Elements of Microirrigation and its Crop Application

Contents 1. Nature extent and scope of microirrigation. 2. Microirrigation status extension and scope the Indian experience. 3. Microirrigation and other methods of water application. 4. Microsprinkler system of irrigation. 5. Microirrigation system components and design. 6. Filtration and water quality. 7. Fertigation and chemigation. 8. Standardization of microirrigation equipments. 9. Crop categorisation for microirrigation studies. 10. Microirrigation of apple. 11. Microirrigation of banana. 12. Microirrigation of citrus fruits 13. Microirrigation of grapes. 14. Microirrigation of mango and guava. 15. Microirrigation of pears. 16. Microirrigation of peaches. 17. Microirrigation of miscellaneous fruits (with limited experience). 18. Microirrigation of olives. 19. Microirrigation of coconut. 20. Microirrigation of cotton. 21. Microirrigation of sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum). 22. Microirrigation of egg plant and chilli. 23. Microirrigation of cabbage cauliflower and okra. 24. Microirrigation of cucurbits. 25. Microirrigation of potato. 26. Microirrigation of tomato. 27. Microirrigation of miscellaneous crops (with limited experience). 28. Researchable issues. 29. Water flow through soil in microirrigation. Units and conversions. Index. Microirrigation also known as trickle irrigation drip irrigation or localized irrigation is a highly efficient method of water application to crops which provides about 40 50 percent water saving and similar increase in crop yield besides providing saving in fertilizers energy and labor. Though better applicable in water scarcity areas to a wide range of crops it is specially suited for fruits vegetables and other cash crops like cotton and sugarcane. Since introduction about 3 decades back its adoption has rapidly increased manifold globally including India. The total book is essentially a review work compiling several useful information under one title. It has broadly two groups microirrigation elements consisting of the first 8 chapters and crop applications in 9 29 chapters. The first two chapters give nature extent and scope the third chapter gives difference of microirrigation and other methods with the fourth chapter elaborating on microsprinkler system. The fifth chapter gives system components and design dealing with design of emitter and lateral spacing design of laterals and system using theoretical formula as well as Nomographs giving worked out examples for a few crops. The sixth chapter deals with filtration methods water quality standards for irrigation and affecting emitter clogging filter selection guides and chemical treatment. The seventh chapter deals with fertigation and chemigation. The eighth chapter standardization of equipments deals with the process of standardization based on Indian experience and gives lists of available standards from BIS ISO ASAE ASTM and other standards. It also gives tests and equipments needed for drip lateral testing. Chapters ninth to twenty eighth deal with brief review of published works on microirrigation on important fruits plantations and vegetable crops. For each crop after the review salient inferences from review has been drawn and the inferences categorized according to issues. The last chapter is devoted on overview of water flow in soils in microirrigation wherein hydraulic properties governing equation for unsaturated flow and a few boundary value problems are described. 812 pp. …