Subsurface Drip Irrigation Offers Water-Saving Alternatives
Western Kansas farmers Patrick House and Wendell Nicholas are using subsurface drip irrigation (SDI) to grow corn and conserve water.
With SDI, water is applied slowly to the roots of plants. Plastic drip tape is buried – usually 12 inches to 15 inches deep and 60 inches apart. The tape has evenly spaced emitters that disperse water at a set rate.
House, who farms near Goodland with his father Norman, recently harvested his fourth corn crop with the SDI system.
“The field previously was flood irrigated,” said House. With the flood system, you release enough water to fill the furrows in the field. “SDI is more efficient because there is no wind evaporation.”
“Also, you get to use your full acreage. With a center pivot irrigation system, water is dispersed in a circle and doesn’t get to the corners of the field.”
Nicholas from Stanton County has been using SDI for 13 growing seasons.
“The maintenance is minimal – about one repair for every 20 acres – and it uses about 50 percent less water,” said Nicholas. “The goals are to conserve water and maintain yield.” Both House and Nicholas have worked with K-State Research and Extension experts to install and maintain their systems.
Since 1989, Freddie Lamm, research irrigation engineer at the Northwest Research-Extension Center (NWREC) in Colby, has been developing techniques for successful application of subsurface drip irrigation. The overall objectives were to conserve water, to protect groundwater quality, and to develop sound methodologies for SDI.
When producers say that “Lamm wrote the book on SDI,” they are correct. He wrote the introduction and the chapter on SDI for a book published in 2006 called “Microirrigation for Crop Production – Design, Operation and Management.” The book has 15 chapters written by numerous international authors and is considered to be the leading international reference for microirrigation.
“There is a growing interest in SDI around the region, and it is amazing to see some of the progress many of the producers have obtained,” said Lamm. “They keep us refreshed with new ideas for research and extension of this efficient technology. It’s a relatively new technology, so we can learn from each other.”
The NWREC has about 20 acres of corn, alfalfa, grain sorghum, soybeans, and sunflowers dedicated to SDI, depending on the year. The Colby research site has plots with various dripline spacings and depths and also various emitter spacings and flowrates that are suitable for examining a wide range of various agronomic and engineering practices. The research data give producers information to make choices about whether SDI will work for them and how to set up the most efficient system.
During the recent drought years, germination with SDI has emerged as a problem, so K-State Research and Extension has initiated some new studies to try to alleviate this problem.
“Ninety-five percent of the time there is enough moisture in the spring for germination,” said Danny Rogers, irrigation engineer in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering. “But we had some recent years that were extremely dry.”
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Freddie Lamm 785-462-6281 |
Danny Rogers
785-532-2933 |
^In the photo: Patrick House, Goodland, checks the filter on his subsurface drip irrigation system.
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