Drip irrigation can boost crop production by way of more than 30% at the same time as the use of 30 to 50% much less water than a sprinkler. It can also save you defects in fruits and greens while saving you time. Right here are our 5 concerns for planning a drip irrigation system for huge-scale or small market farmers.

  • Determine the quality of your water supply for your drip irrigation. Factors can also include such things as pond water source that will require installation of a filtering machine or an adjustment of the water PH, depending on your plants. Familiarize yourself with the elevation of the plot/field you plan to irrigate, as it will determine how you size the system and adjust water flow. A 2.3-foot change in elevation, for instance, results in a gain of 1 pound of water pressure going downhill, or loss of 1 pound of pressure going uphill, requiring pressure compensation within the system on steep slopes. Topography, water flow rate and distance also will affect the size of pipes you’ll need.

Read: Success on bee keeping this is what you need to know

  • Will you automate your drip system? Depending on the complexity and size of the system, you may need to split watering times between different zones to water spaces incrementally, based on the output of your pump or the water needs of different crops. Automation ensures consistency in soil moisture and in flow, versus turning the water on and off at irregular intervals. The latter is important if you use the drip system to fertilize.
  • Think ahead. As plants mature, they require more water, which is especially important if you are irrigating perennial fruit crops. Build the system with the capacity to supply the optimum amount of water plants will need at maturity. If your irrigation water comes from the same well your home uses, the pressure tank may need to be upsized to reduce pump cycling and possible pump burnout. Or, you can irrigate at night when family water use is minimal.
  • Permit for expansion whilst putting in your device. For systems 1 and1/2 acre or larger, scaling for expansion up front will save money, as completely mounted pipes need to be buried underneath the frost line and the value of trenching in pipelines is high-priced. Customize your pipes to accommodate expansion as you increase your operations. Doubling the pipe diameter will quadruple the ability water float rate.

Read: Successful fish farming in Kenya

Drip irrigation is not a set-and-neglect-it solution. Systems need to be checked each day as emitters might also plug and rodents may additionally cause damage. The system additionally need to be drained to winterize it.