Your crops need adequate water to thrive and give a healthy harvest. Some years back, farmers in Kenya could comfortably rely on the rain patterns and have their plants supplied with the amount of water they need. However, due to global climate change, farmers have to find artificial ways to provide water to their crops. Several irrigation methods exist all aimed at enhancing farming and boosting productivity. Among them, drip irrigation stands out as the most efficient method.
Drip irrigation delivers appropriate amounts of water directly to the region around the crop’s rooting system. Therefore, the method conserves precious commodities including energy, time, and resources. Below are six benefits of using drip irrigation on your farm.
1. Conserves Water
A drip irrigation system delivers water directly to the root zone of your crops, thus ensuring each plant receives the amount it needs to thrive. Less water is lost through runoff and evaporation. As a farmer, you can be sure that a large percentage of the water you put aside for your crops indeed reaches the crop. Some methods such as flood irrigation expose water directly to the atmosphere leading to heavy losses through evaporation. Besides, sprinkler irrigation systems can lead to water wastage through run-off, evaporation, wind, and deep leaching. You can avoid these water losses by installing drip irrigation in your farm.
2. Prevents Microbial Growth
Wet foliage creates a conducive environment for fungal infections such as powdery mildew to thrive. Drip irrigation directs water to the plant roots while leaving the foliage dry. Your plants will have an ideal balance between moisture and air since the root zone remains moist but never saturated with water. Therefore, the method minimizes the spread of fungal infections. Further, it prevents unsightly brown spots on flowers that would occur if the water was directed toward the foliage zone.
3. Enhances Nutrient Control
When large volumes of water run off the soil surface, there is massive nutrient depletion. Nutrient-rich soil is washed away leaving infertile soil behind which pose a threat to crop yield. Drip irrigation reduce runoffs, thus conserving nutrients.
Besides, drip irrigation allows the integration of fertilizers into the system (fertigation), thus feeding the plant with water and nutrients simultaneously. The crops receive valuable nutrients directly from the root zone.
4. Saves on energy
Drip irrigation is a low-pressure system and thus requires less power to operate. The system do not require energy-intensive pumps to deliver water to the fields. Further, it uses less volume of water which requires relatively less energy. Other irrigation systems such as sprinklers require higher levels of pumping thus consuming more energy.
5. It is Scalable
Drip irrigation system is customizable to suit your crops regardless of where they are planted. It is suitable for crops planted in containers or on the ground, plants in the greenhouse or open field, vineyards, or even row crops. Further, you can use drip irrigation in any size of land from a kitchen garden to a large farm.
6. Provides a Flexible Watering Schedule
Drip irrigation will greatly save you time. You can attach a timer to the system and customize the watering schedule according to the climatic conditions. The system will open and close based on the crop water requirements. You can also adjust the flow rate of your system i.e., the amount of water flowing to each plant within a given time. This feature allows you to meet the needs of different plants and accurately provide them with the required amount of water.
Drip irrigation presents several attractive benefits that promote crop growth and maximize yield. Besides, the watering system is efficient, environmentally friendly, and cost-effective in the long run. These benefits are behind its increasing popularity among farmers in Kenya.