Tag: smart irrigation month

Drip Irrigation Best Practices for agriculture and farming

Drip Irrigation Best Practices: Optimize Your Irrigation in 5 Easy Steps

July is Smart Irrigation Month, and to help promote drip irrigation best practices in ag and farming, we put together this small list of ways you can optimize your irrigation system.

Don’t make the mistake of wasting irrigation water. Do your homework and learn about crop water requirement, the maximum precipitation rates of soils, soil water holding capacities, irrigation system application rates and irrigation system uniformities.

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A Case for Irrigated Agriculture in Alabama and Georgia

The Irrigation Association recently hosted a webinar titled, “Mitigating Effects of Drought — Visions for Sustainable Irrigation” as part of its “Smart Irrigation Month: Bringing Water to Life” webinar series. IA government affairs director John Farner hosted the event and provided a brief overview of drought stricken areas of the United States, and explained how efficient irrigation can help.

Then featured speaker, Dr. Puneet Srivastava of Auburn University, made a compelling case for irrigation of non-irrigated crops in Alabama and Georgia. The southeast boasts prime, rainfed cropland, but farmed acres have steadily declined for decades due to poor yields in comparison with irrigated cropland in other states. This economic downturn could be reversed by irrigating from on-farm reservoirs filled by winter rains, and boosting yields considerably.

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July is Smart Irrigation Month

Smart Irrigation MonthAlthough we should be mindful of our water use every month, July is the official “Smart Irrigation Month” because it is a peak month for outdoor water use. An initiative of the Irrigation Association (a non-profit industry organization dedicated to promoting efficient irrigation), Smart Irrigation Month is a public awareness campaign that seeks to promote effective practices and innovative technologies to:

  • Increase crop yield per acre
  • Apply water and nutrient inputs more precisely for improved results with no waste
  • Minimize runoff and top soil erosion
  • Help protect and preserve water supplies for today and the future
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