Friday, February 27, 2009

Drip irrigation does increase yields


I'm working hard to finish my 2nd edition of Drip Irrigation, For Every Landscape & All Climates. (Thus the lack of entries on this blog. Spring is springing, yet water supplies are down 40-50%. Thus the need for drip irrigation.) I stumbled across some very exciting data that shows the reduced application of water via drip irrigation can actually lead to higher yields compared to furrow irrigation.

A study in Sri Lanka in 2002, found that with chilies, water use was down 34–50%, while production was up 33–48%. The researchers attributed this to irrigation that kept the soil moist, not too dry.

A study in New Mexico found amazing differences in yields compared to [respectively] furrow and drip irrigation: 18 pounds versus 30 pounds with cucumbers, 69 to 156 pounds growing Swiss chard, and 64 versus 166 pounds with green beans—to quote a bit of the study. [It is interesting to note that broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and carrots didn’t have any greater yields in the drip irrigation plots. Yet, a study at Oregon State University found a 20% increase in carrots compared to plots with sprinklers.]

From drips to bounty.

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3 comments:

Unknown said...

I'm working on setting up a drip irrigation system for my vegetable garden. From reading your blog, I've learned that it's best to water trees outside the drip line. With the smaller plants in my vegetable garden, is it okay to place the drip close to the center of the plant? Is one drip per plant enough?

Robert Kourik said...

It's OK to put the drip closer to vegies.I have used 3 lines in a 4-foot wide box & 2 in a 3-foot wide box for 30 yeras with no problems.

Unknown said...

I really enjoyed your blog! I recently opened my garden up to drip irrigation and I love it. I went to http://www.dripdepot.com for my supplies :-)