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Boost yields while
saving water
P
ioneered by Netafim in 1965, drip ir
rigation has become an established
irrigation technology that delivers
water and nutrients directly to the
plant root zone, minimising waste and im
proving crop performance. For decades,
drip irrigation has been used as a proven
method for watering high-value crops.
But it wasn’t until the 1990s that drip irri
gation expanded in such a way that it can
be used in row crops and in maize. Drip
irrigation is more than an irrigation method,
it’s a management tool that allows produc
ers to apply the precise amount of water
and nutrients directly to the root zone.
When used as a field management tool, drip
irrigation provides producers with preci
sion control over the root zone environ-
ment of their maize crop during the plant’s
critical growth stages.
This enables producers to maintain opti
mal uniform soil moisture levels with out
standing aeration while delivering precision
quantities of nutrients and water directly to
each plant’s root zone.
Drip irrigation is a highly flexible and ver
satile system and can have the following
unique characteristics to help make it a vi
able irrigation alternative for maize in many
growing scenarios:
Limited water resources: It increases
water use efficiency, since it creates no
evaporation or run-off, and the water is
directly applied to the root zone.
Drip irrigation fits all plot shapes and
sizes: Unlike centre pivots, it can be
used in odd-shaped and small fields.
It can achieve perfect water distribution
even on extreme slopes: Pressure-com
pensated drippers allow for uniform
water emission across all parts of the
plot, regardless of slope.
It is ideal for rainy areas due to efficient
fertilisation: Fertiliser application can
be divided into small portions that can
be administered more regularly, lead
ing to less nutrient loss due to leaching
caused by rain.
Drip irrigation requires the lowest
energy consumption: Drip irrigation
operates at low pressures, so it can sig
nificantly cut irrigation costs, compared
to other pressurised systems.
Drip irrigation is ideal for irrigating
uniformly under windy conditions: It is
unaffected by wind, unlike overhead ir
rigation systems.
Less weeds than an overhead irrigation
system: Saving in spraying of herbi
cides.
Operational: Easy access to the field at
any time for any purpose (the field is
not wet after irrigation as is the case
with overhead systems).
High yields with
limited water
In the evolving history of irrigating maize
with drip irrigation, the first areas world
wide that adopted the method were arid
and semi-arid locations where water scar
city is severe, and where rain during the
growing season is scarce or non-existent.
There has been a similar trend in parts of
the USA, especially in Nebraska, Texas and
Kansas. In those areas, the depletion of lo
cal aquifers has driven producers to look
for irrigation practices enabling them to
grow more maize with their limited water
resources.
From rain-fed to
drip irrigation
Next in line to have interest in drip irriga
tion, are the rain-fed maize producers. Tra
ditionally, they have grown crops according
to timely rainfall. Today, however, they un
derstand that to secure high and consistent
yields year over year, they need to irrigate.
Yields in these areas are not being driven to
new records, due to not only water aspects,
but also nutritional aspects.
In rainy areas, the leaching of nutrients and
the deficits they create limit high yields.
Therefore, the ability to spoon-feed the crop
with a drip irrigation system at any time and
with any amount of nutrients is critical in re
alising high yields.
Drip irrigated maize in
South Africa
Although drip irrigated maize is extremely
common in many parts of the world, it is
rare, even non-existent, when it comes to
growing maize in South Africa.
As the global leader in drip irrigation, we are
currently busy with several maize irrigation
trial sites in South Africa. Netafim South
Africa, along with local irrigation dealers,
has chosen the sites, which include loca
tions in the Free State, KwaZulu-Natal and
Mpumalanga.
Key factors for
consideration
Netafim has extensive experience in pro
viding advanced drip irrigation systems for
maize plots. To decide which system will
work best on your farm, the producer needs
to take the following key factors into consid
eration:
Water availability – source, quantity and
quality.
Electricity available at the water source.
Tillage practice.
Rotational crops.
Topography.
Reasons for switching to drip irrigation
– water saving, yield stabilising, labour
saving, energy saving, cost of system.
Own experience with drip irrigation.
25
October 2018
FoCus
Irrigation
Product information
Willem Botha,
marketing manager, Netafim South Africa
Drip irrigation for maize:
A maize field with drip
irrigation in Israel.