Global reach and market leaders

As of 2012, China and India were the fastest expanding countries in the field of drip- or other
micro-irrigation, while worldwide well over ten million hectares utilised these technologies.[13]
Still, this amounted to less than 4 percent of the world's irrigated land.[13] That year, Israel's
Netafim was the global market leader (a position it maintained in 2018[14]), with India's Jain
Irrigation being the second-biggest micro-irrigation company.[13]

Components and operation

Drip irrigation system layout and its parts

Play media
Water distribution in subsurface drip irrigation

Nursery flowers watered with drip irrigation in Israel

Horticulture drip emitter in a pot

Components used in drip irrigation (listed in order from water source) include:

 Pump or pressurized water source

 Water filter(s) or filtration systems: sand separator, Fertigation systems (Venturi injector)
and chemigation equipment (optional)
 Backwash controller (Backflow prevention device)
 Pressure Control Valve (pressure regulator)
 Distribution lines (main larger diameter pipe, maybe secondary smaller, pipe fittings)
 Hand-operated, electronic, or hydraulic control valves and safety valves
 Smaller diameter polyethylene tube (often called "laterals")
 Poly fittings and accessories (to make connections)
 Emitting devices at plants (emitter or dripper, micro spray head, inline dripper or inline
drip tube)

In drip irrigation systems, pump and valves may be manually or automatically operated by a
controller.

Most large drip irrigation systems employ some type of filter to prevent clogging of the small
emitter flow path by small waterborne particles. New technologies are now being offered that
minimize clogging. Some residential systems are installed without additional filters since potable
water is already filtered at the water treatment plant. Virtually all drip irrigation equipment
manufacturers recommend that filters be employed and generally will not honor warranties
unless this is done. Last line filters just before the final delivery pipe are strongly recommended
in addition to any other filtration system due to fine particle settlement and accidental insertion
of particles in the intermediate lines.

Drip and subsurface drip irrigation is used almost exclusively when using recycled municipal
wastewater. Regulations typically do not permit spraying water through the air that has not been
fully treated to potable water standards.

Because of the way the water is applied in a drip system, traditional surface applications of
timed-release fertilizer are sometimes ineffective, so drip systems often mix liquid fertilizer with
the irrigation water. This is called fertigation; fertigation and chemigation (application of
pesticides and other chemicals to periodically clean out the system, such as chlorine or sulfuric
acid) use chemical injectors such as diaphragm pumps, piston pumps, or aspirators. The
chemicals may be added constantly whenever the system is irrigating or at intervals. Fertilizer
savings of up to 95% are being reported from recent university field tests using drip fertigation
and slow water delivery as compared to timed-release and irrigation by micro spray heads.

Properly designed, installed, and managed, drip irrigation may help achieve water conservation
by reducing evaporation and deep drainage when compared to other types of irrigation such as
flood or overhead sprinklers since water can be more precisely applied to the plant roots. In
addition, drip can eliminate many diseases that are spread through water contact with the foliage.
Finally, in regions where water supplies are severely limited, there may be no actual water
savings, but rather simply an increase in production while using the same amount of water as
before. In very arid regions or on sandy soils, the preferred method is to apply the irrigation
water as slowly as possible.

Pulsed irrigation is sometimes used to decrease the amount of water delivered to the plant at any
one time, thus reducing runoff or deep percolation. Pulsed systems are typically expensive and
require extensive maintenance. Therefore, the latest efforts by emitter manufacturers are focused
on developing new technologies that deliver irrigation water at ultra-low flow rates, i.e. less than
1.0 liter per hour. Slow and even delivery further improves water use efficiency without
incurring the expense and complexity of pulsed delivery equipment.

An emitting pipe is a type of drip irrigation tubing with emitters pre-installed at the factory with
specific distance and flow per hour as per crop distance.

An emitter restricts water flow passage through it, thus creating head loss required (to the extent
of atmospheric pressure) in order to emit water in the form of droplets. This head loss is achieved
by friction/turbulence within the emitter.

Advantages and disadvantages

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Drip irrigation and spare drip irrigation tubes in banana farm at Chinawal, India
Pot irrigation by On-line drippers

Pressure compensated integral dripper on soilless without growing channels

The advantages of drip irrigation are:

 Fertilizer and nutrient loss is minimized due to a localized application and reduced the
leaching.
 Water application efficiency is high if managed correctly.
 Field leveling is not necessary.
 Fields with irregular shapes are easily accommodated.
 Recycled non-potable water can be safely used.
 Moisture within the root zone can be maintained at field capacity.
 Soil type plays a less important role in the frequency of irrigation.
 Soil erosion is lessened.
 Weed growth is lessened.
 Water distribution is highly uniform, controlled by the output of each nozzle.
 Labour cost is less than other irrigation methods.
 Variation in supply can be regulated by regulating the valves and drippers.
 Fertigation can easily be included with minimal waste of fertilizers.
 Foliage remains dry, reducing the risk of disease.
 Usually operated at lower pressure than other types of pressurized irrigation, reducing
energy costs.

The disadvantages of drip irrigation are:

 Initial cost can be more than overhead systems.

 The sun can affect the tubes used for drip irrigation, shortening their lifespan. (See
Polymer degradation);
  The risks of degrading plastic affecting the soil content and food crops. With many types
of plastic, when the sun degrades the plastic, causing it to become brittle, the estrogenic
chemicals (that is, chemicals replicating female hormones) which would cause the plastic
to retain flexibility have been released into the surrounding environment.[15]
 If the water is not properly filtered and the equipment not properly maintained, it can
result in clogging or bioclogging.
 For subsurface drip the irrigator cannot see the water that is applied. This may lead to the
farmer either applying too much water (low efficiency) or an insufficient amount of
water, this is particularly common for those with less experience with drip irrigation.
 Drip irrigation might be unsatisfactory if herbicides or top dressed fertilizers need
sprinkler irrigation for activation.
 Drip tape causes extra cleanup costs after harvest. Users need to plan for drip tape
winding, disposal, recycling or reuse.
 Waste of water, time and harvest, if not installed properly. These systems require careful
study of all the relevant factors like land topography, soil, water, crop and agro-climatic
conditions, and suitability of drip irrigation system and its components.
 In lighter soils subsurface drip may be unable to wet the soil surface for germination.
Requires careful consideration of the installation depth.
 Most drip systems are designed for high efficiency, meaning little or no leaching fraction.
Without sufficient leaching, salts applied with the irrigation water may build up in the
root zone, usually at the edge of the wetting pattern. On the other hand, drip irrigation
avoids the high capillary potential of traditional surface-applied irrigation, which can
draw salt deposits up from deposits below.
 The PVC pipes often suffer from rodent damage, requiring replacement of the entire tube
and increasing expenses.
 Drip irrigation systems cannot be used for damage control by night frosts (like in the case
of sprinkler irrigation systems)

Drip tape
Drip tape is a type of thin-walled dripperline used in drip irrigation. The first drip tape was
known as "Dew Hose".[16]

Drip tape duct tape is made of polyethylene and is sold flat on reels. The wall thickness typically
ranges from 4 to 25 mils (0.1–0.6 mm). Thicker walled tapes are commonly used for permanent
subsurface drip irrigation and thinner walled tapes for temporary throw-away type systems in
high-value crops.

Water exits from tape through emitters or drippers. The typical emitter spacing ranges from 6 to
24 inches (150–600 mm). In some products, the emitters are manufactured simultaneously with
the tape and are actually formed as part of the product itself. In others, the emitters are
manufactured separately and installed at the time of production.

Some product is not a tape, but a thin-walled dripperline, but in popular parlance, both types of
products are called tapes. Typical tape diameters are 5/8", 7/8", and 1-3/8", with the larger
diameters more commonly used on permanent installations with longer runs.
Drip tape is a recyclable material and can be recycled into viable plastic resins for reuse in the
plastics manufacturing industry.

Uses

Irrigation dripper

Drip irrigation is used in farms, commercial greenhouses, and residential gardens. Drip irrigation
is adopted extensively in areas of acute water scarcity and especially for crops and trees such as
coconuts, containerized landscape trees, grapes, bananas, ber, eggplant, citrus, strawberries,
sugarcane, cotton, maize, and tomatoes.

Drip irrigation for garden available in drip kits are increasingly popular for the homeowner and
consist of a timer, hose and emitter. Hoses that are 4 mm in diameter are used to irrigate flower
pots.
 2

.10 Drip Irrigation - India

Introduction

Drip irrigation is of recent origin, and, in India, is being used on a limited scale in Tamil Nadu,
Karnataka, Kerala and Maharashtra States, mainly for coconut, coffee, grape and vegetable production.
Drip irrigation systems (DIS) are extremely effective in arid and drought prone areas where water is
scarce, and have been used experimentally in India for over 15 years: in the States of Tamil Nadu,
Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Andhra Pradesh, progressive farmers started using this method of irrigation
in the late-1970s without the benefit of any subsidies or support from central or state governments.
However, as a result of subsequent, sustained efforts by the state and central governments, agricultural
universities, and private sector manufacturers, use of drip irrigation systems spread through the drought
prone areas of southern and western India. The use of DIS, however, is primarily to irrigate high value,
horticultural crops. In states like Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu, DIS are sometimes used for
irrigation of vegetable and other commercial crops. The sharp rise in the area under DIS irrigation
between 1988 and 1989 is due, in large part, to the significant increase in the use of these systems in the
Maharashtra State.

Technical Description

Drip irrigation systems deliver water and agrochemicals (e.g., fertilizers and pesticides) directly to the
root zones of the irrigated plants at a rate best suited to meet the needs of the plants being irrigated. Thus,
this system makes efficient use of water, especially when compared to conventional methods of irrigation
such as furrow, border, basin and sprinkler irrigation systems, which, under arid and drought conditions,
suffer from an high rate of water loss and have a low degree of water use efficiency.

Extent of Use

Drip irrigation systems are used throughout the arid parts of India, especially in Maharashtra, Haryana,
Meghalaya, and Rajasthan. At Rahuri, in Maharashtra State, the use of drip irrigation of pomegranates,
grown in gravely soils, resulted in a savings of about 44 cm of irrigation water, or 44%, over the
conventional check basin irrigation systems previously used, as shown in Table 43. The water use
efficiency was also much higher using the drip method of irrigation, especially when combined with the
use of mulch, which effected a further savings of irrigation water of 14% when compared to un-mulched
plots. Similarly, at Dapoli in the Konkan Region of Maharashtra State, where, despite an annual rainfall
of about 4 000 mm, the period between December and May is often a time of severe drought, drip
irrigation systems were used to irrigate mango and cashew crops. The soils of the Region are highly
porous laterites, which are poorly suited to supporting conventional, pond-fed irrigated agriculture,
particularly of row crops. Nevertheless, the Region has an high potential for the production of crops like
mangoes and cashews. However, to establish mango or cashew orchards, it is essential to provide
adequate water during the first two to three years after transplanting the seedlings, which, during the dry
season, can only be supplied through irrigation. In the mango orchards, an indigenously designed drip
irrigation system was installed using a common, earthen pitcher placed at an higher elevation than the
plants and a siphon to direct the water to the trees by means of two to three drippers per stem. This
system helped to quickly establish the orchards, with a considerable savings in irrigation water compared
to prevalent practice of hand watering the trees. As shown in Table 44, there was also substantial
improvement in plant growth, as measured by height, girth, and plant spread, using drip irrigation
compared to the conventional hand watering method. The application of about 45 l/plant/week of water
appeared optimal.

In Haryana and Rajasthan States, drip irrigation of potatoes grown in loamy sand soils at Jobner, of onions,
sugar beets, and potatoes grown in sandy loam soils at Hissar, and of bhindi and sugarcane grown in clay
soils at Rahuri (clay soil) resulted in improved crop yields and a savings in irrigation water of between 18%
and 40%, except at Jobner where few differences were apparent between irrigation methods used.
Nevertheless, there was substantial improvement in the water use efficiency of the crops at all three
centres.

TABLE 43. Yield of Pomegranates Using Different Irrigation Methods on Gravel Soils.

TABLE 44. Effect of Drip Irrigation on the Growth of Mango Plants.

Similarly, at Hissar, the use of drip irrigation systems supplied with irrigation water from a poor quality source
(having an electrical conductivity of 6.5 mmhos/cm) resulted in only a 12% decrease in the yield of radishes
using drip irrigation compared to surface irrigation methods using the same poor quality source water, which
resulted in a decrease in yield of 39.5%. Even under these conditions, water use efficiency increased almost
threefold with drip irrigation compared to conventional surface irrigation techniques as shown in Table 46. A
well-managed drip irrigation system supports the use of poor quality of water because the irrigation water is
applied continuously, ensuring that the root zone does not dry out and that the salts move away from the root
zone. Thus, the accumulated salt is leached to the edge of the wetted soil mass where it does not interfere with th
growth of the plants. Also, since a much smaller quantity of water is applied to the soil, the total salt load applied
is likewise lower.

TABLE 45. Yield of Radishes Using Drip Irrigation.

Canal water Poor quality water

Irrigation
method Root yield Water Use Efficiency Root yield Water Use Efficiency
(q) (q/ha/cm) (q) (q/ha/cm)
Surface 163.5 13.7 98.9 8.7
Drip 268.1 29.8 236.0 26.2

TABLE 46. Yield of Brinjals Using a Salt Water Drip Irrigation System.

Salinity Salinity
Salinity Conductivity
( at 10 cm depth and 10 (at 20 cm depth and 20 cm Yield (kg/ha)
(ppm) (mmhos/cm)
cm away from root zone) away from root zone)
850 660 21 361 5 250
2 500 1 680 19 110 5 127
7 500 3 290 27 129 4 738
10 000 4 500 558 180 4 122

In Meghalaya, some of the tribal farmers use a drip irrigation system constructed of bamboo to irrigate betel,
pepper and arecanut crops. The system is indigenously designed using locally available materials. The hillsides
on which this system is used have a rock and soil mixture with poor water holding and retention capacities that
require frequent applications of irrigation water. Using this system, water from natural stream is diverted at a
point of higher elevation than the plot to be irrigated, and is conveyed by gravity through bamboo channels,
supported on ground surface by wooden or bamboo supports, to the point of application. The discharge at the
head channel varies from 15 to 20 l/min and is reduced to between 10 and 30 drops/min at the point of irrigation
water application. The elevation of the head channel may be up to a few metres higher than the irrigated field
elevation, whereas the elevation of the last channel may be less than 10 cm to 15 cm above the ground surface.

At Jobner in Rajasthan, earthen pitchers and porous cups have been used successfully for irrigating vegetable
crops, such as crops of cabbage, cauliflower, and knolkhol. The technique uses earthen cups of 500 ml capacity
embedded in the soil at the site of the seedlings. The cups are filled to the brim with water at intervals of 4 to 5
days. Because of their underground situation, the cups experience little water loss due deep percolation and/or
evaporation. At Karnal, using a similar technology, earthen pitchers of about 15 l capacity have been used for
irrigating cucumbers and radishes. This technology provides irrigation water to the crops at a rate of less than 2
cm/ha. These innovative technologies permit the cultivation of vegetables and cash crops in areas where it is not
practical or possible to grow crops using conventional surface irrigation methods.

Operation and Maintenance

The principle operation and maintenance requirements associated with the implementation of this technology
include the need for regular cleaning of the system and careful monitoring of the quality of the source water, as
the drip irrigation systems are very sensitive to the clogging of the drippers. The systems also require a relatively
high degree of skill to design, install and operate, and are susceptible to theft, damage and disruption by rodents
that destroy the drip pipes and drippers.

Level of Involvement

The use of this technology requires skilled personnel. Because of the relatively high capital cost of the piping
systems necessary to implement this technology, the initial funding for the project may require some level of
government involvement. Regular operation and maintenance of the system is the responsibility of the individual
operator.

Costs

The capital costs involved in the establishment of a drip irrigation system are high compared to the costs of
establishing conventional irrigation systems. However, the labour requirements and operational costs are low.
The net result is that the benefit-cost ratio for DIS is very favourable compared to conventional systems since the
payback period for investment very short. In the case of the orchard crops in Maharashtra, the cost of DIS ranged
from $450/ha to $1 150/ha in 1990. Elsewhere, the cost of using drip irrigation systems for sugarcane irrigation
averaged $715/ha, for banana irrigation $1 150/ha, and for cotcrus-fruit irrigation $575/ha, with the payback
periods ranging from 2 months for banana crops, 12 months for cotcrus-fruit crops, and 18 months for surgarcane
crops. Comparative benefit-cost ratios for various crops ranged from 1.64 for groundnuts (peanuts), to 4.84 for
pomegranates, to 5.15 for tomatoes, to 8.58 for grapes, to 15.0 for mosambi. These ratios compare to benefit-cos
ratios of 1.80, 2.20, 3.96, 6.38, and 9.81, respectively, using conventional irrigation systems.

Effectiveness of the Technology

In almost all of the cases reported, excepting the Jobner case, there was an improvement in crop yields and
savings in water use of between 18% and 40%. Consequently, there was a substantial improvement in the water
use efficiency that ranged up to three times that of water use efficiencies achieved using conventional surface
irrigation methods, even with the use of poor quality irrigation water. Because of the directed delivery of
irrigation water, it is possible to utilize poor quality irrigation water using the drip irrigation system. The
performance of this technology is summarized in Tables 40 and 41. The data presented in Table 40 are based
upon water savings and increased yields achieved in Maharashtra State using drip irrigation systems. In addition
to the improved yields and water savings, for crops such as sugarcane there is a savings in labour costs that
equals the savings in water.
Advantages

The advantages of drip irrigation systems include an high efficiency of water use and greater crop yields
compared to other irrigation methods. In addition, crops irrigated using drip irrigation systems generally require
less tillage and are of better quality. DIS also contribute to improved plant protection and reduced occurrences of
plant diseases and greater efficiencies in the use of fertilizers, because water containing the agrochemicals is
applied directly to the plant roots in the quantities necessary for optimal plant production. For a similar reason,
DIS can also make use of lower quality water, and results in no return flows, tail water losses or increased soil
erosion. Because water is applied in optimal quantities, plants generally have a shorter growing season and
produce fruit earlier, with less weed growth and pest damage than conventionally irrigated crops. The lower
labour requirements result in relatively low operational costs, with savings in labour of up to 90% of the costs
associated with conventional systems, in part, because mechanical operations can be carried out simultaneously
with the application of irrigation water. DIS can be used in hilly terrain and on lands with problem soils, and
results in improved infiltration in soils with low conductivity. Drip irrigation systems are low pressure systems,
which can be adapted for use in greenhouses, and with automated control systems.

Disadvantages

Drip irrigations systems have a sensitivity to the clogging of the drippers, which may require pretreatment of
turbid source waters, and, if not properly installed, can cause moisture distribution problems. The systems are
also susceptible to rodent damage. The systems have an high cost compared to conventional irrigation methods,
and require higher levels of skill for design, installation, and operation, which make them liable to damage or
theft.

TABLE 47. Water Savings and Increased Yields Achieved Using Drip Irrigation.

Water used Water used by Yield using Yield using

by drip conventional % drip conventional %
Crop irrigation irrigation Saving irrigation irrigation increase
systems systems of water systems systems in yield
(mm/ha) (mm/ha) (q/ha) (q/ha)
100 000
Sugarcane -- -- 50 -- 35
tonnes
29 000
Bananas -- -- 50 -- 50
tonnes
Cotcrus- 80%
-- -- 50 10% harvest 50
Fruit harvest
Grapes 278 532 65-70 325 tonnes 264 tonnes 30
Pome-
granates
(plants spaced 785 1 440 50-55 109 000 75 000 30
at 12-foot
intervals)
Guavas -- -- 55-60 -- -- 25
 Caster
-- -- 50-55 -- -- 20
Apples
Mosambi 640 1 660 60 150 000 100 000 50
Groundnuts
580 900 35 3 200 2 675 20
(Peanuts)
Tomatoes 222 324 30 48 000 32 000 50

TABLE 48. Effect of Irrigation Method on Crop Yield and Water Savings.

Further Development of the Technology

This is a proven technology suitable for use with high value crops. Several crops which can be irrigated using
drip irrigation systems include sugarcane, groundnuts or peanuts, coconuts, cotton, coffee, grapes, potatoes, and
all fruit crops, spaced vegetable crops, and flowers.

Information Sources

R.S. Saksena, Consultant Planning Commission and Chief Engineer (MI, Retd.), Ministry of Water Resources,
Government of India, New Delhi.
 Table of Contents
3

Drip Irrigation Technology to save Water and Enhance

Crop Yields
Last Updated: 16 May 2017

In India, the irrigated area consists of about 36 per cent of

the net sown area. Presently, the agricultural sector
accounts for about 83 per cent of all water uses. The
remaining uses include 5, 3, 6 and 3 per cent respectively,
by domestic, industrial and energy sectors and other
consumers. Increasing competition with the other water
users in the future would limit the water availability for
expanding irrigated area. In traditional surface irrigation methods, the losses in water conveyance
and application are large. These losses can be considerably reduced by adopting drip and
sprinkler irrigation methods. Among all the irrigation methods, the drip irrigation is the most
efficient and it can be practised in a large variety of crops, especially in vegetables, orchard
crops, flowers and plantation crops. In drip irrigation, water is applied near the plant root through
emitters or drippers, on or below the soil surface, at a low rate varying from 2 - 20 lit res per
hour. The soil moisture is kept at an optimum level with frequent irrigations. Drip irrigation
results in a very high water application efficiency of about 90-95 per cent. A typical drip
irrigation system is shown in fig. 1.

History of Drip Irrigation

The use of drip irrigation can be traced back to the

ancient custom in certain parts of India of irrigating
a tulsi plant kept in the courtyard. During the
summer months, the plant was irrigated by a
hanging pitcher containing water and a minute hole
at its bottom to allow the trickling of water on to
the plant. The tribal farmers of Arunachal Pradesh
practised a primitive form of drip irrigation system
using a slender bamboo as the conduit for water
flow. The use of drippers in sub-surface irrigation
network was first experimented with in Germany in
1869. The conspicuous growth of the
petrochemical industry during and after the 1950s facilitated manufacturing of plastic pipes at a
cost much cheaper than the cost of metallic or cement concrete pipes. Plastic pipes are
convenient for water conveyance under pressure and the plastic material are easily formed into
the desired configuration. These features of plastic made the field-scale use of drip irrigation
practicable. The drip system was developed for field crops in Israel in the early 1960s and in
Australia and North America in the late 1960s.The area under drip irrigation system in the USA
is about 1 M ha, followed by India, Spain, Israel, etc.
In India, there has been a tremendous growth in the area under drip irrigation during the last 15
years. At present, around 3.51akh ha area is under drip irrigation with the efforts of the
Government of India, while it was only 40 ha in 1960. Maharashtra (94,000 ha), Karnataka
(66,000 ha) and Tamil Nadu (55,000 ha) are some of the states where large areas have been
brought under drip irrigation. Many crops are irrigated by the drip method in India with the tree
crops occupying the maximum percentage of the total area under drip irrigation, followed by
vine crops, vegetables, field crops, flowers and other crops, as shown in fig. 2.

Growth Potential for Drip & Micro-Irrigation Systems

 Drip irrigation system is suitable for all orchard and vegetable crops.

 Drip irrigation system has also been successfully employed for close growing field crops
including onion and okra (fig 3).