Drip Irrigation Information Guide

Introduction to Drip Irrigation:- What is drip irrigation? Well, drip irrigation is a form of irrigation that saves water and makes use of manure / fertilizer efficiently by allowing water to draw slowly to the roots of plants / trees, either onto the soil surface or directly onto the root area of plant. The drip irrigation works through a network of valves, pipes, tubing, and emitters. It is done through narrow tubes that deliver water directly to the base of the plant / tree. Drip irrigation system may also use devices called “micro-spray heads”. This device sprays water in a small area of field instead of dripping the water from emitters.

Generally, this type of spray heads is used on tree and vine crops with wider root zones. In case of little water availably or recycled water utilization, sub-surface drip irrigation (SDI) uses permanently or temporarily buried dripper line or drip tape located at or below the plant roots. In order to find out suitable drip irrigation system to be installed, One should consider factors like land topography, soil, water, crop and agro-climatic conditions. Drip system can be used in most of the farming methods like commercial greenhouse farming, residential gardens, polyhouse farming, shade net farming, hydroponics and open field farming. Drip irrigation will be more beneficial when compared to sprinkler irrigation system. Drip and subsurface drip irrigation is used when using waste water. Generally, large drip irrigation system consists of some kind of filters to prevent clogging of the small emitter flow path by small water borne particles. Now days, once can get drip systems which minimize the clogging. Currently, drip irrigation for home garden is available in the form of drip kits and these are getting popular for the home owners. This kit consists of a timer, hose and emitter.

Drip Irrigation.

Main Components involved in Drip Irrigation:- The following components are used as part of drip irrigation system.

• Pump
• Filtration systems like water filter, sand filter (separator), Fertigation systems (mixing liquid fertilizer with the irrigation water is called “Fertigation”).
• Pressure Controller (Like Pressure Control valve/regulator).
• Back water flow prevention unit.
• Large Pipe and Pipe fittings (Main line Pipes).
• Hydraulic control valves and safety valves.
• Smaller diameter poly-tube which is referred to as “laterals”.
• Poly fittings and accessories to make drip connections.
• Emitters or drippers, micro spray head, in-line dripper or in-line drip tube.

Note: In drip system, pump and valves may be operated manually or automatically.

Advantages of Drip Irrigation:- The following are the advantages of drip irrigation system.

• Useful in areas where water availability is a major problem.
• Increase in yield and early maturity of crop can be expected.
• Reduces Fertilizer/Nutrient loss due to localized application.
• Makes use of water in highly efficient way.
• Drip irrigation makes intercultural operations easy.
• Water distribution is done uniformly and directly to plant root zone.
• Controls weed growth and soil erosion.
• Land/fields with irregular shapes can utilize drip system very effectively.
• Recycled of waste water can be used without any issue.
• Can save the labour cost when compared to other irrigation methods.
• Reduces the risk of plant and soil borne diseases.
• It can be operated at lower pressure which may reduce energy consumption cost.
• There is no need of levelling the land to be cultivated.
• Because of uniform distribution of water, the plant root zone can be maintained with constant moisture capacity.
• Fertigation (Pumping the fertilizer along with irrigated water through drip system) can be done with minimal waste of fertilizers/micro-nutrients.
• Water output variation can be controlled very easily by operating valves and drippers.
• Due to drip system, soil type plays minimal role in frequency of irrigation.
• Ultimately, drip system saves time and money.

Growing Bell Pepper (Capsicum) Using Drip Irrigation.

Disadvantages of Drip irrigation:- The following disadvantages of drip irrigation system.

• Cost of drip system can be more when compared to overhead systems. However, one can avail subsidies provided by local government schemes.
• Drip system cannot be used for frost control, unlike sprinkler system.
• The drip tube system can have shorter life as they are exposed to sun light.
• Without proper / sufficient leaching, salts applied with the irrigation water through drip may build up in the root zone of the plant.
• If the filtration is not done properly, it can result in clogging.
• If herbicides or top dressed fertilizers need sprinkler irrigation, drip system may not fit into the situation.
• The PVC pipes may require replacement of the entire tube and can result in increasing maintenance cost.
• Extreme care is needed while setting up a drip irrigation system such as proper design, installation and quality material.
• Drip tape causes extra clean-up tasks frequently which can result in increase of maintenance cost.

Drip Irrigation Vs Sprinkler Irrigation:- Drip irrigation is more beneficial when compared to drip irrigation. The following are the main disadvantages of sprinkler system.

• Sprinkler system results in uneven water application from wind and extreme temperatures.
• There may be water loss from evaporation during irrigation through sprinklers.
• Sprinkler system causes wetting of foliage (collection of plant leaves). This leads to increased risk of disease and fungi growth.
• Improperly maintained sprinkler spray angles near buildings and walkways can damage fixtures.

Cost of Drip irrigation:- Cost of drip irrigation depends on the region/area. Here we are providing rough (ballpark) estimate which will cover from low to high range. However, they may change time to time because of market conditions. Some countries like India is providing up to 90% of subsidy for small farmers who are holding less than 5 acres land. Contact your agriculture department for subsidy information.

Item Details	Quantity	Low	High
Drip Irrigation System Cost Non-discounted retail pricing for: PVC connector piping/tubing, drip elements, solenoid operated zone valves and timer. Quantity includes typical waste overage, material for repair and local delivery	125 square feet	$53	$80
Drip Irrigation System Labor Cost Labor estimate to install drip irrigation system. Connect pressure regulator to power supply. Route main tubing. Install drip lines with drip or spray fitting at 1m/3 feet intervals. This Includes planning, equipment and material acquisition, area preparation and protection, set-up and clean-up	4 hours	$105	$260
Drip Irrigation System Materials and Supplies Cost Cost of connectors, fittings, adhesives and fabrication solvents.	125 square feet	$10	$30
Total Cost to Install Drip Irrigation System for 125 square feet		$178	$370
Average Cost Per Square Foot of Drip System		$1.424	$2.96

Hydroponic Drip System.

Cost of Drip irrigation for Indian Farmers:- Generally, drip Irrigation provides the facility to irrigate the plants at the root zone through emitters fitted on a network of pipes. The emitting devices could be drippers, micro jets, misters, fan jets, micro sprinklers, mini sprinklers, micro sprayers, foggers and emitting pipes, which are designed to discharge water at prescribed rates. Basically, the use of emitters depends on specific requirements that may vary for each crop. Generally, the factors that decide the  choice of the emitting system are; water requirement, age of plant, spacing, soil type, water quality.

Sometimes micro-tubes are also used as an emitter, though it is inefficient. All types of surface and subsurface irrigation systems are covered under micro irrigation. An indicative list of system components required for installing a drip irrigation system in areas ranging from 0.4 ha to 5 hectares is given in below table. The estimated cost of drip Irrigation system in India is given in Indian Rupees here.

Spacing in meters	Area in Hectares
	0.4	1	2	3	4	5
12mx12m	10,700	16,800	25,400	32,700	53,900	71,500
10mx10m	12,200	18,200	27,900	36,100	58,200	77,100
9mx9m	12,500	22,300	35,700	56,000	61,700	81,300
8mx8m	13,000	20,100	31,400	41,700	65,700	86,300
6mx6m	14,400	30,300	51,300	70,300	1,05,900	1,37,500
5mx5m	15,100	32,900	56,700	83,100	1,17,300	1,50,800
4mx4m	16,900	39,400	63,200	1,00,700	1,42,400	1,79,400
3mx3m	17,900	35,700	71,400	96,100	1,30,900	1,58,400
3mx1.5m	19,700	40,100	80,500	1,09,700	1,46,300	1,80,900
2.5mx2.5m	20,000	39,900	81,400	1,11,200	1,99,700	2,39,600
2mx2m	21,400	49,900	86,400	1,22,700	1,65,000	2,23,400
1.5mx1.5m	26,100	55,000	10,9500	1,65,100	2,06,000	2,81,000
1mx1m	26,500	57,600	96,500	1,46,500	2,00,000	2,49,300

Basically, the unit cost of Drip Irrigation system depends on plant spacing and location of the water source. Another fact is that cost of the drip system differs from each state. Accordingly, the States have been categorized into three categories, like Category “A”, “B” and “C”. States in India where more than 10,000 hectares have been brought under drip irrigation as on 1.4.2004 would come under ‘A’ Category.

This would include the States of Andhra Pradesh (AP), Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. All the States except those covered under Category ‘A’ and those falling in the Himalayan belt comes under Category ‘B’. All the North Eastern States, Sikkim, Jammu and Kashmir (J&K),

Uttaranchal, HP (Himachal Pradesh), and Darjeeling district of West Bengal comes under Category ‘C’. the cost of drip system in Category ‘B’ States is estimated to be 15 to 16% higher than Category ‘A’ States while for Category ‘C’ States it is estimated to be 25 to 26% higher than Category ‘A’ States. Accordingly, the average unit cost of drip irrigation system for different state categories in India is provided below.

Using Drip Irrigation in Greenhouse -Polyhouse.

State Category	Average Cost, Indian Rupees / ha
A	40, 000
B	46,000 to 47,000
C	50,000 to 5100

Subsidy on Drip irrigation:-The following subsidy information is applicable for Indian farmers/growers. However, you can contact your local horticulture/agriculture departments for current subsidy information on agriculture drip system. Centrally Sponsored Schemes and State government schemes are available for drip system subsidy in India. This subsidy varies from state to state and extent of the land owned by farmer

• Farmers with holding up to 2.5 acres of dry land or 1.5 acres of wet land are defined as Marginal
• Farmers & eligible up to 90% of subsidy. However, it varies from state to state, contact your local horticulture/agriculture department.
• Farmers with holding up to 5 acres of dry land or up to 2.5 acres of wet land are defined as Small
• Farmers & eligible up to 90% of subsidy. However, it varies from state to state; contact your local horticulture/agriculture department.
• Farmers with land holding above 5 acres of dry land or above 2.5 acres of wet land are defined as Other
• Farmers & eligible up to 60 to 80% subsidy. However, it varies from state to state; contact your local horticulture/agriculture department.

The following criteria should explain about Farmer’s eligibility.

• 16% of the total financial target shall be covered by schedule caste farmers.
• 55% of the total financial target shall be covered by schedule Tribes farmers.
• Not less than 25% of total financial target shall be covered by BC farmers.
• Not less than 50% of the total financial target shall be covered by SF/MF farmers;
• Not exceeding 10% of financial target shall be covered by other farmers (more than 5 acres land holding).
• Generally, preference is given to Small and Marginal Farmers, SC/ST/BC/Women and differentially abides (PH) farmers

Note: The above given information may not be accurate but rough estimate, Please contact local horticulture/agriculture technical department for current schemes/subsides/loans and other information.

Bottom line:- Properly designed, installed, and managed, drip irrigation system helps in achieving water conservation and efficiently using fertilizers/manures.