The advantage and Disadvantage of drip Irrigation The advantages of drip irrigation are: • Fertilizer and nutrient loss is minimized due to localized application and reduced leaching. • Water application efficiency is high. • Field levelling is not necessary. • Fields with irregular shapes are easily accommodated. • Recycled non-potable water can be safely used. • Moisture within the root zone can be maintained at field capacity. • Soil type plays less important role in frequency of irrigation. • Soil erosion is lessened. • Weed growth is lessened. • Water distribution is highly uniform, controlled by output of each nozzle. • Labour cost is less than other irrigation methods. • Variation in supply can be regulated by regulating the valves and drippers. • Fertigation can easily be included with minimal waste of fertilizers. • Foliage remains dry, reducing the risk of disease. • Usually operated at lower pressure than other types of pressurised irrigation, reducing energy costs. The disadvantages of drip irrigation are: • Expense: initial cost can be more than overhead systems. • Waste: the sun can affect the tubes used for drip irrigation, shortening their usable life. • Clogging: if the water is not properly filtered and the equipment not properly maintained, it can result in clogging. • Drip irrigation might be unsatisfactory if herbicides or top dressed fertilizers need sprinkler irrigation for activation. • Drip tape causes extra cleanup costs after harvest. Users need to plan for drip tape winding, disposal, recycling or reuse. • Waste of water, time and harvest, if not installed properly. These systems require careful study of all the relevant factors like land topography, soil, water, crop and agro-climatic conditions, and suitability of drip irrigation system and its components. • Germination problems: in lighter soils subsurface drip may be unable to wet the soil surface for germination. Requires careful consideration of the installation depth. • The main purpose of drip irrigation is to reduce the water consumption by reducing the leaching factor. However when the available water is of high salinity or alkalinity, the field soil becomes gradually unsuitable for cultivation due to high salinity or poor infiltration of the soil. Thus drip irrigation converts fields in to fallow lands when natural leaching by rain water is not adequate in semi arid and arid regions. • Salinity: most drip systems are designed for high efficiency, meaning little or no leaching fraction. Without sufficient leaching, salts applied with the irrigation water may build up in the root zone, usually at the edge of the wetting pattern. On the other hand, drip irrigation avoids the high capillary potential of traditional surface-applied irrigation, which can draw salt deposits up from deposits below. • Rodents: the PVC pipes often suffer from rodent damage, requiring replacement of the entire tube and increasing expenses.
Posted on: Fri, 22 Aug 2014 22:54:30 +0000
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