Crop production with limited irrigation: A review

Abstract

When water supplies are restricted, so that full evapotranspiration demands cannot be met, limited irrigation is practised. Management strategy of limited irrigation is to optimise production per unit of applied water rather than to maximise yield per unit of land. Principles that help to facilitate limited irrigation strategies can be broadly grouped into three: agricultural water management, crop considerations and agronomic options. When anticipating low water year, choose crops which maximise production with limited water. In decreasing order of efficiency, short season indeterminate and long season indeterminate crops should be chosen judiciously. Deficit irrigation practices, localised irrigation methods, reducing water losses,conjunctive use of water resources etc can help minimise yield losses due to soil moisture stress. Additional agronomic management options that can maximise production include conservation tillage, advancing or delaying planting dates in order to coincide the crop’s critical period with water availability, decreasing plant competition byreducing seeding density and controlling weeds. Available options to address the challenge of limited irrigation have been briefly presented.

Design optimization of communal solar powered irrigation system

“…Hence, increase in pump utilization rate from 30 to 40% and water saving of up to 35% which is critical in areas with water scarcity. The results from this approach are similar with those obtained by Reddy and Nayak (2018).…”

Comparative Screening of Hybrids and Synthetic Maize (Zea mays L.) Cultivars for Drought-Sensitive and Drought-Tolerant Under Different Irrigation Regimes

“…Water stress reduces plant height (Soler et al, 2007) and leaf area (Pandey et al, 2000) by limiting cell division and leaf growth (Reymond et al, 2003). Depending upon climate conditions, maize requires about 600-700 mm water for optimum crop yield and growth (Reddy & Nayak, 2018). Drought conditions affect the growth and production of maize crops at any stage of their development (Paudyal, 2001).…”

Modelling Techniques for Conjunctive Water Management: A Review

“…India is a water-stressed country with a per capita water availability of 1544 m 3 (Dhawan, 2017). As in other developing countries in India also almost 85% of water is used in the field of agriculture, mainly for irrigation (Reddy and Nayak, 2018). Irrigated agriculture is necessary to produce enough food for the growing population.…”

“…The risk due to the stochastic nature of surface water supply is not there in conj unctive water use (Montazar et al, 2010). An increase in agricultural productivity, improved use of water sources with reduced degradation, adaptation to climate variation, reduced fluctuation of groundwater level and reduced environmental impact are the major advantages of conjunctive use of water (Bejranonda et al, 2011;Singh, 2014;Rezaei et al, 2016;Reddy and Nayak, 2018;Soares et al, 2019) Farmers usually combine the surface water and groundwater use in an unscientific manner. Sustainability and optimal use of water resources may not be considered.…”