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uses and history of irrigation
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Irrigation has been around for as long as humans have been cultivating plants. Man 's first invention after he learned how to grow plants from seeds was probably a bucket. Ancient people must have been strong from having to haul buckets full of water to pour on their first plants. Pouring water on fields is still a common irrigation method today -- but other, more efficient and mechanized methods are also used.
Flood (furrow) irrigation:
Early man would have used this "low-tech" method of irrigating crops -- collect water in a bucket and pour it onto the fields. Today, this is still one of the most popular methods of crop irrigation. The system is called flood irrigation -- water is pumped or brought to the fields and is allowed to flow along
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Water is sent through plastic pipes (with holes in them) that are either laid along the rows of crops or even buried along their rootlines. Evaporation is cut way down, and up to one-fourth of the water used is saved, as compared to flood irrigation.
Spray Irrigation:
Spray irrigation is a more modern way of irrigating, but it also requires machinery. This system is similar to the way you might water your lawn at home - stand there with a hose and spray the water out in all directions. Large scale spray irrigation systems are in use on large farms today. These systems have a long tube fixed at one end to the water source, such as a well. Water flows through the tube and is shot out by a system of spray-guns.
A common type of spray-irrigation system are the center-pivot systems. They work in the same way you might water your yard. If you placed a faucet in the center of your yard, you could take a hose, punch holes all along it, and attach a spray gun at the end. Turn the water on, pull it tight, and start spraying (water is also spraying from the holes in the hose at the same time). While you are spraying you are also walking around in a circle (with the faucet at the center of the circle). Using this method you can get a very large circle of lawn watered with just a short
The problem of water shortage is one of the major limiting factors in food production and agriculture development in the arid and semi arid regions. Reclaimed water is one of the most significant available water resources that shall be consumed in agriculture and urban landscape maintenance. In order to investigate the impact of water quality and its application method on olive trees this experiment was carried out during 2010-2012 in the semiarid central part of Iran on young olive trees. The trees were irrigated by a new subsurface-leaky irrigation (SLI) system and surface irrigation in line with irrigation with recycle and clean water for 24 months. The results revealed that SLI system could enhance trees growth, leaf area, Fv/Fm and photosynthesis by68, 26, 4 and 42% respectively, although it decreased leaves soluble sugars (47%). In addition, irrigating trees by SLI system using reclaimed water could increase N and Mg uptake 138 and 8% respectively. Plants irrigated with RW showed improved growth (42%) leaf area26% and photosynthesis 23.4% compared with CL water. Furthermore Mg, Na, K, P and N surprisingly increase 12, 59, 30, 7, and 92 % respectively in leaf tissue in application recycle water. In overall, this experiment showed that recycled water could be a favorable resource for olive trees irrigation and SLI irrigation system was more efficient in irrigation in this research.
Landscaping techniques, such as drip irrigation and xeriscaping can reduce California's use of water immensely. Eighty Percent of the state’s developed water supply is used on agriculture, but much of that eighty percent is wasted because of sprinkler systems. The water sprayed from sprinkler systems often evaporates, and more water is wasted to water the plants. A drip system is specifically placed at each plant and lets the water seep into the roots, so no water can be wasted through evaporation. This would require less water to be used on plants, because more is actually reaching the roots, saving the rest of the water for California. Xeriscaping is a type of “dry landscaping.” This means that materials and plants, such as native plants, succulents, gravel, and water flowers are used to design a beautiful outdoor space, instead of using grass which consumes an average of about fifty-seven inches of rain per year. Grass needs to be watered frequently, using up California’s water supply, but a dry landscape would use little to no water, benefiting California. Farmers and Homeowners can employ these landscaping techniques to reduce the use of California...
Long ago, the middle of the North American continent was a treeless prairie covered by tall grasses and roaming buffalo. When European settlers came, they called this area the Great American Desert. Today, this "desert" is covered with fields of wheat, corn, and alfalfa made possible by center-pivot irrigation. My grandfather used to sell center-pivot systems and when my family drove to my grandparent's home in Nebraska, we would count how many "sprinklers" were watering each section of land. At the time, I didn't know that this water was being pumped from somethng called the Ogallala Aquifer, a huge underground water supply. Throughout the years, this aquifer has made the Great American Desert one of the best farming areas in the world. Unfortunately, the Ogallala Aquifer's future as a valuable resource is in jeopardy, unless citizens of the Plains states reduce their water consumption.
Water that has changed throughout the hydrologic process travels from the irrigation treatment and enters into the aquifers. First...
Water is one of the most important elements needed to sustain life. Some ancient civilizations struggled to maintain a steady supply of usable water, while others gained consistent access, and those that did, thrived. Nonetheless, these civilizations, whether they failed or succeeded, depended on water to drink and irritate their crops; without it, they suffered food shortages and famine. Ancient civilizations such as China, Egypt, Mesopotamia and Rome were among those whose advancement benefited from the successful cultivation of water. Even though man started out as hunters and gatherers, once knowledge about growing their own food and the domestication of plants occurred, civilizations are believed to have formed, and thus became dependent on agriculture and water. Water was the driving force of growth in ancient civilizations. A reliable source of water impacted the development of economies, drove religious views, shaped political and legal discussions and influenced the advancement of technologies in diverse civilizations that shared a common bond, the need for water to sustain life.
As Jensen points out, farming and industry accounts for the vast majority of total water usage in the world (477). The increasingly scarce resource is a necessary ingredient when growing food. Technology continuously improves to make it easier for farmers to grow crops while using less water. Scientists at the University of Georgia utilize what they term “variable rate irrigation” to let farmers automate the current systems of irrigation to water only the crops that need it (Gies). This is an example of retrofitting current farms, but there is a new way of farming coming to cities that reuses practically all of its water and stakes claim much less acreage in the process. The future of agriculture belongs to vertical and urban farming. These types of farms reduce the use of water, chemicals (such as pesticides, herbicides and fungicides), soil and space (The Economist). These farms are so cutting edge that they are mostly in the experimental stages. Firms like Famgro farms are testing “stackable” farming systems that can scale with demand, even further reducing waste. Famgro’s stackable farms are ideal for cityscapes where land is at a premium; furthermore, reaping the added benefit of being in close proximity to the customers that they serve. Customers will enjoy high quality, fresh produce at only a slightly
Most of water consumed in China is not rationally used. The cause which intensifies the water shortage in China is water inefficient use. For instance, 65%-70% of Chinese water usage is spent on agricultural needs, but more than half of this amount evaporates percolates and loses (Roberts 2009). Besides, majority of another 20%-25% which is occupied by China’s industry is not recycled (Brown 2008a, 16; Roberts 2009). Obviously, improving water distribution technologies and management quality can be one of the options to reduce the water scarcity in China. There are many different methods of improving the water distribution efficiency. Firstly, irrigation technologies should be improved. Farmers in China may use drip and shrink irrigation methods instead of traditional “surface” ones such as furrow and flood irrigation. Drip irrigation method is used mostly in arid and semi-arid zones and it increases the efficiency of irrigation by transporting the water directly to the roots of irrigated plant. The emitters sprinkle the soil under the roots with water which is introduced to the plant by pipes, diminishing water evaporation, deep percolation and leak. In contrast, fur...
Another way of acquiring water was to build a cistern. Usually located in the courtyard, a cistern is an underground reservoir where rainwater is stored (149). Falling rain would be caught in the compluvium, a channel that surrounds the hole in the roof above the atrium in a home; the rain would then pour through spouts into the impluvium, where it would be routed to the cistern. Rainwater could also reach the cistern by rolling from the ...
The essential use of irrigation in Australian Vineyards to maximize the productivity of vines has the detrimental effect on the surrounding waterways my contributing to water pollution. The use of irrigation in Australia has become a primary
Although many factors have influenced the development of civilizations around the world, most are derived from the necessities required by all humans to maintain existence. One of the most primitive needs of the human race is food. The ability of the land to provide a surplus of food was a significant contributing factor for civilization to emerge in Mesopotamia. Crops such as barley, emmer, olives, beans, grapes and flax were very easy to grow in the fertile soil found there. As more people began to arrive and settle in Mesopotamia, towns began to emerge building a civilization that encompassed various workers, organization, and cooperation among the people. The Mesopotamians learned to reroute would be floodwaters to the drier land to hydrate their crops, laying the foundation for modern day irrigation systems.
"Water Management in the Ancient World." Science and Its Times. Ed. Neil Schlager and Josh Lauer. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 2001. Student Resources in Context. Web. 4 Apr. 2014.
Rainwater harvesting provides an independent water supply during regional water restrictions and in developed countries is often used to supplement the main supply. In times of harsh weather such as droughts and floods, it provides a fresh supply of clean water as well as in cases of mitigate flooding occurring...
Although inside the house, there is clearly a heavy water usage, it is scary to learn that the majority of water wasted is in the yard. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, “of the 26 billion gallons of water consumed daily in the United States, approximately 7.8 billion gallons, or 30 percent, is devoted to outdoor uses.” An average lawn will be watered with over 10,000 gallons of water per year (Erie 203). Although a lot of water is used to keep these lawns green, the sad truth is that many of these gallons will never even water the lawn due to evaporation and direct runoff.
In ancient times the Mayans built ancient hydraulic systems in the underground Piedras Bolas aqueduct that routed water from a spring into Palenque. Untamed streams would gobble valuable real estate, so the Maya built limestone conduits to rout water through the city. Hydraulic systems are now used in a variety of ways. A perfect example of this is the brakes on your car. They are a simple basic Hydraulic system. Using only on basic piston to drive the whole system...
People have been using hydropower for centuries. Farmers have used water wheels to grind wheat into flour. They were usually placed by some source of water like a river. Then the water wheel picks up water that is flowing by buckets that are around the wheel.