Water distribution in soil and drip irrigation design

The principal objective of a drip irrigation system design is to choose the appropriate layout and components to obtain adequate distribution of water (and fertilizer) throughout the field. Based on this the contributions which are capable of furmishing the basic elements for the design of drip irrigation were evaluated using the TDR probes. The experiment was divided into two parts. In the first part, the effect of successive irrigations on the wetted volume (horizontal and vertical dimensions) were analyzed under laboratory conditions; and in the second one, the water infiltration and distribution processes were evaluated with respect to formation of the wetted volume in the field. It was concluded that: initial soil water content, applied volume, discharge rate, saturated disk and hydraulic conductivity are important elements and these must be known for an appropriate irrigation design and management.

wetted volume; water-soil relationship; TDR