Irrigation Water Management: Irrigation Methods













Table of Contents


Training manual no 5

Provisional edition

a manual prepared jointly
by
C. Brouwer
International Institute
for Land Reclamation and Improvement

and

K. Prins, Consultant
M. Kay, Consultant
M. Heibloem

FAO Land and Water
Development Division

FAO - FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS

Drawings by J. Van Dijk, The International Institute for Land Reclamation and Improvement, Wageningen, The Netherlands

The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. Applications for such permission, with a statement of the purpose and extent of the reproduction, should be addressed to the Director, Publications Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Via delle Terme di Caracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy.

This electronic document has been scanned using optical character recognition (OCR) software and careful manual recorrection. Even if the quality of digitalisation is high, the FAO declines all responsibility for any discrepancies that may exist between the present document and its original printed version.


Table of Contents


PREFACE

CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Surface Irrigation
1.2 Sprinkler Irrigation
1.3 Drip Irrigation
1.4 Functioning of Irrigation Systems

CHAPTER 2. BASIN IRRIGATION

2.1 When to Use Basin Irrigation

2.1.1 Suitable crops
2.1.2 Suitable land slopes
2.1.3 Suitable soils

2.2 Basin Layout

2.2.1 Shape and size of basins
2.2.2 Shape and dimensions of bunds

2.3 Basin Construction
2.4 Irrigating Basins

2.4.1 Wetting patterns

2.5 Maintenance of Basins

CHAPTER 3. FURROW IRRIGATION

3.1 When to Use Furrow Irrigation

3.1.1 Suitable crops
3.1.2 Suitable slopes
3.1.3 Suitable soils

3.2 Furrow Layout

3.2.1 Furrow length
3.2.2 Furrow shape
3.2.3 Furrow spacing

3.3 Furrow Construction
3.4 Irrigating Furrows

3.4.1 Wetting patterns

3.5 Planting Techniques
3.6 Maintenance of Furrows

CHAPTER 4. BORDER IRRIGATION

4.1 When to Use Border Irrigation
4.2 Border Layout
4.3 Irrigating Borders

4.3.1 Wetting patterns

4.4 Maintenance of Borders

CHAPTER 5. SPRINKLER IRRIGATION

5.1 When to Use Sprinkler Irrigation

5.1.1 Suitable crops
5.1.2 Suitable slopes
5.1.3 Suitable soils
5.1.4 Suitable irrigation water

5.2 Sprinkler System Layout
5.3 Operating Sprinkler Systems

5.3.1 Wetting patterns
5.3.2 Application rate
5.3.3 Sprinkler drop sizes

CHAPTER 6. DRIP IRRIGATION

6.1 When to Use Drip Irrigation

6.1.1 Suitable crops
6.1.2 Suitable slopes
6.1.3 Suitable soils
6.1.4 Suitable irrigation water

6.2 Drip System Layout
6.3 Operating Drip Systems

6.3.1 Wetting patterns

CHAPTER 7. CHOOSING AN IRRIGATION METHOD

7.1 Surface, Sprinkler or Drip Irrigation
7.2 Basin, Furrow or Border Irrigation

Annex 1 Field intakes and measuring siphon discharge

Annex 2 Infiltration rate and infiltration test

Annex 3 Quarter time rule and irrigation time

Annex 4 Evaluation of irrigation performance

Suggested further reading