A Developed Criterion for Rationalizing On-Farm Irrigation Water Uses Under Arid Conditions

Arid ecosystems conditions could be characterized with dwindling water resources and growing competition for water will reduce water availability for agricultural development processing, while the need to meet growing food demands will require that more food is grown with less water. A more effective water and greaterwater-unit productivity will be a primary challenge for future development. Due to excess or deficient levels of water or nutrients could result in yield reductions, meanwhile, proper design and management processes of microirrigation system are essential for successful production. Systems must integrate soil-hydro-physical properties, crop root distribution characteristics, water requirements related to crop growth stage and environmental demand.

There is no doubt that the average crop yield is a function of the irrigation water application factors (application uniformity; depth of application and the amount of daily evapotranspiration supplied by rainfall), the hydraulicvariation of distributors as well as the crop sensitivity to the moisture stress. Application uniformity depends on the manufacture’s uniformity of the selected distributors, the hydraulic design and the systems maintenance program. Following early research into the amount of water required for crop production, water use efficiency becomes a widely used agronomic term to express the efficiency of production per unit of water required.