TKP3501

Farm Mechanization
& Irrigation

Topic :
Irrigation Methods

Dr. Wan Fazilah Fazlil Ilahi

Email: wanfazilah@upm.edu.my
 Learning outcomes

Students will be able to classify the different

irrigation methods/types available.
Students will be able to understand and calculate
the irrigation efficiencies of an irrigation system.
Students will be able to understand the criteria
needed to design an irrigation system.
Irrigation Methods
Irrigation

Surface Subsurface Micro

irrigation irrigation irrigation

Sprinkler

Drip
irrigation
Flooding Contour Farming Furrow
I. Surface Irrigation
 Most common type of irrigation.

 Water is applied to the field in varied quantities at

different times.

 Diverting a stream of water from the head of a field

into furrows or borders and allows to flow

downward.

 Supplemented with efficient water disposal system??

Syphon:

• To transport water or
dispose water from
furrows, ditch, plots.

• The syphon appears

to lift water up without
any power or energy.
A siphon can lift water,
but the energy comes
from potential energy.
Classification of surface irrigation

1. Flooding method:
• Water is allowed to cover the surface

of land in a continuous sheet.

• The flooding may be:

a) Wild flooding (uncontrolled flooding) :

• Primitive and most inefficient method.
• Water is spread over the smooth or flat field
without much control over the flow or prior
preparation.
b) Controlled flooding :
i. Free flooding (ordinary flooding) :
• Free flooding consists of dividing the entire land to be
irrigated into small strips by a number of field
channels or levees known as laterals.

• These laterals may be either at right angles to the

sides of the field or at right angles to the contour
lines.
ii. Contour laterals:
• Best suited to steeper terrain.
• This is a special case of free flooding in which the field
channels or laterals are aligned approximately along the
contour lines.
• In this method, irrigation is possible only on side of the
laterals.
iii. Border flooding:
• In this method, the agricultural area is divided into
series of long narrow strips known as border strips,
i.e. small bunds.
• This method is suitable when the area is at level with
gentle slope.
iv. Check flooding:
• In check flooding the crop area is divided into some
plots which are relatively levelled by checks or
bunds.
• Water from field channels is allowed to enter to
each plot or check basin and the plots are flooded
to the required depth.
v. Basin flooding:
• This method is used frequently to
irrigate the plantations. It is a
special type of check flooding
method.
• Each plant is enclosed by circular
channels which is called basin.
Basins are connected to small
field ditches.
• Ditches are fed from the main
supply channel.
vi. Zig-zag flooding:
• In this method, the agricultural area is sub-
divided into small plots by low bunds in a zig-zag
manner.
• The water is supplied to the plots from the field
channel through the openings.
• The water flows in a zig-zag way to cover the entire
area. When the desired depth is attained, the
openings are closed.
vii. Floor flooding:

• Use the concept of ebb

(flood and drain).
• A watertight concrete is
necessary for the floor
surface and it must be
installed as smooth as
possible to avoid pockets.
• PVC pipe with slots or
holes is usually installed in
the floor in the centre of the
bay to supply and remove
the water/nutrient solution.
2. Furrow method:
• Furrow irrigation avoids flooding the entire
field surface by channelling the flow along
furrows consists of a narrow ditch between the
rows of crops.
• Water is applied in small streams between
rows of crops, grown on ridges or in furrows.
3. Contour Farming
• Contour farming is practiced in hilly areas with
slopes and falling contour.
• The land is divided into series of horizontal
strips called terraces.
• Small bunds are constructed at the end of
each terrace to hold water up to equal
height.
Surface irrigation

Advantages Disadvantages
• Allows use of machinery for  Greater loss of water by
land preparations, surface runoff and deep
percolation.
cultivation and harvesting.
 Larger requirement of
• Helps to store the required water per unit area.
amount of water in the  Water is lost in infiltration
capillary zone of the soil for and deep percolation.
supply to the root zone of  Low efficiency due to
imperfect control over the
plants. water flow.
 Wasteful use of water.
II. Subsurface Irrigation
• Subsurface irrigation is the irrigation of crops through
buried plastic tubes containing embedded emitters
located at regular spacing.

• The sub surface irrigation method consists of supplying

water directly to the root zone of the plants.

• The favourable conditions for sub surface irrigation:

1.Moderate slope.
2.Uniform topographic condition.
3.Good quality of irrigation water .
4.Impervious sub-soil at reasonable depth. (i.e. 2-3m
depth).
 Classification of subsurface irrigation

1. Natural sub-irrigation:
• Applicable to low lying lands where the
water table is high.
• Water table is charged by seepage
from irrigation canals.
2. Artificial sub-irrigation:
• Very expensive method.

• Water under pressure provided to crops

by capillarity through a network of
buried perforated pipes.
Subsurface irrigation
Advantages Disadvantages

 Minimum water requirement  Requires a special

for raising crops and high combination of natural
yield. conditions.

 Minimum evaporation and  There is danger of

deep percolation losses. development of water logging
or clogging emitters.
 Involves no wastage of land.
 Possibility of choking of the
 No interference in free pipe laid underground.
movement of farm machinery.
 High cost.
 Cultivation operations can be
carried out without concern for
the irrigation period.
 Little field preparation and
labor.
III. Micro irrigation
• For delivering slow, frequent applications of water to the
soil using a low pressure distribution system and special
flow control outlets.
• Also refer to as drip or trickle irrigation which have a
similar design and management criteria.
• The outlets are placed at short intervals along small
tubing, an unlike surface or sprinkler irrigation only the soil
neat the plant is watered.
• The outlets include emitters, bubblers and sprays or micro
sprinklers with flows ranging from 2 to 10 L/h.
Micro irrigation
Advantages Disadvantages
• Water saving • High initial cost
• Reduced losses • Limited to high – value crops
• Uniform water distribution
• Over-irrigation avoided • Emitters are likely to clog
• No land levelling • High skill is required for
• Application rate to suit need design, installation,
• No soil erosion
operation and
• Weed control
• Land saving maintenance
• Uninterrupted cultivation
operation
• Higher yield
• Improved water penetration
• Energy saving
IV. Sprinkler Irrigation

• Sprinkler irrigation is a method of applying irrigation

water which is similar to natural rainfall.

• Water is distributed through a system of pipes usually by

pumping. It is then sprayed into the air through
sprinklers so that it breaks up into small water drops
which fall to the ground.
Sprinkler irrigation
Advantages Disadvantages
• irrigates more land • Poor application efficiency
• Effective water management in windy weather and high
• Land levelling not necessary temperature
• Instant irrigation • Higher evaporation losses in
• Uniform application spraying water
• Can be applied to areas of • Not suitable for jute or rice
variable topography • Water supply free of solids and
debris is needed
• Uniformity coefficient is low
• Poor distribution efficiency
• Nozzles need screened water
supply
Common Irrigation layout
Irrigation Efficiencies

Three basic irrigation efficiency concepts:

1) Water conveyance efficiency

2) Water application efficiency

3) Water use efficiency

1) Water conveyance efficiency
Ec = Wd / Wi x 100

Wd = water delivered by a distribution system

Wi = water introduced into the distribution system

• Can be applied along any reach of a

distribution system.
• E.g. a water conveyance efficiency can be
calculated from a pump discharge to a given
field or from a major diversion work to a farm
turnout.
2) Water application efficiency
Ea = Ws / Wd x 100

Ws = water stored in the soil root zone by irrigation

Wd = water delivered to the area being irrigated

• Can be calculated for an entire field or for an entire

farm or project or individual area.
3) Water use efficiency
Eu = Wu / Wd x 100

Wu = water beneficially used

Wd = water delivered to the area being irrigated

• Water use efficiency is base on a dry plant weight

produced by a unit volume of water.
Exercise

If 42 m3/s is pumped into a distribution system

and 38 m3/s is delivered to a turnout 3 km from
the pumps, what is the conveyance efficiency of
the portion of the distribution system used in
conveying this water?
Solution:

Ec = (38/42) * 100 = 90%

Exercise

Delivery of 0.5 m3/s to a 30 ha field is continued for

40 hr. Tailwater flow is estimated at 0.1 m3/s. Soil
water measurement after the irrigation indicates that
0.16 m of water has been stored in the root zone.
Compute the irrigation application efficiency?
Solution:

Wd = (0.5) * ( 3600 s/h) * (40 hr) = 72 000 m3

Ws = (0.16) * (30 ha) * (10 000 m2/ha) = 48 000 m3

Ea = (48 000/72 000) * 100 = 67%

Irrigation System Selection
The suitability of the various irrigation methods, i.e.
surface, sprinkler or drip irrigation, depends mainly on
the following factors:
- natural conditions (soil, climate, water availability
& quantity, slope)
- type of crop
- type of technology
- previous experience with irrigation
- required labour inputs
- costs and benefits.
Irrigation System Design
a step wise approach

Step 1 Step 2
Size tertiary unit Project boundaries

Step 3
Infrastructure
(secondary canals/drains/roads)
LEGEND:
Main intake
Secondary
intake
Tertiary unit
• Step 1: size and irrigation requirements of farms 
size and irrigation requirement of tertiary unit

• Step 2: water availability; alignment and capacity of

main canal and drain; take into account boundaries
(physical and property, i.e. villages, existing
depressions and elevated areas, etc)

• Step 3: Make lay-out of tertiary units in project area

(establish required water level at intake tert.canal),
secondary canals and drains plus roads (lay-
out+wl); develop O&M schedule; cost estimation

Sequence: start with 1 or 2, than do 3; use outcome

of 3 to modify 1 and 2 and redo 3 again;
repeat as many times as needed
SCL 2 (PBL) – Irrigation System Design

Sit in your group..

Discuss all the three steps involve in

irrigation design.
Step 1
• Establish:
• Crop cropping calender
• Irrigation method
• Farm size
• Night irrigation
• Mono cropping
• Landownership
• Continuous or rotation or on-demand
• Water delivery schedule
(frequency/quantity/duration)

Calculate farm size

Step 2
• Establish:
• Physical caracteristics
• Farmers wishes / situation
• Climate
• Soils
• Available water
• Topography and special features (burrial
grounds/depressions/existing infrastructure/

 boundaries, irrigated areas, water source,

intake point, alignment main canal
Step 3

• Based on info from step 1 and 2:

establish :
- lay-out tertiary units in project area (water
level at intake??)
- secondary canal lay out + wl
- main + secondary drains
- accessability of area (roads)
- operation and Maintenance system and
organisation
- cost estimate
 Question / Review
•What is the best method in reducing the
water usage in irrigation for row crop
production?
•What are the basic irrigation efficiencies?
THANK YOU