
land shaping operations. It covers removal of heavy vegetation cover , unwanted trees,
bushes, trashes , boulders etc., land clearing may be done by manual labour or by
employing bulldozers, root cutters, choppers and by suitable machineries.
Land leveling
Land leveling is modifying the surface relief of a field for efficient application of
irrigation water. Usually the land is not given a true level surface but a grade is provided
to meet the drainage requirement.
The operation of land shaping is a three stage programme. These are 1. Rough
grading 2. Land leveling and 3. Land smoothing.
1. Rough grading is the removal of surface undulations such as mounds, dunes,

depressions, gullies, pits etc., Land grading is done by tractor-drawn carrier – type

scrapers, small scrapers drawn by tractor and by animal -drawn buck scrapers.

2. Land leveling reshapes the land surface to a planned grade which entails moving
large quantities of earth over considerable distance.
3. Land smoothing. It is a very fine leveling of the field and flow of water and
distribution will be uniform. Very small undulations which are not easily observable are
further leveled.
Land characteristics considered for land leveling
The following characteristics are considered for land levelling.
1. Soil profile 2. Land slope 3. Rain fall 4.cropping pattern 5. Irrigation methods and
6. Other aspects
The land leveling can be taken up based on contour survey and by computation of
cut and fill soil. Suitable implements both tractor or bullock drawn may be used and the
cost may be planned to to kept at minimum.
Further land development programme is planned, prior to land leveling design, so
that field arrangements, boundaries, irrigation channel and drainage systems and roads
are known. Use of earth for field structures are adjusted from the near surface area
which will be facilitated by a topographical map of the land to be developed for a
garden. Field channels and underground pipelines to supply water to the fields are
located along the upper reach of the irrigation runs. The supply channel or pipeline is
laid perpendicular to the direction of surface irrigation methods. The canals should be
little elevated for easy flow of water and the channels should have < 0.1 % slope.
Field arrangements or Lay out of the field
Laying out fields of workable size and shape is important to successful irrigation
farming. The fields are laid out nearly rectangular or square without sharp bends. The
field length is based on the maximum length to which irrigation water could run. The
field lengths are limited by ownership boundaries, cropping pattern, operation schedule
and type of farm equipment.
Irrigation water should flow correctly to all parts of fields. Field channels are
normally run at right angle to the directions of irrigation. Water surface in the field
channel should be 20-30 cm higher than the ground level to be irrigated and may be
nearly level or less than 0.1% slope. Field roads are located above irrigation channels.
The surface and sub- surface drains are provided wherever needed.
Field road system
Access to all areas of the farm for movement of farm machineries and equipments
and transporting produces and convenience for operation of irrigation systems.
Drainage
Drainage of either open or closed type becomes essential to drain-off excess
rainfall promptly to prevent salinity formations in the soil. This also helps to avoid
damages to land due to seepage from the upper elevations. Planning of irrigation and
drainage need to be finalized before land grading and leveling is taken up.
Laying of irrigation method is done for every season in the case of annual crops. Border
strips, check basins, ridges and furrows are prepared every time before seeding or
transplanting. In these type of field preparation the implements like bund former is being
used.
Exercise
Visit a garden and observe the lay out and assess the land work that would have
been carried out.
 Ex.No.4
Study of land leveling implements
Land leveling can be done by using human labour, bullock power and mechanical
power. The implements are also used according to the power sources available. Human
labour is expensive and slow. Bullock power is economical provided the soil is not hard
and haul is up to 45 m. Simple implements used are the wooden buck scraper ,wooden
float, V-ditcher and A-frame ridger. Mechanical power is useful where the haul exceeds
45 m. The equipments used are dozers, scrapers, scoop and land planes. The bulldozer is
useful for cuts of more than 15 cm, where the earth movement does not exceed 30 m.
1. Land grading
Land grading is done by tractor drawn carrier – type scrapers, small scrapers drawn
by tractor and by animal drawn buck scrapers. Land smoothing is done by tractor –
drawn land planes or bullock drawn wooden floats.
Bulldozers, consisting of crawler tractors equipped with dozer blades, are
frequently employed in cutting and pushing earth to short distance. They are suitable for
rough grading when the haul distance does not exceed about 25 metres.
Tractor - drawn scrapers
There are a variety of scrapers in land grading. They range in size from the terrace
blade to heavy carrier type scrapers. The carrier type scraper is widely used for large
scale land grading operations
Bottomless scrapers are used for medium and small scale leveling jobs. The bowl or
bucket has little or no bottom and earth movement is accomplished with them by scraping
a load, dragging it to a short distance and dumping it. To operate these scrapers, it is
necessary to loosen the ground with a plough or harrow.
Tractor scoop is useful for digging, loading, hauling, dumping and spreading earth
and is suitable for hauls over long distances.
Animal - drawn buck scrapers
Animal drawn buck scraper is the most efficient implement for land grading when
animal power is to be used in the job and fields are of small to medium size. It may be
used to move the soil loosened by ploughing or other tillage practices. it can be operated
when the haul distance does not exceed about 60 metres.
2. Land leveling
Land plane
Land leveling jobs are finished by land planes, levelers and floats. The land
plane is essentially a bottomless scraper provided with a long frame and mounted on four
wheels. The blade is adjustable and is located at about the centre of the frame. The frame
is at least 15 metres long and this great length makes it possible to finish a field to 15
metres long and uniform smooth surface. When in use, the blade is permanently set at a
level which will maintain about one-third of the load in the bowl. With this adjustment
properly made the machine will, as it is drawn across the field, automatically remove
high spots and fill depressions. The machine is operated in diagonal directions and
downfield. The machine, however, is suitable only to grade large fields.
Land smoothing is a finer work which further levels the surface to plane surface
which is also termed as land floating and land plaination.
Levelers
The two-wheeled automatic type leveller is usually used for the fine grading of
small and medium size fields. It can be operated by a medium size wheel tractor. The
machine has an adjustable blade which is so constructed that it will drag a considerable
volume of earth.
3. Land smoothing
Land smoothing is the final operation that removes small elevations and depressions
formed while leveling.
Wooden float:
The float is a long sled-like drag which is used for land smoothening with bullock
power. Large size floats are sometimes used with tractors also. The machine operates on
the principles of a carpenter’s plane. It has three blades-the cutting blade in the front, the
spreading blade in the centre and the covering blade at the back. As the float is pulled
forward, the cutting blade removes the high spots and pushes this soil into the low areas
ahead. The other two blades assist in obtaining a uniform field surface. For best
smoothing on flat field, it is desirable to float the surface three or more times by going
across the field lengthwise, crosswise and diagonally.
Use of laser leveler
The field is to be ploughed and the rotovator may be used to make fine tilth. The
laser transmitter is set. 25 point readings are taken per acre to identify the slope and
average is worked out. The laser controller bucket is positioned to mean height fixed
through automatic battery set in the tractor. For a slope difference of less than 20 cm one
time leveling for more than 20 cm two times is done. Levelling is confirmed through
point readings by resurveying.
4. Implements for surface irrigation structures
The bund former
The bund former is suitable for making small ridges suitable for check basins. The
implement has two collecting mould boards which form the ridge when the implement is
pulled forward.
The wooden A-frame ridger
The wooden A-frame ridger is a suitable implement for making ridges for border
strips and check basins. The ridger is similar in principle to the bund former. However, it
gather soil from a larger area and can make larger bunds.
The V-ditcher
The V-ditcher is a useful implement for the construction or cleaning of field
channels for irrigation and drainage. The operation for the V-ditcher in constructing a
channel is much like that of an over-size mould board plough. The channel line is first
laid out. Then a mould board plough is used to make a furrow where the line has been
staked. The plough is run again on the same furrow, but in the opposite direction,
throwing the soil out on the other side. The V-ditcher is then used in the furrow to enlarge
it into a channel.
The choice of equipment
The choice of equipment for land grading and field layout depends on the quantity
of earthwork involved, type of power available, economic feasibility of the machine and
the size of the farm. While animal-drawn equipments are suitable for small jobs, heavy
earth moving equipment is needed for major works involving large areas to be leveled.
Exercise
Observe the garden, when time permits, on land leveling and lay out of different
structures
 Ex.No. 5

Layout for surface method and sub surface method of irrigation

Laying out the field properly results in an increased efficiency of the irrigation
system. Designing aspect of some of surface methods are as follows. It may be noted that
soil itself is used in most cases as layout structures under surface method of irrigation. It
is a temporary structure for a season when it is laid for annual crops.

1. Wild flooding

In this method water flows from the ditch directly to the field without much
control on either side of the flow. It covers the entire field and moves almost unguided.
Close growing crops are generally irrigated by this method.

2. Border Irrigation

Suitable slopes: Border slopes should be uniform, with minimum slope of 0.05%
to provide adequate drainage and a maximum slope of 2% to limit problems of soil
erosion.

Suitable soils: Deep homogenous loam or clay soil with medium infiltration rates
is preferred. Heavy, clay soils can be difficult to irrigate with border irrigation because of
the time needed to infiltrate sufficient water into the soil. Basin irrigation is preferable in
such circumstances. Close growing crops are preferred for this method of irrigation.

Border layout

The dimensions and shape of borders are influenced in the same way as basins
and furrows by the soil type, stream size, slope, irrigation depth and other factors such as
farming practices and field or farm size.

For moderate slopes and stream sizes the following border strips are generally
recommended.
 Soil type Border length (m) Slope (%)

Sandy and Sandy loam 60-120 0.25-0.6

Medium loam 100-180 0.20-0.40

Clay 300-500 0.05-0.1

Clay loam and clay 150-300 0.05-0.20

Maintenance of borders: Maintenance of borders consists of keeping the border free

from weeds and uniformly sloping. Whatever damage occurs to the bunds must be
repaired and the field channel and drains are to be weeded regularly. By checking
frequently and carrying out immediate repairs where necessary, further damage is
prevented.

3. Furrow irrigation

Furrow irrigation is suitable for a wide range of soil types, crops and land slopes.

The crops that would be damaged by inundation, such as tomatoes, vegetables,

potatoes, beans and fruit trees such as citrus and grape are suited.

Uniform flat or gentle slopes are preferred for furrow irrigation. The slope should not
exceed 0.5%. Usually a gentle furrow slope is provided up to 0.05% to assist drainage
following irrigation or excessive rainfall with high intensity. On undulating land, furrows
should follow the land contours. However, this can be a difficult operation requiring very
careful setting out of the contours before cutting the furrows.

Suitable soils

Furrows can be used on most soil types. However, as with all surface irrigation
methods, very coarse sands are not recommended as percolation losses can be high. Soils
that crust easily are especially suited to furrow irrigation because the water does not flow
over the ridge, and so the soil in which the plants grow remains friable. Few examples of
crops for their suitability for this method under the following topography , stream size
and their influences on the size of the beds are as follows.
Method Crops to be Topography Stream size Approximate Remarks
irrigated size of bed (m)

Furrow Potato, Flat and Small to large 0.5-1.5m wide Economic water
(Alternate ridges Vegetables, gentle slopes supply 10-50m long use, facilitates,
and furrows) Brinjal, cole intercultural
crops operations.

Corrugated Vegetables, Slope -do- 26m Economizes water

method Onion garlic, perpendicular supply.
spinach to the furrow Intercultural
operations
become difficult.

4. Basin and Ring irrigation

Fruit crops in orchards are irrigated by constructing basins or rings around trees.
Basins are usually used for small trees, while rings are used in bigger trees which are
widely spaced.

4.1. Basin irrigation

A basin is usually made for one tree sapling but it may include more than one tree
sapling when they are not spaced very wide. Basins may be square, circular or
rectangular. Basins are made longer and wider as saplings grow in size. The land inside
basins is flat with the base area of trees kept little raised so that the sapling stems do not
come in direct contact with water. A lateral or field channel passes between two rows of
trees alternately supplying water to individual basins on both sides. A basin usually
covers the complete area under the tree canopy. Desired quantity of water is allowed into
a basin for complete infiltration.

4.2. Ring irrigation

Ring method consists of irrigating fruit trees in orchards by constructing circular

trenches around trees. Ring trenches are smaller in both depth and width around small
trees and are larger around bigger trees. Usually a ring is laid out at the periphery of the
tree canopy. The ring trenches are usually made 30 to 50 cm wide and narrow furrows.
Laterals pass through a set of two rows of trees supplying water into rings on both sides.
Water supply process is essentially the same as with the basin irrigation. Water in desired
quantity is allowed to stand in the trenches for infiltration.

5. Check or Check Basin Irrigation

Check method consists of dividing the field into several relatively level plots called
checks surrounded by low bunds. They are irrigated with comparatively large flow of
water. Small checks are level while bigger ones are slightly sloping along the length. A
check is also termed as check basin. There are two methods of check irrigation,
rectangular check method and contour method.

5.1. Rectangular check irrigation

In a relatively uniform land with a gentle slope, checks may be rectangular and
sometimes square. They may be a few square meters in size for vegetable crops. In
lighter soils the size of a check may necessarily be small to achieve uniform wetting and
in heavier soils the size may be large. Water is conveyed to checks by a system of supply
channel, laterals and field channels. Laterals or field channels are laid out in such a way
that a channel passes through a set of two rows of checks. A supply channel is
constructed on the upper reach of the field and laterals usually follow the slope, if there is
any. Check method is adopted for irrigating row crops and vegetables in a wide range of
soils having moderate to slow infiltration rates.

5.2. Contour check irrigation

In slopping and rolling lands contour checks are constructed by rising bunds or
ridges along contours having vertical intervals of 15 to 30 cm. Checks at the end of the
adjoining contours may sometimes be joined at suitable places to make them continuous.
They are almost uniformly level or gently sloping and are often small. A contour checks
is also termed contour check basin. The design criteria and the method of water
application is essentially the same as with the rectangular check method. Contour checks
are suitable for growing vegetables.
6. Pitcher Irrigation

The method includes irrigating widely spaced vegetable crops with earthen
pitchers of about 2 litres capacity each. The pitcher is porous with a small hole at the
bottom. Water trickles out through the hole and irrigates the crop root zone. Pitchers are
filled with water at 6 to 8 days interval before they are emptied. The method of irrigation
and advantages are similar to the porous cup method and the method holds a promise in
areas where water is scarce. It is however labour intensive and involves a higher labour
cost of filling the pitchers at intervals.

7. Subsurface irrigation methods

Subsurface irrigation, also designated as sub irrigation, involve irrigation to crops

by applying water from beneath the soil surface either by constructing trenches or
installing underground perforated pipe lines or tile lines. Various types of crops,
particularly with shallow root system are well adapted to sub irrigation. Crops like potato,
beet, peas and fodder can be irrigated by sub-irrigation.

Exercise

1. Make an observation on the field lay out involving surface methods when you
visit a garden.

2. Calculate the time required to irrigate a check basin of 20 m long and 15 m wide
to a depth of 6 cm with a stream of 10 l/sec.

3. An irrigation stream of 20 l/s is diverted to a check plot of 10 x 8 m. Net depth of

irrigation requirement is 10 cm. How long the irrigation stream be applied to
irrigate the check pot?
 Ex.No.6
Study of layout for sprinkler method

A sprinkler irrigation system to suit the conditions of a particular site is specially

designed in order to achieve high efficiencies in its performance and economy. The
different steps involved are discussed below.
1. Capacity of the sprinkler system (Pump)

The required capacity of a sprinkler system or the capacity of the pump used depends on
the area to be irrigated, the depth of water to be applied at each irrigation, the time allowed
to apply water to this depth and the application efficiency. The capacity of the system may
be calculated by the formula

2780 x A x D
Q = ------------------
FxHxE

Where,
Q = discharge capacity of the pump, l/s
A = Area to be irrigated, ha
D = depth of water application, cm
F = time allowed to complete one irrigation, days
H = actual operating hours of the pump/day
E = Water application efficiency, per cent
2780 the conversion factor to express Q in litres per second
2. Water application rate
The rate of water application by sprinkler is limited by the infiltration capacity of
the soil. Soil type, crop cover and slope need to be taken into consideration in deciding the
application rate. Application rate in excess of the infiltration capacity of the soil may
result in runoff, poor distribution of water, loss of water and soil erosion.
The rate of water application or precipitation intensity for a single sprinkler may
be decided by the formula
Q
Where Ra = ---------------
360 x A
 Ra = rate of water application, cm/hr
Q = rate of discharge of sprinkler, l/s
A = wetted area of sprinkler, m2
3. Selection of sprinklers for required discharge
The actual selection of the sprinkler is based largely upon design information
furnished by the manufacturers of the equipment. The choice depends mainly on the
diameter of the coverage required, pressure available and sprinkler discharge.
The required discharge of an individual sprinkler is a function of the water
application rate and the two way spacing of the sprinklers. It may be determined by the
formula

S1x Sm x I
Q = -------------------
360
Where
Q = required discharge of individual sprinkler, l/s
S1 = spacing of sprinklers along the lateral, m
Sm = spacing of laterals along the main, m
I = optimum application rate, cm/hr
4. Hydraulic design of sprinkler system
The hydraulic design of sprinklers is aimed at obtaining uniform irrigation
coverage, the desired rate of application, the breakup of sprinkler drops necessary to
minimize the structural deterioration of the soil surface and to maximize the area of
coverage. The main hydraulic principles involved in a sprinkler system design are
a) Discharge of sprinkler nozzle
The discharge of a sprinkler nozzle may be computed as

Q = CA√2gh

Where
Q = discharge cm3/sec
C = sprinkler discharge coefficient which vary from 0.80 to 0.95
A = Cross sectional area of nozzle or orifice, cm2
 g = acceleration due to gravity cm/s2
h = Pressure head at nozzle, m
b) Water spread area of sprinkler
The area covered by a rotating head sprinkler can be estimated from the formula

R = 1.35√dh
Where
R = radius of the wetted area covered by sprinkler, m
d = diameter of nozzle, m
h = pressure head at nozzle, m
The maximum coverage is attained when the jet emerges from the sprinkler at an
angle of 30° to 32°. Most rotating sprinklers are standardized at 30°.
Spacing of sprinkler
To achieve uniform sprinkling of water, it is necessary to overlap the area of
influence of the sprinklers. The overlap increases with the increase in wind velocity.
Sprinklers are arranged along a lateral not more than 50 per cent of the coverage
by an individual sprinkler. The distance between successive positions of laterals should
not exceed 65 per cent of the diameter of the coverage by an individual sprinkler. If there
is a wind of considerable speed, the spacing between sprinklers is further reduced.
The uniformity of water distribution obtained with a sprinkler can be
experimentally determined.
Exercise
1. Collect information on soil type and application rate of the sprinkler and wind and
water distribution from the sprinklers.
2. Work out the discharge capacity of a sprinkler system to apply water at the rate of
1.5 cm/h. Two sprinkler lines 200 m long each with 18sprinklers are spaced at 11
m interval on each line. The sprinkler lines are spaced at 16 m interval.
3. Two sprinkler lines, each 186 m long, are required with a spacing of 18m between
the lines for irrigation. A total of 16 sprinklers are spaced at 12 m interval on each
line. Find out the required capacity of the sprinkler system to apply water at the
rates of 1.25 cm/hr.
 Ex. No. 7

Layout for drip method

The object of drip irrigation is to achieve high application efficiency and uniformity
of application of water and to maintain soil moisture in the root zone near field capacity
for high crop yields.

For designing drip system knowledge on Quantity and quality of water and its
elevation, climatological data for computation of ET, Soil type, daily consumptive use of
crop, its spacing, slope and topography of land, water intake rate etc., are essential.

Steps in designing drip irrigation

1. Daily water consumption of the plant

Evaporation from the USDA class-A pan during the hottest day in the crop period of
the plant or year in the case of the tree crop is taken and multiplied by pan and crop
coefficient and crop coverage area (Plant spacing and row width).

Daily water use of each plant/ tree (q) = Evaporation (mm) x pan coefficient x crop
coefficient and plant spacing (cm) and row width (cm).

2. Design application rate (DAR) = CU x A x K

CU= Peak consumptive use during the crop period/day

A = plant space area, K = coverage factor of plant

3. Number of emitters required for each plant

This depends on area of wetting (nearly 40% of the total area) and radius of
wetted area of single emitter.
The number of emitters = A/ r2
A = total area to be wetted
R = radius of wetted area of single emitter
4. Rate of flow of each emitter (E)
E = q/ nt
q = daily water requirement (mm)
n = number of emitters, t = time of operation (hr/day)
5. Irrigation interval
This depends on the quantity of water applied in each irrigation and the plant
water requirement.
Ii = Idn/T
Ii = irrigation interval,
Idn = net depth of each irrigation (mm)
T = water requirement per day (mm)

6. Time of operation of each emitter

The emitter discharge rate and infiltration rate of the soil influence the time of
each irrigation.

Lay out of drip irrigation

Mainlines, sub-mains and laterals supply water from the control head into the
fields. They are usually made from PVC or polyethylene hose and should be buried
below ground because they easily degrade when exposed to direct solar radiation. Lateral
pipes are usually 13-32 mm diameter.

Emitters or drippers are devices used to control the discharge of water from the
lateral to the plants. They are usually spaced more than 1 metre apart with one or more
emitters used for a single plant such as a tree. For row crops more closely spaced emitters
may be used to wet a strip of soil. Many different emitter designs have been produced in
recent years.

The basis of design is to produce an emitter which will provide a specified

constant discharge which does not vary much with pressure changes and does not block
easily. Some types are short path, long path, short orifice, pressure compensating, self
flushing and porous tubing emitters.
 These designs can be grouped in to two types, point source and line source. Point
source systems discharge water from individual or multiple outlets that are spaced at least
1m apart. Line source systems have perforations, holes or porous walls in the irrigation
tubing that discharge water at close spacing or even continuously along a lateral line.
Point source systems are used for widely spaced crops and line source systems for close
growing crops. The self adjusting drippers discharge water within permissible limits even
if there is pressure variation.

Operating drip systems

A drip system is usually permanent. When remaining in place during more than
one season, a system is considered permanent. Thus it can easily be automated. This is
very useful when labour is scarce or expensive to hire. However, automation requires
specialist skills and so this approach is unsuitable if such skills are not available.

Water can be applied frequently (every day if required) with drip irrigation and
this provides very favourable conditions for crop growth. However, if crops are used to
be watered each day they may only develop shallow roots and if the system breaks down,
the crop may begin to suffer very quickly.

A pump of suitable capacity is required to create pressure to force water through

main up to emitter. The laterals may operate with pressures as low as 0.15-0.2 kg/cm2 and
as high as 1 to 1.75 kg/cm2. The pressure gradually drops at the laterals and emitters.
Water coming out of the emitters is almost at the atmospheric pressure. If desirable a
fertilizer tank may be connected with the system to supply different nutrients to the crop
with irrigation.

The emitters are provided at regular intervals on laterals. The water is emitted
usually in drops. The emitters are of three types.

1. Water seeps out continuously

2. Water drips from emitters
3. Water sprays or drips from holes punched in the lateral.
 The amount of water dripping down from the emitter depends on the pressure at
the nozzle, size of the opening and frictional losses. The emitters usually discharge at the
rate of 2 to 10 litres per hour. Nozzles may vary in their shape and size.

Wetting patterns

Unlike surface and sprinkler irrigation, drip irrigation only wets part of the soil
root zone. This may be as low as 30% of the volume of soil wetted by the other methods.
The wetting patterns which develop from dripping water onto the soil depend on
discharge and soil type.

Although only part of the root zone is wetted it is still important to meet the full
water needs of the crop. It is sometimes thought that drip irrigation saves water by
reducing the amount used by the crop. This is not true. Crop water use is not changed by
the method of applying water. Crops just require the right amount for good growth.

The water savings that can be made using drip irrigation are the reductions in
deep percolation, in surface runoff and in evaporation from the soil. These savings, it
must be remembered, depend as much on the user of the equipment as on the equipment
itself.

Drip irrigation is not a substitute for other proven methods of irrigation. It is just
another way of applying water. It is best suited to areas where quality is marginal, land is
steeply sloping or undulating and of poor quality, where water or labour are expensive, or
where high value crops require frequent water applications.

Designing drip irrigation system for a citrus garden

A farmer has an open well of 4 m diameter and 25 m depth fitted with 5 H.P. electric
pump set. The soil is a clay loam with a slope of 0.5%. The farmer proposes to install
drip irrigation system for a citrus plantation on a 1 ha plot.

The design of a drip irrigation system involves estimation of following parameters.

1. Area to be irrigated, land slope, type of plant, age, spacing and number per
hectare
 2. Peak water requirement of a plant per day or irrigation water requirement.
3. Design of main lines and lateral lines
4. Emitters : number and spacing
5. Water required to be pumped from the well
6. Horse power of pump set
7. Unit cost
Analysis of data

1. Number of plants = area/ spacing = 1000 m2 / 6mx6m = 277 plants

2. Estimation of water requirement

Evapotranspiration of a crop can be estimated by Pan Evaporation method

ETcrop = ETo x Kc
ET crop = evapotranspiration of the crop
ETo = reference evapotranspiration = pan evaporation (Ep) x pan coefficient (Kp)
Kc = crop coefficient which is 1.0 for fully grown citrus plant.
Water requirement of each tree = Spacing of plant x wetted area fraction x ET crop
Water requirement of entire farm = Spacing x wetted area fraction x ET crop x number
of plants
Wetted area fraction for widely spaced crop is 0.3, for closely spaced crops 0.7.

3. Selection of emitters

Depending upon the type of emitter and discharge required their number can be
estimated. The water discharge rate per dripper is normally between 1 to 4 l/h though the
discharge of emitters is upto 15 to 20 l/h. The rate of application of water through dripper
is less than the infiltration rate of the soil.

Number of emitters per plant = Rate of delivery needed/ Average discharge of an

emitter.
4. Mainline

The main line is designed to carry the maximum discharge required for total
number of plants in the farm.

5. A lateral is so selected that the pressure difference from the proximate end to the last
emitter does not exceed 10% of the normal operating head.

6. Capacity of pumpset

The horse power of the pump set required is based upon design discharge and
total operating head.

7. Unit cost

The unit cost is to be estimated before installing the drip system for mobilizing
the finance and the economics with other method of irrigation systems.

Water requirement of crops under drip irrigated condition

Taking average daily pan evaporation as 5 mm the water requirement for trees or
the annual crops are tabulated under Coimbatore conditions.

S.No. Crop Spacing Area of root spread Wetted Daily water

(m) Radius of Spread of area requirement
root (m) root (m2) fraction (mm)
1 Coconut 7x7 3.0 28.26 0.4 56.52
2 Sapota 8x8 3.0 28.26 0.3 42.39
3 Mango 10x10 4.0 50.24 0.28 70.34
4 Guava 5x5 1.5 7.1 0.28 9.94
5 Lime 4.5x4.5 1.5 7.1 0.35 12.43
6 Orange 6x6 2.0 12.56 0.35 21.98
7 Pomegranate 5x5 1.5 7.1 0.35 12.43
8 Banana 1.8x1.8 1.0 7.1 0.96 34.08
9 Grapes 1.8x1.8 1.0 3.10 0.96 14.88
10 Papaya 1.8x1.8 1.0 3.1 0.96 14.88
11 Onion 0.38x0.15 0.38x0.15 0.057 1.00 0.29
12 Water melon 3.0x0.9 0.8 2.0 0.74 7.4
13 Tomato 0.75x0.60 0.75x0.60 0.45 1.00 2.25
14 Chillies 03/0.6x0.3 0.45x0.3 0.135 1.00 0.68
15 Carrot 0.23x0.10 0.23x0.10 0.02 1.0 0.1
16 Cabbage 0.45x0.30 0.45x0.30 0.135 1.0 0.68
17 Potato 0.50x0.20 0.50x0.20 0.1 1.00 0.5
18 Tamarind 10x10 4.0 50.24 0.28 70.34

Row crop irrigation by drip, or trickle method

Drip irrigation is the best choice to maximize efficiency in irrigation system. A

properly designed and installed drip system can deliver up to 95% efficiency, one-stop
shop for irrigation systems, will put the water where the roots are, minimize surface
evaporation, and inject the necessary nutrients to promote maximum yield or growth of
crop.

Fig Drip lay out for orchard crops

Exercise

1. Draw a sketch of drip irrigation lay out for a vegetable crop

2. Designing of drip irrigation for pomegranate a model

 Ex. No. 8

Measurement of soil moisture

Soil moisture is measured directly by thermo gravimetric method and indirectly by
several improved techniques based on electrical resistance, slow down of fast neutrons,
gamma ray attenuation, electrical conductance and back scattering coefficient as a
function of water content

Direct methods

Direct methods of soil moisture measurements are

• Feel and appearance method

• Gravimetric method

• Alcohol burning method

• Hot air drying

• Gypsum sorption plugs

• Infrared balance

• Neutron moisture meter

These methods are usually adopted due to ease of handling, low cost and minimum
technical skill required. However, these methods require relatively longer time for soil
moisture estimation. Some errors creep in due to sampling, transporting and repeated
weighing.

Feel and appearance method

Soil samples are obtained with soil probe or augur from representative depths in
root zone and observed for colour, plasticity and cohesiveness. These parameters are a
function of soil texture, structure and moisture content. With experience, accuracy is + / –
5 to 10 percent available soil moisture.
Gravimetric method

Soil samples are collected using soil probe or auger from the desired depth in tight
moisture cans and kept in shade to avoid evaporation losses. Moist sample is oven dried
at 1050C to constant weight. The ratio of the weight loss in drying to dry weight of the
soil multiplied by 100 gives the soil moisture percentage.

Merits of gravimetric method

• Ease of handling

• Low cost

• Minimum technical skill required

• It is the standard method of soil moisture determination with which other methods
are compared.

Demerits of gravimetric method

• It requires relatively longer time for soil moisture determination

• Sampling and weighing errors limit the accuracy

• Soil sampling is destructive and may disturb experimental plots to distort the
results.

Alcohol burning method

Soil moisture from the sample is evaporated by adding alcohol and igniting,
provided the sample is not too large, the result can be obtained in 10 minutes. About 1.0
ml of alcohol per gram of soil sample at FC and 0.5ml at PWP is adequate for
evaporating the soil moisture. This method is not recommended for soils with high
organic matter.
Hot Air Drying

Hot air around 1100 C is passed on a screen with weighed samples of moist soil.
Hot air vaporizes the moisture and sends it out. Soil samples must be pulverized for using
this method. It needs relatively expensive equipment.

Gypsum sorption plugs

Gypsum plugs placed in soil comes into equilibrium with surrounding soil moisture.
They are removed and weighed to determine soil moisture content. It is necessary to
calibrate the weight of porous cup with soil moisture content for different soils.

Infrared Balance

It gives fairly reliable moisture estimates in about 5 minutes. It consists of a 250 watt
infrared lamp, sensitive torsion balance and auto transformer, all housed in an aluminum
cabinet. The radiation emitted by infrared lamp quickly vaporizes the soil moisture. The
instrument is directly calibrated in percent moisture.

Neutron moisture probe

Neutron scattering is most commonly used indirect method for measuring soil water
content. it is based on the moderation of the speed of high-energy neutrons by hydrogen
atoms of water molecules. The resulting slow neutrons are detected by an electronic
scaler which register voltage pulses received over a given time interval. The number of
pulses accumulated on the scaler per unit time results from ionization by the back-
scattered radiation. Since significant source of hydrogen in most soils is in the water, the
technique offers a convenient means of estimating soil water content and expressed as a
volume fraction cc/cc. In soil with high root density or high level of organic residues, the
amount of organic hydrogen may affect the estimates. However this amount is small in
comparison to hydrogen in soil water. Therefore, except in organic soil, it is a good
method for soil moisture determination.
Exercise

Estimation of soil moisture content by thermo-gravimetric method

The principal method in common use is where the water is removed by oven dry method.

Materials

Sampling augers (screw/ post hole), aluminum moisture boxes, physical balance
weighing up to 0.01 g and drying oven for 105oC.

Procedure

Take a composite sample of soil not less than 100 g in moisture box and cover it
immediately with its lid. Cover the boxes with a cloth to avoid heating in the field due to
insolation, if the number samples is large. Transport the sample to laboratory. Tipping of some
soil near the lid, weigh the sample on a physical balance, correct to two decimal places in g
(WS1). Dry the sample in an oven to a constant weight at 105oC. This takes about 48 hours. As
the boiling point of water is 100oC, 105 oC is the optimum temperature for drying. Weigh the
dried sample (WS2). Calculate the moisture percentage (Pw) by the formula, on oven dry weight
basis.

(pw) = Wet wt – Dry wt x100

Dry wt
Volumetric water content (pv) in percentage can be calculated if the soil bulk density (ρb)
is known.

pv= Wet wt – Dry wt x 100 x pb

Dry wt

pv = Pw x pb

The amount of water in soil can be expressed in depth per unit soil depth.

Depth (cm) of water per unit soil depth (Ds) = pw x pb x Ds

= pv x Ds

1. Find out the water content of a soil on weight and volume basis just before irrigation
from the following data obtained from the thermo gravimetric method.
 • Weight of the aluminum box – 30 g
• Weight of aluminum box with fresh soil sample– 90 g
• Weight of aluminum box with oven dry soil = 80 g
• Bulk density of the soil = 1.5 g/cc
2. Find out the soil moisture content per cent by weight, volumetric water content in per
cent and depth of water in sampled depth with the following information.

• Weight of moisture can = 40g

• Weight of moist soil + can =150g
• Weight of dry soil + can =140g
• Soil bulk density = 1.4 g/cc
• Sampling soil depth = 30 cm

3. Find out the apparent specific gravity of 0.01 m3 of oven dried soil weighing 2 kg.
4. A soil brought from the field weighing 48 g lost 8 g on oven drying. Find out the
moisture per cent on volume basis if the bulk density is 1.5 g / cc.
 Ex. No. 9
Estimation of soil moisture constants and water holding capacity
for different soils

Water content in soil under certain standard conditions is termed as soil moisture
constants.
Soil moisture constants refer to the status of the soil mass or changes occurring in
the soil mass after irrigation or rainfall. In the real sense, soil moisture cannot be said to
be constant since it is very dynamic and always tends to change due to potential gradient
or pressure gradient. This phenomenon helps to find out the soil moisture status,
availability of soil moisture, time and quantity of irrigation water to be applied etc.
The soil moisture constants are
1. Saturation capacity or maximum water holding capacity (MWHC)
2. Field capacity (FC)
3. Permanent wilting point (PWP)
4. Moisture equivalent
1. Saturation capacity or Maximum water holding capacity
Immediately after irrigation or rainfall, soil below the surface is completely filled
with water. At this stage all the micro and macropores are filled with water. The soil at
this condition is said to be under saturation capacity or maximum water holding capacity.
At saturation capacity, the water is held without any force or tension and the tension is
almost zero. This is equal to free water surface. At this point, the gravitational force tends
to pull some water which move downwards and this water is known as gravitational
water or free water.
2. Field capacity
This can be defined as the moisture content present in the soil after the drainage
of water due to gravitational force is stopped or ceased or became very slow. Hence it is
also be stated as the moisture content retained against the gravitational force.
At this point, moisture content in the soil is relatively stable and each soil particle
is completely surrounded with thick film of water and form capillary. Hence it is known
as capillary capacity.
 At field capacity, the large soil pores are filled with air, the micro- pores are filled
with water and any further drainage is slow.
The field capacity is the upper limit of available soil moisture to plants. Hence it
is also known as full point.
Immediately after irrigation or rainfall, soil will reach its field capacity after two
or three days depending upon the soil texture.
The soil moisture tension at field capacity varies from 1/10 to 1/3 atmosphere for
coarse and fine textured soil.

3. Permanent wilting point

The permanent wilting point, also known as permanent wilting percentage or
wilting coefficient is the soil moisture content at which plants can no longer obtain
enough moisture to meet transpiration requirements and remain wilted unless water is
added to the soil.
At PWP, the film of water around soil particles is held so tightly that root cannot
remove the water at a faster rate to prevent wilting.
A moisture tension of soil at PWP is 15 atmosphere.
Range of water holding capacity of soils
Percent moisture (dry weight basis)
Soil type
Field capacity PWP
Fine sand 3-5 1-3
Sandy loam 5-15 3-8
Silt loam 12-18 6-10
Clay loam 15-30 7-16
Clay 25-40 12-20
Available soil moisture is expressed in terms of depth dimension for the particular
root zone depth and described as
ASM= FC-PWP x bd x d
100
ASM - Available soil moisture in root zone
FC - Field capacity (%)
PWP - Permanent wilting point (%)
bd - Bulk density of soil g/cc
d - Depth of root zone in cm
4. Moisture equivalent
Moisture equivalent is defined as the amount of water retained by a sample of
initially saturated soil material after being subjected to a centrifugal force of 1000 times
that of gravity for a definite period of time, usually half an hour.
In medium textured soils, values of field capacity and moisture equivalent are
nearly equal. In sandy soils, the FC exceeds the moisture equivalent and clay soils FC is
lower than moisture equivalent.
To estimate moisture equivalent, a small mass of soil sample is saturated with
water and is subjected to centrifugal force of 1000 times that of gravity for half an hour
and the soil moisture percentage is worked out by gravimetric method. This moisture
percentage is equal to moisture equivalent.

Exercise

Determination of field capacity by field method

Materials
Straw mulch or a black polythene sheet, spade, water, soil auger, moisture boxes,
physical balance and drying oven.
Procedure
Select a representative spot in the field. Ensure that water table is not within two
metres from the layer of which field capacity is to be determined. Bunds an area of about
2.5 sq. metres on all four sides and removes all weeds to avoid transpiration.
Pour water till the desired layers gets sufficiently wet. Spread straw mulch of
atleast 40cm thickness on the surface to prevent evaporation. A polythene sheet can be
conveniently used in the place of a mulch.
Take soil samples from different layers upto the root- zone depth with auger and
determine the soil moisture content at every 12 to 24 hours interval till the values of two
successive samples are nearly equal. Plot the moisture content versus time curve on a
graph paper. The lowest influx can be taken to represent the field capacity of soil.
The value for field capacity is less than that for maximum water holding capacity,
since later measures the moisture present in a fully saturated soil resting on a water table,
so that the soil pores are completely filled with water.
 The moisture percentage of a loam soil at 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours interval after
saturation were observed to be 37.5, 28.7, 24.8 and 24.7% respectively. As in above
observation the moisture content after 72 hours is almost same as recorded at 96 hours.
Therefore, the field capacity of the above soil is 24.8 per cent. It means that in this type
of soil the field capacity reaches after 72 hours of saturation.

Determination of wilting point by sunflower method

Materials

Five 600 g capacity cans with lids, sunflower seeds, glass tubing (5cm x 0.5 cm),
sealing wax, moisture cans, physical balance, drying oven, bell jars or cabinet 25cm x 50
cm with a polythene cover, water trays and soil sampler.
Fill uniformly five cans having a drain hole at the bottom with about 500 g of air
dry soil in each. It is necessary to have many replications in this trial as the permanent
wilting point is a range of moisture. Sow about four seeds of sunflower in each and allow
them to germinate.
After emergence, thin the plants to two, allow them to pass through the two holes in
the lid and place the lid. Avoid heating of the cans due to insulation, by placing them in
moist saw dust. Grow them for about six weeks, watering them as and when necessary.
By this stage plants would have developed at least about three pairs of leaves.
Insert a glass tubing in the soil for aeration and plug it with cotton wool. Seal the
soil surface with wax. Also close the drainage hole and seal it.
At this stage, water the plants for the last time and plug all the space between the
soil surface and the holes in the lid of the can be plugged with cotton wool to control
evaporation. Allow the plants to wilt.
As soon as both the plants show signs of loss of turgor, transfer them to a dark
humid chamber. The cans with plants can be kept in a small water tray and covered with
a bell jar or a wire cabinet to create a high humidity chamber. The bell or the cabinet
should be covered with a black polythene piece. The aim is to close stomata and reduce
transpiration.
Leave the plants overnight to gain favourable water balance by allowing them to
extract moisture from the soil. If they gain turgidity, expose them to the atmosphere for a
couple of hours and transfer them back to the humid chamber. Repeat the process till the
plants do not recover in dark humid chamber.
At this stage, remove the lid and cut the plants. Take a duplicate soil sample.
Remove the roots. Determine the moisture content of the soil samples which will
represent the value of the wilting point of the soil.
Pressure plate apparatus for measuring soil moisture

Laboratory measurements of soil moisture potential are usually made with pressure
membrane and pressure plate equipment and are discussed in later chapters.
Exercise

1. The weight of the moisture of soil sample taken at field capacity level was 30g and at
PWP was 12g of a soil sample which weighed 150 g on drying. The root zone depth was
60cm. the bulk density of the soil is 1.4 g/cc. Find the available water holding capacity of
the soil.
2. Calculate the available soil water holding capacity of a soil in millimeters in the 60 cm
soil profile from the following data.
Soil depth (cm) Fieldcapacity (%) PWP (%) Bulk density (g/cc)

0-15 25.1 10.8 1.51

15-30 24.8 11.1 1.52
30-45 24.4 11.4 1.54
45-60 23.9 11.3 1.55

3. Find out the volume of water required to saturate the soil of a border of 150 m long and
10 m wide with the following data available.
The irrigation is applied at 50 per cent soil water availability. The depth of root
zone is 75 cm and bulk density of the soil is 1.52 g/cm2. Available water holding capacity
of the soil is 18 per cent.
 Ex. No. 10
Estimation of water and irrigation requirement for horticultural
crops

Consumptive use of water or water requirement of crop may be estimated from the
pan evaporation data. The observations made indicated the existence of a close
relationship between consumptive use by the crops and the rate of evaporation from a
well located pan. Evaporimeters incorporate the effect of all climatic factors and hence
are more accurate in estimating short term fluctuations in ET.
Estimation of water requirement
The standard USWB Class A pan evaporimeter is widely used. It is made of 20
gauge galvanized iron sheet, 120 cm in diameter by 25 cm in depth and is painted white
and exposed on a wooden frame in order that air may circulate beneath the pan. It is filled
with water to a depth of about 20 cm. The water surface is daily by means of a hook
gauge in a stilling well, and evaporation is computed as the difference between observed
levels adjusted for any precipitation measured in a standard rain gauge. Water is added
each day to bring the level to a fixed point in the stilling well.
Pan co-efficient
The pans have higher rate of evaporation than large free water surface, and a factor
of about 0.7 is usually recommended for converting the observed evaporation rate to
those of large water surface areas. This factor is called pan co-efficient.
Crop co-efficient
Evaporation is equal to pan evaporation multiplied by the crop factor. The value
of crop factor for any crop depends on its foliage characteristics, stage of growth, climate
and geographical location. Consumptive use values, in general, are low during the early
stages of crop growth and increases as plant approach grand growth and again decline
with maturity. The value for a particular crop at a location is determined experimentally.
The values of crop factor determined and available may be made useful for this purpose.
Crop coefficients (Kc) for major crops (FAO)
Crop Crop development stage
Initial Development Mid Late Harvest Total
season season period
Cabbage 0.4-0.5 0.7-0.8 0.95-1.1 0.9-1.0 0.8-0.95 0.7-0.8
Onion 0.4-0.6 0.6-0.75 0.95- 0.95-1.05 0.95-1.05 0.65-0.8
1.05
Tomato 0.3-0.4 0.7-0.8 1.05- 0.8-0.95 0.6-0.65 0.75-0.95
1.25
Potato 0.4-0.5 0.7-0.80 1.05-1.2 0.85-0.95 0.7-0.75 0.75-0.9
Banana 0.4-0.5 0.7-0.85 1.00-1.0 0.9-1.00 0.75-0.85 0.7-0.8
Grape 0.35-0.55 0.6-0.8 0.7-0.9 0.6-0.8 0.55-0.7 0.55-0.75

Example
Calculation of ETcrop
Month June July August September
Kc(monthly mean) 0.4 0.5 0.9 0.7
ETo (mm/day) 5.0 8.0 10.0 10.0
ETcrop(mm/day) 2.0 4.0 9.0 7.0
ETcrop(per month) 60.0 124.0 279.0 210.0
Etcrop(total) 673
Variation in crop water requirement
There is considerable variation in crop water requirements from region to region
depending up on climate and management practices. The differences are largely due to
the length of growing season and incoming solar radiation during crop growing season.
Irrigation requirement rarely depend on soil type and rainfall during the crop period.
Crop water requirements (mm)
Crop Water requirement Crop Water requirement
Tomato 600-800 Cabbage 380-500
Potato 500-700 Banana 1200-2200
Pea 350-500 Citrus 900-1200
Onion 350-550 Grape 500-1200
Bean 300-500 pineapple 700-1000

Irrigation requirement
The field irrigation requirement of crop refers to water requirement of crops,
exclusive of effective rainfall and contribution from soil profile, and it may be given as
follows
IR=WR - (ER+S)

Where, IR = Irrigation requirement

WR =Water requirement
ER =Effective rainfall
S =Contribution from soil profile
The water requirement and irrigation requirements are usually expressed in terms
of water depth per unit of land area in ha.cm or unit of depth in cm.

Irrigation requirement depends upon the irrigation need of individual crop, area of
crop and losses in the farm water distribution system.

Net irrigation requirement

Net irrigation requirement is the amount of irrigation water required to bring the
soil moisture level in the effective root zone to field capacity.
It is the difference between field capacity and the soil moisture content in the root
zone before starting irrigation.

Mfc-Mbi
NIR = ------------------ x Db x D
100

NIR = Net irrigation requirement (cm)

Mfc = Moisture content at field capacity (%)
Mbi = Moisture content before irrigation
Db = Bulk density of the soil (g/cc)
D = Depth of soil (cm)
Gross irrigation requirement
The total amount of water applied through irrigation is termed as gross irrigation
requirement.
It is the net irrigation requirement plus losses in water application and other
losses.

The gross irrigation requirement can be determined for a field, for a farm, for an
outlet command area and for an irrigation project depending on the need, by considering
the approximate losses at various stages of crops.
Net irrigation requirement
Gross irrigation requirement = --------------------------------------
Field efficiency of system

For example, if the net amount of irrigation is 8 cm and the field efficiency is 75 per cent,
the gross amount of water to be applied to the field is
8 / 0.75 or 8x100 / 75 = 10.66 cm
Irrigation frequency
Irrigation frequency or irrigation interval is the number of days between irrigations
during crop periods without rainfall.

It is the interval between two consecutive irrigations during crop periods.

It depends upon the consumptive use rate of the crop and amount of available
moisture from the effective root zone.

It is a function of crop, soil and climate.

Normally irrigation is to be given at 50 or 60 per cent depletion of available

moisture from the effective root zone.

In designing irrigation system, the irrigation frequency to be used is, the time
(days) between two irrigations in the period of peak consumptive use of crops.
Field capacity - moisture content of the root zone prior to
starting irrigation
Design frequency (days) =
Peak period consumptive use rate of crop
Irrigation period

Irrigation period is the number of days that can be allowed for applying one irrigation
to a given design area during peak consumptive use period of the crop

Net amount of moisture in soil at start of irrigation (FC - PWP)

Irrigation Period =
Peak period consumptive use rate of crop

The irrigation system must be so designed that the irrigation period is not greater
than the irrigation frequency.

Effective rainfall
Effective rainfall means useful or utilizable rainfall

The useful portions of rainfall, which is stored and supplied to the crop for its
consumptive use is called effective rainfall.
Measurement of rainfall is made by a standard rain gauge. Data are usually available
from a local weather station. Different components of effective and ineffective rainfall
may be measured by weighing type lysimeters described earlier. Soil water content in the
root zone before and after the rainfall is estimated for knowing the effective rainfall. The
increment of soil water that occurs due to rain together with the crop ET during the
period between the two soils samplings done before and after rainfall constitutes the
effective rainfall.
All the rainfall received is not used by crops due to erratic nature in occurrence,
intensity and quantity. Part of the rain which moves out of the field by surface runoff and
deep percolation beyond the root zone are ineffective rainfall.
The factors influencing effective rainfall are the rainfall characteristics, land slope,
soil properties, groundwater characteristics, management practices, crop characteristics
and carry over soil moisture.
Exercise

1. A weighing type lysimeter lost 6.25 Kg weight in a day of 24 h through evapo

transpiration showing an evapo transpiration value of 5.0 mm /day. Calculate the
surface area of lysimeter.
2. After how many days the water has to be applied to a vegetable crop, with the
following particulars.
Soil moisture content at FC = 30%
Soil moisture content at PWP = 12%
Bulk density of the soil = 1.25 g/cc
Effective root zone depth of the soil = 60 cm
Daily consumptive use of the crop = 12.5 mm
Level of ASM for scheduling irrigation (20% DASM) = 80%

3. With the following information available find out the net depth of irrigation water
application and irrigation period.
Soil moisture content at FC = 30%
Soil moisture content at PWP = 15%
Soil bulk density = 1.5 g / cc
Effective root zone depth = 75%
DASM level for irrigation = 75%
Irrigation efficiency = 80%
 Ex.No. 11
Scheduling of irrigation – preparation of schedule by different
approaches for annuals, perennials under different methods of
irrigation and climate -soil type
Horticultural crops include annuals and perennials. Most of the vegetable crops come
under the annual crops. Annual crops have varying duration extending for one season or
more than a season but complete life span within a year.
Frequency of irrigation and amount of water to be applied depend on a number of
factors like depth of root system, water use efficiency, Stages of growth, soil type ,
prevailing weather condition and actual consumptive use of crop. Rooting depth vary
greatly among vegetable crops from 30 to 180 cm.

Approaches in irrigation scheduling

Several approaches in scheduling irrigation have been used by scientists and
farmers throughout the world, each one having its own advantages and disadvantages.

Soil moisture depletion approach

The available soil moisture in the effective root zone is a good criterion in
scheduling irrigation. When the soil moisture in the specified root zone depth is depleted
to a pre determined level, may be 50% depletion of available soil moisture, it is to be
replenished by irrigation. For most field crops, 50% depletion of available soil moisture
is found to be most appropriate in scheduling irrigation.
The degree of depletion can be assessed by available soil moisture estimation
through gravimetric, tensiometer, resistance block and neutron probe methods.
These approaches are reliable, but cannot be recommended to farmers since the
means to measure soil water content or soil moisture tension is not easily available.
Actual measurement of soil moisture and subsequent calculation of available soil
moisture.
The gravimetric method is the basic and standard determination of soil moisture
content to which all other methods are referred. Soil samples are dried at 105 C until a
constant weight is reached. The difference in weight before and after drying divided by
the weight of the dry soil gives the water content by weight. The other way of expression
is water content by volume.
Dm = Ww- Dw/Dw * 100 * Db * DS

Where
Dm _ Soil moisture deficit at different layers
Ww – Wet weight of soil
Dw – Dry weight of soil
Db – Bulk density
Ds – Depth of soil layer

The soil moisture for different depths may be calculated and added for total
quantity or the mean values of soil moisture content and apparent density may be taken
and worked out for the deficit moisture level for replenishment.
Use of Tensiometers for soil moisture estimation
Irrigation can be scheduled based on soil moisture tension with the use of
tensiometers. Tensiometers are installed at required depth in the root zone. When the
soil moisture tension reaches a specified value (0.50, 0.75 or 1.0 bar etc) irrigation is
scheduled. Tensiometers are generally used for irrigating orchards especially in coarse
textured soils.
Simple techniques in irrigation scheduling
Other simple techniques are in practice for scheduling irrigation to crops are
described below
a) Indicator plant technique
Some crops like sunflower and tomato are highly sensitive to water stress which
will show stress symptoms earlier than other stress tolerating crops. Hence to know the
stress symptoms earlier, such sensitive crops are planted in random in the field and based
on the stress symptoms noticed in such plants, scheduling of irrigation can be made. This
approach is called as indicator plant technique in scheduling irrigation.

b) Micro plot technique

In this method, one cubic metre pit is dug in the middle of the field. About five
percent sand by volume is added to the dugout soil, mixed well and the pit is filled up in
the natural order to have more infiltration and less water holding capacity than the actual
main field. Crops are grown as usual in the entire area of the field including the micro
plot area. The plants in the micro plot show wilting symptoms earlier than the other
plants in the remaining area. Irrigation can be scheduled as soon as wilting symptoms
appear on the plants in the micro plot.
c) Plant indices
Any plant character, related directly or indirectly to plant water deficit which
responds readily to integrated influence of soil, water, plant and evaporative demand of
the atmosphere may serve as a criterion for timing of irrigation to crop.
Visual symptoms of plant wilting can be used to schedule irrigation to crops.
Farmers usually use drooping, curling or rolling of leaves and changes in foliage colour
as an indication for irrigation scheduling.

Relative leaf water content and leaf water potential

Some crops such as sugarcane show strong correlation between the water content of
leaf or leaf sheath and the available soil water. The relative leaf water content (RLWC)
and leaf water potential change with variations in soil water availability or owing to lag
between water absorption by plants and evaporative demand of the atmosphere. The
relative leaf water content and plant water potential have been suggested for scheduling
irrigation. However sophisticated equipment, intricate measuring devices, high cost and
lack of proper standardization of instruments deter the use of this technique on large
scale.

Plant temperature
Solar radiation reaching on the earth not only causes evapotranspiration but also
heats up leaf tissues. With water deficit in plant the temperature of leaf tissues rises.
Many investigations have shown that leaf temperature is a sensitive index of plant water
status. The difference between stressed and unstressed leaf or canopy temperatures was a
better index of water deficit than the difference between plant canopy and air
temperatures.
Orchard crop irrigation management
The depth of root penetration varies from 1 to 9 m depending up on the fruit
species. However as much as 80 – 85% of the available soil moisture is drawn from 0-90
cm layer by most of the tree fruit species and thus for all practical purposes the amount of
water applied should replenish the water deficit of this layer (0 – 90 cm). During warm
period or summer the 90 – 120 cm layer need to be replenished. Irrigation is most
effective if applied before soil moisture becomes limiting to fruit trees.
As a thumb rule, water should be applied when 50 % of the available water in
the root zone has been depleted. If further depletion is allowed, the plants may be
subjected to a level of stress that might cause an appreciable reduction in yield. The
available water refers to total soil moisture held with a water potential between -0.33 bars
and -15 bars. Perennial fruit trees, by virtue of a deep root system, absorb water from
deeper soil layers even if water potential soil layers of the upper layers drops below -15
bars the trees may not show wilting symptoms. But such a condition adversely affects
subsequent growth and fruiting of the trees.

Papaya
Papaya is a crop of humid tropics. The crop is irrigated at 12 days interval in winter
and at 6- 8 days in summer. The crop can not tolerate water stagnation and well drained
condition is important for good papaya growth. In monsoon drains are necessary to be
provided for removal of excess water and the same is used as irrigation channel during
summer. Soil moisture potential of 0.5 to 0.8 bar seems ideal for papaya crop. The crop
needs 120 cm water in 9 months.
Pine apple
Pine apple is mostly grown as a rainfed crop, but supplementary irrigation helps
in production. Irrigation at 75% depletion of available soil moisture is sufficient.
Therefore 4-6 irrigations in hot months at 20-25 days ensure good crop.
Guava
Guava hardly requires any irrigation during rainy season. In the early stage, plants
require 8-10 irrigations a year, while fully grown bearing trees require watering from
April to June at 15 days interval to get higher fruit set. Irrigation at early fruit set was also
found to be effective in reducing fruit drop and improving fruit size of winter crop.
Scheduling tuber crops
Sugarbeet
The crop can be suitably irrigated by furrow and sprinkler method of irrigation.
Consumptive use of sugarbeet varies from 800-1000 mm. frequent irrigation at IW/CPE
ratio of 0.85 is more conducive for sugarbeet yield.
Potato
For land preparation about 4-5 cm water is required. After planting sprinkling
helps in quick germination. After 20 days when the stolons start forming the crop needs
irrigation. Irrigation at 0.3 to 0.4 bar (soil water potential) in 0-15 cm layer is good for
potato.
In sandy soils of Bhubaneswar, the crop needs irrigation of 2.5 cm at 4 days
interval till 25th day. After hoeing, topdressing and earthingup 3cm irrigation at 4 days
interval till harvest produced maximum yield
Vegetable crops
Tomato
Tomato an important fruit bearing vegetable crop. Under Delhi conditions
optimum moisture regime was found to be from 100- 60% availability of soil moisture in
0 -120 cm root zone.
Radish
This is a rapid growing crop and has limited root system and respond readily to
irrigation.Radish matures in 4- 6 weeks. Irrigation at frequent intervals
Cauliflower
Adequate moisture is necessary in the top 40 cm of soil all through the growth
period. Shortage of water in the early seedling stage or just after planting or when curds
are growing rapidly leads to physiological disorders. Depletion of more than 25%
available soil moisture is deleterious. However, irrigation at 50% depletion of available
soil moisture at 30 cm soil depth is optimum on sandy loam soil at Delhi. Two to four
irrigations are required depending on the rainfall.
Spices and condiments
Important crops in this group are turmeric, ginger, chillies, coriander,etc. Turmeric
and ginger respond to irrigation at 40% depletion of available soil moisture in the 50 cm
soil depth. The optimal moisture regime for chillies is 50-100% available soil moisture in
the top 60 cm of soil depth. Flowering and fruit development are critical periods.
Coriander and cumin are winter crops and irrigation is given at 10-12 days interval on
light soils and 15-20 days interval on heavy soils.
Example
1. Calculate the total water presently contained in the top 120cm soil layer of a
mango orchard spreading in an area of one hectare and the quantity of water required to
wet the soil to field capacity level. The soil measurements are as follows.
• Present water content(W/W) 18 percent
• Water content at FC (W/W) 21 percent
• Permanent Wilting Point(W/W) 9 per cent
• bulk density of the profile on an average 1.35 g/cm3
2. Given the following information, find out the irrigation interval.
• Field capacity of the soil = 30%
• Permanent wilting point = 11%
• Bulk density of the soil = 1.3 g/cc
• Effective root zone depth = 700 mm
• Level of DASM for irrigation = 25%
3. With the following information find out the allowable depletion depth between
irrigations, frequency of irrigation, Net depth of water application and volume of water
required.
• Available soil moisture = 140 mm/m depth
• Effective root zone depth of the crop = 30 cm
• Allowable soil moisture depletion = 35 %
• Daily water use rate = 5 mm /m depth
• Area to be irrigated = 6 ha
• Irrigation efficiency = 40%
 Ex. No. 12
Working out Irrigation scheduling based on soil type and climatic
requirements

It is the decision making process indicating when irrigation water is to be applied

and the quantity of water to be applied each time.
Soil as a factor influencing on scheduling of irrigation
Water retentive capacity of the soil is considered as the most important soil factor
deciding the frequency and interval of irrigation. Texture, structure, aggregates and
organic matter influence the water retentive capacity of the soils.
A soil with greater water retentive capacity serves as a bigger water reservoir for
crops and can supply water for longer duration. Consequently, frequency of irrigation is
lower and interval of irrigation is longer in heavier soils and in soils with crumb structure,
good organic matter content and low content of soluble salts.
On the other hand, the frequency is more in porous sandy soils with coarse texture,
poor structure and low organic matter content. Retention of greater amount of available
water is considered more important than total quantity of water retained by a soil.
Depth of soil is another factor that influences the frequency of irrigation. A shallow
soil can not hold enough water to meet the crop demand for a longer period. Necessarily,
frequent irrigations are required with smaller depth of water each time. Irrigation at long
interval is applied to deep soil that has a greater storage capacity. Such soil can supply
water for longer duration particularly when the root system is quite deep and extensive.
Soil texture F.C.(% by weight) P.W.P (% by weight) Available soil
water(cm/m depth)
Sandy 5-10 2-6 5-10
Sandy loam 10-18 4-10 9-16
Loam 18-25 8 -14 14-22
Clay loam 24-32 11-16 17-25
Clay 32-40 15-22 20-28
Approaches in irrigation scheduling
Several approaches in scheduling irrigation have been used by scientists and
farmers throughout the world, each one having its own advantages and disadvantages.
1. Soil moisture depletion
The degree of depletion can be assessed by available soil moisture estimation
through gravimetric, tensiometer, and resistance block and neutron probe methods.
These approaches are reliable, but cannot be recommended to farmers since the
means to measure soil water content or soil moisture tension is not easily available.
2. Climatological approach
The amount of water lost through evapotranspiration (ET) is estimated from
Climatological data and when ET reaches a particular level, irrigation is scheduled.
The most widely used approach for scheduling irrigation based on Climatological
data is termed as IW/CPE ratio method.
In IW/CPE ratio approach, a known amount of irrigation water (IW) is applied
when the Cumulative Pan Evaporation (CPE) from an USWB open pan evaporimeter
reaches a pre-determined level.
The ratio can be expressed as

IW Depth of irrigation water

----- = --------------------------------
CPE Cumulative pan evaporation

The irrigation depth (IW) for different crops are fixed based on soil, climate and
root zone depth and it ranges from 4 to 6 cm, the most common being 5 cm of irrigation

For fixing the ratio of IW/CPE for each crop, experiments are conducted by
irrigating the crop at different ratios and the ratio, which gives the maximum yield, is
taken as the optimum IW/CPE ratio. The ratio ranges from 0.4 to 1.0 for different crops.

For arriving the cumulative pan evaporation value, the daily pan evaporation data
are added till it is equal to the ratio of the amount of water applied as irrigation
 Scheduling irrigation at IW / CPE ratio of 1.0 with 5 cm of irrigation water means, 5
cm of irrigation is to be applied when the cumulative pan evaporation reaches 5cm.
The irrigation depth (IW) divided by the ratio (R) will give the cumulative pan
evaporation value at which irrigation is to be made
For example, if the irrigation depth needed is 50 mm and the optimum ratio is 0.5,
the cumulative pan evaporation value needed to irrigate the field is

IW 50
CPE = ------- = ------- = 100 mm
R 0.5

If the 100 mm CPE is attained in 10 days @ 10 mm per day of pan evaporation,

irrigation is to be scheduled at 10 days interval.

In the same way, if the CPE and ratio (R) are known, the amount of irrigation
water to be scheduled at 10 days interval is

IW = CPE X R = 100 x 0.5 = 50mm

Problem
Calculate the cumulative pan evaporation value at which irrigation is to be
scheduled for tomato, if the IW/CPE ratio recommended is 0.6 and irrigation water to be

IW 50
CPE = ------- = ------- = 83.3 or 83 mm
R 0.6

applied is 50 mm.
This approach provides best correlation since climatic and soil parameters are
considered.
For use by farmers, the values are to be translated in terms of irrigation interval in
days between two consecutive irrigations.
Depth of irrigation
Depth of irrigation is a function of the water retentive capacity of the root zone
soil and the extent of soil water depletion at the time of irrigation. It refers to the depth to
which the applied water would cover an area. As for example, a 10 cm depth of irrigation
to a hectare denotes the volume of water which when allowed to stand without any loss or
infiltration into the soil would stand over one hectare area to a depth of 10 cm. The net
depth of irrigation is decided by the amount of water required to bring the soil water
content just before an irrigation to field capacity in the root zone soil.
Pan evaporation for scheduling irrigation
As the rate of evaporation from pan evaporimeter is higher than that over a large
free water surface, the pan evaporation value is multiplied by 0.7 to obtain the
evaporation rate over the large free water surface (Eo). The relationship between actual
evaporation and pan evaporation rates may be presented as,
Eo = Kp . Epan or, Kp=Eo/Epan
Where,
Kp = pan evaporimeter coefficient (a commonly used value of 0.7)
Epan = evaporation value from pan evaporimeter

ET crop = Kc.ETo
Kc=ET crop / ETo
Where Kc is the crop co-efficient.
Irrigation schedule for Spices
Pepper
In India irrigation during summer is beneficial. Irrigation at IW/ CPE ratio of 0.25 or
summer irrigation of pepper vines @ 10 litres /vine/week by basin method from
December to march increases the yield.
Garlic
1. First irrigation is given just after sowing and then the field is irrigated after every
10-15 days till the season warms.
2. Irrigation at 60 mm CPE for higher yield. Frequency of irrigation should be
decreased towards maturity.
Vegetable crops
Tomato
Tomato is a deep rooted plant with high water requirement. Adequate water
supply is necessary from the start of fruit set. Irrigations are necessary at flowering, fruit
development and fruit ripening stages. The plant is sensitive to excessive moisture in
seedling stage. The optimum moisture regime is at 70 to 100% soil moisture availability.
Irrigation scheduling of IW/CPE ratio of 0.75 during vegetative period and 0.9 thereafter
give higher yield.
Exercise
1. A crop is irrigated to a depth of 5 cm using IW/CPE approach. The ratio is taken as
1.0. Then what should be the cumulative pan value for irrigating the crop?

2. It is proposed to irrigate a tomato crop at IW/CPE ratio of 0.75 during vegetative

period and 0.9 thereafter to 6cm depth of water. What should be the CPE for the
schedule during vegetative and reproductive stage?
3. A young orchard is to be irrigated when half of the available water in the top 90 cm
soil is used up. How often must the orchard be irrigated during May when the class A
pan evaporation is 5.6 cm of water per week? The orchard soil is a loamy soil holds
5.0 cm of plant available water in top 30 cm and 10.6 cm of plant available water in
the rest 60 cm sub-soil. The crop coefficient (Kc) for the month is 0.8 and pan
coefficient is 0.7.
 Ex. No. 13
Practicing the use of instruments in irrigation practices

Tensiometer

Matric potential can be measured in situ with tensiometers in the tension range upto
about 0.8 bars. Tensiometer consists of a ceramic porous cup and a mercury manometer
attached to the water filled cup through a water reservoir tube. The porous cup has high
conductance, low response time and air entry pressure of about 1.0 bar. When a porous
cup is placed in a soil and equilibrated, water tends to move out of the cup under the
suction exerted by soil. As a result, vacuum pressure develops in the cup and to make up
this, mercury rises in the manometer tube attached to water reservoir tube. Vacuum in
porous cup is actually is the matric potential of soil water. Tensiometer indicates the
tension with which water is held by the soil but not the actual water content. Relationship
between soil moisture tension and available soil moisture has to be prepared for reading
soil moisture percentage.

Useful limit of most tensiometers is about -0.8 bar of maximum potential. Hence,
they are more accurate in wet range of soil. Tensiometers are ideal for sandy soils as -0.8
bars may occur at about 80 per cent of available soil moisture. Matric potential can be
measured in situ with tensiometers in the tension range of up to 0.8 bars.

Electrical resistance blocks

Installation

Materials

Block units and a post hole augur, a wooden rod

Procedure

Sink a bore with a post hole auger to the depth of installation of blocks. Place the
blocks inside and fill back the bore in small depths by tamping the soil with a wooden
rod. After placement ensure that there is an intimate contact of the block with the soil.
There should not any root pieces, pebbles, etc., near the blocks. Fill back the whole bore
with the soil in its natural order.

Do not place two blocks at a vertical interval less than 30 cm. Normally four to five
blocks can be placed in one bore. When more than one block is to be installed in a bore,
label them near their terminals carefully with their depths before installation.

Heap the soil to a height of about 3 cm near the surface at the bore spot to prevent
any water stagnation. Irrigate the field and note the readings. Check the resistance
reading at field capacity.

While installing in a crop, ensure that these are placed in the root zone. The
convenient spot for installation is in a row and in between two plants, which avoids any
disturbance during intercultivation, etc.

Pressure plate method

The method is used to determine the soil water potential curve or soil water release
curve up to two atmospheric pressure. It consists of a closed air tight chamber in which
soil sample is placed on a ceramic plate permeable to water. The chamber is connected at
the top to a compressor to create the desired pressure and at the bottom, to an outlet for
water. The portion of the chamber below the plate is kept at atmospheric pressure and the
plate remains in contact with water. Constant pressure at desired level is applied to the
upper side of the plate and water flows out from the saturated soil sample through the
outlet. When soil water comes in equilibrium at the pressure applied, the soil sample is
taken out and water content is estimated gravimetrically. Soil water contents at different
pressures are determined to construct the soil water potential curve which is referred to
estimate the water content of a soil at a particular pressure whenever wanted.

Pressure membrane method

It is essentially a pressure plate apparatus. It is particularly used when soil water

potential curves from low to more than 15 atm are required. Because of high pressure
used, the construction of apparatus is robust and a cellulose membrane is used in place of
porous ceramic plate. The cellulose membrane rests on a fine screen mesh and / or
blotting paper and water drains through a small outlet in to burette.

Exercise

Gather information of the following instruments and observe the working where ever
available.

a) Infrared thermometer

b) Steady state porometer

c) Neutran probe meter

 Ex. No. 14
Irrigation planning and scheduling for the water resources available

Irrigation water drawn from different sources viz, river, canal, tank, open well or
tube well always contain some soluble salts dissolved in it. Water being a universal
solvent, several salts are dissolved in irrigation water. The quality and quantity of salt
present in the water depend on the nature of water sources, and the soils and underground
strata over which the water flows. The main soluble salts in water are Ca, Mg, Na and K
as cations and chloride, sulphate, carbonate and bicarbonate as anions. The amount and
kind of salts present determines the suitability of water for irrigation.

Classification and suitability of irrigation water

Classification and suitability of irrigation water to crops are based on the

following criteria.

1. Total salt concentration

2. Relative proportion of sodium to other cations
3. Carbonate and bicarbonate concentration and
4. Boron concentration
1. Total salt concentration in irrigation water

Total concentration of soluble salts is the most important single criterion of

irrigation water quality. The harmful effects increase with increase in total salt
concentration.

Water salinity is the amount of salt contained in the water. It is also called the salt
concentration and may be expressed in grams of salt per litre of water (grams/litre or g/l)
or milligrams per litre (which is same as the ppm). However, the salinity of both water
and soil is easily measured by means of an electrical device. It is then expressed in terms
of electrical conductivity i.e. millimhos/cm. A salt concentration of of about 1 g/l is
about 1.5 millimhos/cm. Thus a concentration of 3 g per litre will be about the same as
4.5 millimhos/cm.
Soil salinity

The salt concentration extracted from a saturated soil defines the salinity of the soil.

Salt concentration of the soil water salinity

In g/l In millimhos/cm or dS/m Category

0-3 0-4.5 Non saline
3-6 4.5 – 9.0 Slightly saline
6 – 12 9 – 18 Medium saline
>12 >18 Highly saline

Irrigation water quality

Salt concentration of the irrigation water in g/l

Salt in g/l Soil salinization risk Restriction on use

Less than 0.5 g/l No risk No restriction on use
0.5 – 2.0 g/l Slight to moderate risk Should be used with
appropriate water
management practices
>2.0 g/ l High risk Not generally advised for
use

The type of salt present in the irrigation water will influence the risk of developing
sodicity. The higher the concentration of sodium present in the irrigation water the higher
the risk.

Management of saline water for irrigation

In areas where there is no alternate source of good quality water for irrigation, it is
inevitable to use the available water of poor quality. The yield potential of crops under
these conditions can be increased by adopting the following management practices.
 1. Application of greater amounts of organic matter such as farmyard manure, compost
, green manuring etc., to improve soil permeability and structure.
2. Application of gypsum to the irrigation water to increase the proportion of calcium.
3. Combined use of poor quality water with good quality water in proper proportion so
that both the sources are effectively used for maximum advantage.
4. Scheduling irrigation with small quantity of water at more frequent intervals to avoid
shortage of available water to plants.
5. Optimum use of manures and fertilizers to encourage favourable growth of crops and
application of acid forming fertilizers like ammonium sulphate, di-ammonium
phosphate and super phosphate.
6. Providing better drainage facilities.
7. Adopting ridges and furrow and drip methods of irrigation.
8. Deep ploughing to break the impervious layer.
9. Mulching with locally available plant materials to reduce evaporation and increasing
infiltration.
10. All soil management practices that improve the infiltration rate and maintain
favourable soil structure reduce salinity hazard.
11. Selection of salt tolerant crops. The tolerance of crops for salinity is listed below.
Degree of salt tolerance
Good Moderate Poor
Turnips Lettuce ,Tomato,Asparagus,Carrot Peas, Celery, Cabbage, Egg plant
Beet root Spinach,Onion, Pepper, Clove Sweet potato ,Potato,Green beans,
Date palm Fig, Grape, Olive Plum , Pear, Apple, Orange

Irrigation management under limited water supply

Integrated use of all the available water resources namely surface, ground water and
waste water is most essential to obtain maximum productivity per unit of water used to
meet the growing demand. Due to uncertainty in occurrence and distribution of rainfall,
the availability of water for crop production becomes limited. Under this condition, new
management techniques are to be adopted in irrigation management and crop production
activities to mitigate water scarcity due to limited supply of irrigation water.

Management strategy under limited water supply

1. Assessing resource potential
Optimizing the irrigation water

2. Improvement in conveyance structure

It is estimated that 30 – 40 % of water is lost in conveyance and the losses can be
minimized by proper maintenance and lining of channels.

3. Conjunctive use of water

Optimum use of water from different sources is the main aim of conjunctive use. In
canal irrigation system, optimum utilization of rainfall and well water is essential to
protect the crop from scarcity of water.

Management technique under limited water supply

1. Summer ploughing is to be practiced to conserve moisture, check weed growth
and to facilitate dry sowing and Strengthening bunds
2. Adoption of drip and sprinkler methods of irrigation and on farm management to
reduce water loss
3. Introduction of new cropping pattern for efficient utilization of water
4. Adoption of watershed and water conservation methods
5. Turn and rotational system of water supply can be adopted
Other techniques are

Irrigation at critical periods, in situ moisture conservation, mulching, selection of

drought resistant varieties, growing deep rooted crops, weed control with herbicides,
adopting alternate and skip furrow methods of irrigation

Exercise

1. An irrigation water contains 2000 ppm of salt. Find the salt in terms of g / l or
millimhos/cm or dS/m.
 Ex. No. 15
Working out area irrigable with available source of water

Horticultural crops are grown in an ecosystem which is in between the wet and
dry systems. In certain regions it is termed as irrigated dry condition. They are called as
garden lands. The cropping activities are taken up with the onset of rain and the crops are
supplemented with water through irrigations. The crop production is assured in that
situation.

The following information are required for efficient utilization of the water available.

Area of the Garden

Crops grown and to be raised during the year

Water requirement of the crops

Duration of the crops

Water sources and period of water availability

Energy requirement for irrigation- By gravity or by pumping

Discharge available through the water sources

Area of the Garden

It is a fixed one for the gardener. Based on the size it may be categorized into
marginal, small, medium and large one as in the case of farms raising field crops. The
soil type, climatic conditions, topography, water and organic matter availability play a
role in the irrigation planning.

Crops grown and to be raised during the year

The crop selection is influenced by many factors. They are grouped in to physical,
chemical, biological, social and economic factors. In a garden setting aside of the socio-
economic factors the physical factors climate, soil , water availability , biological factors
such as crops grown in other farms ,competing in the cropping programme, pest problems
play a role in the selection.

The crops that have the suitability to the physical and biological factors is listed and
the one fetching more profit to the farmer is selected. Taking in to consideration of the
soil fertility and productivity crop diversification is included in the crop planning.
Water requirement of the crops

Water requirement of the crop to be grown has influence on the selection. It

determines on the area of the crop grown. Water requirement based on the estimation or
by experimentation is taken for the individual crop and for the crops in the cropping
programme.

Duration of the crops

Duration of the crop is essential information on the extent of the period of

irrigation and the number of times the crop is irrigated and helps in planning the
irrigation.

Water sources and period of water availability

Water availability to the farm may be from different sources i.e. Canal, tank and
well. The water availability period during the year in total and for the seasons is
information for raising seasonal crops.

Energy requirement for irrigation- By gravity or by pumping

Discharge available through the water sources

Whether the water is made available by gravity flow or by pumping and the
discharge from these sources. How much water is available for a given time.

Problem

1. How much area of a brinjal crop may be irrigated with the water discharge available at
the rate of 5 litres per second from a pump set of an open well? The crop is irrigated to a
depth of 50 mm for each irrigation. The pump is operated for 8 hrs in a day. The
irrigation efficiency is 70 %.Assume that the water is available for 6 months.

Solution

Total quantity of water discharged in a day in m3 = Discharge in litres/Second x60 x 60

x8 /1000 m3

=5x60x60x8/1000 m3=144 m3
Water required for one square metre for irrigating to a depth of 50 mm = 1x50/1000
m3=0.05m3

The area irrigable with the water discharged = total water dischargeable in a day/ water
required for irrigating 1 Sq.m x irrigation efficiency, which is 0.70

=144/0.05 x 0.7 = 2016 m2 approximately 1/5 of a hectare.

Number of days required for irrigating one hectare = 10000 m2/ area irrigated by the
source in a day

=10000/2016 = 4.96 days or 5 days.

Problem

2. How much time is required to irrigate an area of 10 m x 5 m to a depth of 5cm if the

flow rate is 2.5 lit/sec.

Solution

Flow rate =2.5 lit/sec

Area = 10x5 = 50 sq.m.
Depth = 5 cm = 0.05 m
Volume of water required = 50x 0.05= 2.5 m3= 2500 litres
1000 lit = 1 cumec
T = Volume/ discharge = 2500/2.5= 1000 sec
=16 min 12 sec

Problem

3. How much depth can 1 cumec of water for 10 minutes wet over an area of 2 ha?

Solution

Area = 2x10000 = 20000 sq.m

Discharge = 1 cumec x 10 x 60 = 600 cumecs
Depth = Volume/ area= 600/2000 = 0.03 m
=3cm.

Problem

4. A tube well having a capacity of 4000 lit per hour operates for 10 hrs each day during
the crop season. How much area it can command if the irrigation interval is 20 days and
depth of irrigation is 7 cm?

Solution

Tube well capacity = 4000 x10=40000 lit/day

= 40 cumec / day.

Depth = 0.07 m

Irrigation interval = 20 days

Volume of water required to cover 1 ha is 10000x0.07 = 700m3

700 m3 of water covers 1ha of land

40 m3 of water will cover = (40/700)*1= 0.057 ha

Water management for horticultural cropping system

Assured irrigation water is the real potential for multiple cropping. Major irrigated
areas receive irrigation water only for a part of the year. A horticultural farm differs from
a farm engaged in field crop production. The crops have differing habits and duration and
their requirement on water with respect to quantum, quality and the way in which it is
applied. The soil and climate also considerably vary. A grower may not restrict only to
the horticultural crops. He may be growing a combination of field and vegetable crops or
fruit crops. He may also be raising more than one vegetable or fruit crops.

Example

A farmer owns a farm of 2 hectares. He plans to raise 0.4 ha each of mango, sapota,
guava and lime. The annual water requirements of these crops under drip irrigation are
70.3, 42.4, 9.9 and 12.4 lit/day respectively. The spacing recommended is 10x10m for
mango, 8x8 m for sapota, 5x5m for guava and 4.5x4.5m for lime. Besides he desires to
raise vegetable in 0.4 ha which will have an average consumptive use of 5 mm per day.
The farmer has a tube well with a discharge of 10 lit/sec. Find out how much area the
farmer can take up cultivation? How much water is in excess or deficient? Suppose the
farmer does not want to spent more money on drip irrigation and prefers to select surface
method a water requirement of 166% is required.
 Ex. No. 16
Soil moisture conservation practices for increasing WUE

Water use efficiency

i) Field water use efficiency:
It may be defined as the ratio of the amount of economic crop yield to the
amount of water required for crop growing. It is obtained as follows.
Y
Eu =
WR
Where
Eu = Field water use efficiency expressed in kilogram of economic yield
per hectare – cm or ha-mm of water.
Y =Economic yield in kilogram per hectare
WR =water requirement of the crop in hectare-cm or ha-mm.
ii) Crop water use efficiency:
This may be defined as the ratio of the amount of economic yield of a crop to the
amount of water consumptively used by the crop. It is found out as follows.
Y
Ecu (or WUE) =
CU or ET
Where,
Ecu = crop water use efficiency in kilogram of economic yield per hectare-cm or
ha - mm of water.
Y = Economic yield of crop in kilogram per ha.
Cu =Consumptive use of water in ha-cm or ha-mm
ET = Evapotranspiration in ha-cm or ha- mm.
To maximize crop water use efficiency, it is necessary both to conserve water and
to promote maximal growth.
Ways to improve water- use efficiency
Conservation practices
Increasing the moisture storage in the root zone is one of the approaches to
increase yields and in turn WUE. Conservation of rain water under unirrigated conditions
is possible by
1. Taking steps which are conductive to the maximum absorption in to the ground in
a given area.
2. Reducing loss of stored water in evaporation, consumption by weeds and sub-
surface flow.
3. Improving structure of soil by addition of organic amendments
Tillage
a) a.to produce a suitable seed bed
b) b. to destroy weeds
c) c. to conserve moisture
d) d.to maintain soil and surface conditions resistant to erosion.
Land formation
Broad Bed and Furrow is superior over flat method which increases infiltration of
rain water in to sub-surface in situ. Compartment bunding, graded bunds, contour bunds,
vegetative live bunds check erosion improve water storage in the soil.
Incorporation of organic amendments
Incorporation of 10 t FYM/ha or 15 t/ha of calotropis foliage at 30 cm depth
increased the water holding capacity in sub-surface layer and increasing yield of bajra by
50%
Moisture conservation practices
Mulching: Checks evaporation from soil surface, increasing infiltration and thus
conserve moisture in soil. Straw, husk or polythene are effective in a drought year.
Fertilizer application: A balanced nutrient supply is beneficial even under limited
rainfall, as it actually enables the crop to make more efficient use of limited soil moisture
available.
Weed control: Controlling weeds at the early stage of crop would conserve more
moisture since weeds frequently transpire greater amounts of water per unit of dry matter
produced than the plants.
Anti- transpirants: PMA, Kaoline, Diuron at low concentration reduce the transpiration.
Removal of older or senescent leaf helps to reduce evapotranspiration losses.
Reducing leaf area: Removal of older or senescent leaf helps to reduce
evapotranspiration losses
WUE under irrigated conditions
In irrigated conditions, efficient utilization of irrigation water and increasing
productivity per unit of irrigation water depends on two factors.
1. 1.Efficient conveyance of irrigation water
2. 2.Soil and plant characteristics
Water use efficiency under irrigated conditions could be increased by selection of
efficient crop, appropriate irrigation method, scientific way of scheduling irrigation,
efficient fertilizer management and required plant protection methods.
Increasing the effective rainfall: Water from precipitation stored in the soil contributes
to consumptive use of water. Increasing this fraction of rainfall will appreciably reduce
irrigation requirement.
Enhancement of crop growth
All possible packages to provide a favourable environment for maximum growth
and yield of crop like time of planting, optimum tillage, appropriate pest management,
optimum nutrient management and irrigating at high frequency.
Landscape water conservation
Xeriscaping
Xeriscaping is a term used to describe landscape practices involving water
conservation. The word is derived from the greek word xeros, which means dry. The
practice is most common in parts of the country where rainfall is scarce. It involves
designing to group plants of similar water needs, limiting turf areas, selection of drought
tolerant plants, improving drainage and water holding capacity, use of efficient irrigation
system, use of mulches, weeding, pruning and scheduling of irrigation by scientific
methods.
Exercise
1. Observe and understand the various measures used by the gardeners in
minimizing the loss of water.
2. The onion crop raised yielded 20tonnes per hectare and the water applied through
irrigation was500 mm during the crop period with an efficiency of 70%. Find out
the field water use efficiency and crop water use efficiency.
FUE = 20x1000/500= 40 Kg / ha- mm of water
CUE = 500x0.7= 350 mm =20000/350=57.1 Kg/ha-mm water
3. Given the following information work out water conveyance efficiency, water
application efficiency, water storage efficiency and water distribution efficiency.
Canal stream size = 125 lps
Stream size delivered to the field = 100 lps
Area irrigated = 1.6 ha in 8 hrs
Effective root zone depth = 1.7 m
Run off losses in field =420 m3
Variation in the depth of application = 1.7m at head end to 1.3 m at the tail
end
ASM holding capacity of soil = 20cm m-1 depth
Irrigation schedule = 50% DASM

Water conveyance efficiency (Ec) =Wf/Wr x 100

Wf = water delivered to the farm
Wr = water delivered to the reservoir
Ec= 100/125= 80%

Water application efficiency (Ea) =Ws/Wr x100

Wf = water delivered to the farm = 100x60x60x8/1000= 2880 m3
Wr = water stored in the root zone = 2880-420= 2460 m3
Ea = 2460/2880 x 100 = 85.4%

Water storage efficiency (Es) = Ws/Wn x 100

Ws = water stored in the root zone
Wn = water needed in the root zone
Root zone water holding capacity = 20x1.7=34cm
Moisture in the root zone at irrigation start = 50/100x34= 17 cm
Additional water required in root zone of 1.6 ha = 17/100x1.6 x10000=
2720 m2
Es = 2460/2720x100= 90%

Water distribution efficiency (Ed) = (1-y/d) x100

y= average numerical deviations in depth of water stored from average
depth stored during irrigation
d= the average depth stored during irrigation
Mean depth of water stored in root zone = (1.7+1.3)/2=1.5 m
Numerical deviation from depth of penetration
Upper end = 1.7-1.5=0.2 m
Lower end = 1.5-1.2 = 0.2m
Average numerical deviation = (0.2+0.2)/2 = 0.20
Average numerical deviation = 100(1-(0.2/1.5))= 86.7%
 Ex.No.17

Final practical examination