3.

CROP WATER REQUIREMENTS

3.1 Duty – Delta relation ship

Duty of water: is its capacity to irrigate land. It is the relation between the area of the land
irrigated and the quantity of water required. Thus Duty ( D ) is defined as the area of the land
which can be irrigated if one cumec (m3/sec) of water was applied to the land continuously for
the entire base period of the crop.
- It is expressed in hectares / cumecs.

Base period (B): the base period is the period between the first watering and the last watering.
The base period is slightly different from the crop period which is the period between the time of
sowing and the time of harvesting the crop.

Delta ( ): is the total depth of water supplied to the crop during the entire base period. If the
entire quantity of applied water were spread uniformly on the land surface, the depth of water
would have been equal to delta. Thus the delta (in m) of any crop can be determined by dividing
the total quantity of water (in ha-m) required by the crop by the area of the land (in ha)

Delta ( ) = Total quantity of water (ha-m)

Total area of land (ha)
The relation between duty, base period and delta, can be obtained as follows. Considering the
area of land of D-hectares. If Duty is expressed in ha/cumecs the total quantity of water used in
the base period of B days is equal to that obtained by a continuous flow of 1 cumec for B days.

Quantity of water= 1*B*24*60*60*, m3 …. (a)

If Delta ( ) is the total depth of water in meters supplied to the land of D- hectares, the quantity
of water is also given by:

Quantity of water = ( D *104)* , m3 ……. (b)

Equating the volumes of water given in egn_s (a) and (b)

1*B*24*60*60* = (D*104)*

 D = 8.64 B

= 8.64 B
D
Where D = in ha/cumec
= in m
B = in days

Lecture notes
 Factors affecting Duty

- Duty of water depends up on different factors. In general, the smaller the losses, the
greater is duty because one cumec of water will be able to irrigate larger area.
 Type of soil
 Type of crop and base period
 structure of soil
 Slop of ground
 Climatic condition
 Method of application of water
 Salt content of soil
- Duty of water may be improved by counter – acting all the factors that decrease it (by
decreasing various losses).

Example: The base period, duty of water and area under irrigation for various crops under
a canal system are given in the table below. If the losses in the reservoir and canals are
respectively 15%, 25%, determine the reservoir capacity.

Crop Wheat Sugar cane Cotton Rice V. table

Base period B (days) 120 320 180 120 120

Duty , D (ha/cumec) 1800 1600 1500 800 700
Area irrigated (ha) 15000 10,000 5000 7500 5000

Soln_ = Calculation is tabulated here below.

Crop Wheat Sugarcane cotton Rice Vegetable Sum

8.64 0.576 1.725 0.972 1.296 1.481 -
= ,m
D
Volume of water = 8640 17280 4860 9720 7410 47910 ha-m
*Airr (ha-m)

Total volume of water 47,910 ha-m

47910
Volume at head of canal =  63,880 ha-m
0.75
63880
Volume of reservoir =  75,150 ha-m
0.85

Definitions of important terms

2

Lecture notes
Every plant or crop requires a certain quantity of water for maturity. No other need is more
essential to the plants than water. As human beings need water so do plants.

1. Crop water requirement:

It is defined as “the depth of water needed to meet the water loss through evapotranspiration
(ETcrop) of a disease free crop growing in large fields under non-restricting soil conditions
including soil water and fertility and achieving full production potential under the given growing
environment”. That is, it is the quantity of water required by the crop in a given period of time to
meet its normal growth under a given set of environmental & field conditions.

The determination of water requirements is the main part of the design and planning of an
irrigation system.

The water requirement is the water required to meet the water losses through
- Evapotranspiration (ET)
- Unavoidable application losses
- Other needs such as leaving & land preparation

The water requirement of crops may be contributed from different sources such as irrigation,
Effective rainfall, Soil moisture storage and ground water contributions.

Hence, WR = IR + ER + S + GW

Where IR = Irrigation requirement

ER = Effective rainfall
S = carry over soil moisture in the crop root zone
GW = ground water contribution

a) Irrigation requirement of Crops

The irrigation water requirement of crops is defined as the part of water requirement of crops that
should be fulfilled by irrigation In other words, it is the water requirement of crops excluding
effective rain fall, carry over soil moisture and ground water contributions.
WR=IR +ER + S +GW
IR= WR-(ER+S+GW)

b) Effective Rainfall (ER)

Effective rainfall can be defined as the rainfall that is stored in the root zone and can be utilized
by crops. All the rainfall that falls is not useful or effective. As the total amount of rainfall
varies, so does the amount of useful or effective rainfall. Some of the seasonal rainfall that falls
will be lost as unnecessary deep percolation; surface runoff and some water may remain in the
soil after the crop is harvested. From the water requirement of crops point of view, this water,
which is lost, is ineffective.

People in different disciplines of course define effective rainfall in different ways. To a canal
irrigation engineer, it is the rainfall that reaches the storage reservoir, to a hydropower engineer,
it is the rain fall that is useful for running the turbines and for Ground water engineers or Geo –
hydrologists, it is that portion of the rainfall that contributes to the ground water reservoir.

Lecture notes
CropWat 4 Windows has four methods for calculating the effective rainfall from entered
monthly total rainfall data.

1. Fixed Percentage Effective Rainfall

The effective rainfall is taken as a fixed percentage of the monthly rainfall;

Effective Rainfall = % of Total Rainfall

2. Dependable Rain
An empirical formula developed by FAO/AGLW based on analysis for different arid and sub-
humid climates. This formula is as follows:
Effective Rainfall = 0.6 * Total Rainfall - 10 ... (Total Rainfall < 70 mm)
Effective Rainfall = 0.8 * Total Rainfall - 24 ... (Total Rainfall > 70 mm)

3. Empirical Formula for Effective Rainfall

This formula is similar to FAO/AGLW formula (see Dependable Rain method above) with some
parameters left to the user to define. The formula is as follows:

Effective Rainfall = a * Total Rainfall - b ... (Total Rainfall < z mm)

Effective Rainfall = c * Total Rainfall - d ... (Total Rainfall > z mm)

where a, b, c, and z are the variables to be defined by the user.

4. Method of USDA Soil Conservation Service (default)

The effective rainfall is calculated according to the formula developed by the USDA Soil
Conservation Service which is as follows:

Effective Rainfall = Total Rainfall / 125 * (125 - 0.2 * Total Rainfall)

(Total Rainfall < 250 mm)
Effective Rainfall = 125 + 0.1 * Total Rainfall
(Total Rainfall > 250 mm)

c) Ground water contribution (Gw):

Some times there is a contribution from the groundwater reservoir for water requirement of
crops. The actual contribution from the groundwater table is dependent on the depth of ground
water table below the root zone & capillary characteristics of soil. For clayey soils the rate of
movement is low and distance of upward movement is high while for light textured soils the rate
is high and the distance of movement is low. For practical purposes the GW contribution when
the ground water table is below 3m is assumed to be nil.

d) Carry over soil moisture(S):

This is the moisture retained in the crop root zone b/n cropping seasons or before the crop is
planted. The source of this moisture is either from the rainfall that man occurs before sowing or
it may be the moisture that remained in the soil from past irrigation. This moisture also
4

Lecture notes
contributes to the consumptive use of water and should be deducted from the water requirement
of crops in determining irrigation requirements.

2. Net Irrigation Requirement (NIR)

After the exact evapotranspiration of crops have been determined the NIR should be determined.
This is the net amount of water applied to the crop by irrigation exclusive of ER, S and GW.

NIR = WR – ER –S –GW

The word ‘net’ is to imply that during irrigation there are always unavoidable losses as runoff
and deep percolation.

NIR is determined during different stages of the crop by dividing the whole growing season into
suitable intervals. The growing season is more preferably divided into decades. The ETcrop during
each decade is determined by subtracting these contributions from the ETcrop.

3. Gross irrigation requirement (GIR)

Usually more amount of water than the NIR is applied during irrigation to compensate for the
unavoidable losses. The total water applied to satisfy ET and losses is known as Gross
irrigation requirement (GIR)

GIR =NIR Where Ea =application efficiency

Ea

4. Evapotranspiration:

This includes the water lose through evaporation and transpiration.

a) Evaporation: - is the process by which a liquid changes into water vapour, which is water
evaporating from adjacent soil, water surfaces of leaves of plants. In irrigation this is applied for
the loss of water from the land surface.

b) Transpiration: - is the process by which plants loose water from their bodies. This loss of
water includes the quantity of water transpired by the plant and that retained in the plant tissue.
That is, the water entering plant roots and used to build plant tissue or being passed through
leaves of the plant into the atmosphere.

5. Potential Evapotranspiration (PET): -

This is also called reference crop evapotranspiration and it is the rate of evapotranspiration from
an extensive surface 8 to 15 cm tall, green grass cover of uniform height, actively growing,
completely shading the ground and not short of water”.

Under normal field conditions, the potential evapotranspiration does not occur and thus suitable
crop coefficients are used to change ETo to actual evapotranspiration of the crops.

Lecture notes
3.2 Consumptive use (CU) of water and methods of estimation

Consumptive use (CU) is synonymous to evapotranspiration (ETcrop).

Consumptive use:- is the depth (quantity) of water required by the crop to meet its
evapotranspiration losses and the water used for metabolic processes. But the water used for
metabolic processes is very small & accounts only less than 1 % of evapotranspiration. Hence
the consumptive use is taken to be the same as the loss of water through evapotranspiration.

Note: CU= ET + water used by the plants in their metabolic process for
building plant tissues (insignificant)

It involves:
 Problems of water supply
 Problems of water management
 Economics of irrigation projects

CU use can apply to water requirements of a crop, a farm, a field and a project. However, when
the CU of the crop is known, the water use of larger units can be calculated.

Calculation of crop water requirement

 Prediction methods for crop water requirements are used owing to the difficulty of
obtaining accurate field measurements.
 The methods often need to be applied under climatic and agronomic conditions vary
different from those under which they were originally developed.

To calculate ETcrop a three-stage procedure is recommended.

1) The effect of climate given by the reference crop evapotranspiration (ETo).

The methods to calculate ETo presented here in are the Blaney-Criddle method,
Thornthwaite method, the Hargeaves class A evaporation method and the penman
method.

These methods are modified to calculate ETo using the mean daily climatic data for
30 or 10 days periods. The choice of the method must be based on the type of climatic
data available and on the accuracy required in determining water needs.

2) The effect of crop characteristics.

This is given by the crop coefficient (Kc) which presents the relationship between
ETo and ETcrop.

ETcrop= Kc . ETo
Values of Kc vary with the
- type of crop
- its stage of growth
6

Lecture notes
 - growing season and the prevailing weather conditions
3) The effect of local conditions and agricultural practices.

This includes:
- the variation in climate over time - size of field
- distance and altitude - soil water availability
- Irrigation and cultivation methods and practices.

Factors Affecting Consumptive Use of Water: -

The consumptive use of water is not constant throughout the stages of the crop and
also varies for different types of crops.

Generally the factors affecting consumptive use of water can be classified as crop
factors & climatic factors.

a) Crop factors

The agronomic feature of the crops is variable, some crops completely shade
the ground while others shade only some part of the ground. To account
these variations in the nature of the crop suitable values of crop coefficient
are used to convert the PET to actual evapotranspiration. So for the same
climatic conditions different crops have different rates of consumptive uses.

b) Climatic factors:
Temperature: As the temperature increases, the saturation vapour pressure also increases and
results in increase of evaporation and thus consumptive use of water.

Wind Speed: The more the speed of wind, the more will be the rate of evaporation, because the
saturated film of air containing the water will be removed easily.

Humidity: - The more the air humidity, the less will be the rate of consumptive use of water.
This is because water vapour moves from the point of high moisture content to the point of low
moisture content. So if the humidity is high water vapour cannot be removed easily.

Sunshine hours: - The longer the duration of the sunshine hour the larger will be the total
amount of energy received from the sun. This increases the rate of evaporation and thus the rate
of consumptive use of crops.

Determination of Consumptive Use of water

Under normal field conditions PET (ETo) will not occur and thus consumptive use (ETcrop) can
be determined by determining the ETo and multiplying with suitable crop coefficients (Kc).
Alternatively it can be determined by direct measurements of soil moisture.

1) Direct Measurement of Consumptive Use:

7

Lecture notes
 A) Lysimeter experiment
B) Field experimental plots
C) Soil moisture studies
D) Water balance method

a) Lysimeter Experiment
Lysimeters are large containers having pervious bottom. This experiment involves
growing crops in lysimeters there by measuring the water added to it and the water loss
(water draining) through the pervious bottom. Consumptive use is determined by
subtracting the water draining through the bottom from the total amount of water needed
to maintain proper growth.

b) Field Experimental Plots:

This is most suitable for determination of seasonal water requirements. Water is added to
selected field plots, yield obtained from different fields are plotted against the total
amount of water used. The yield increases as the water used increases for some limit and
then decreases with further increase in water. The break in the curve indicates the amount
of consumptive use of water.

c) Soil Moisture Studies:

In this method soil moisture measurements are done before and after each irrigation
application. Knowing the time gap b/n the two consecutive irrigations, the quantity of water
extracted per day can be computed by dividing the total moisture depletion b/n the two
successive irrigations by the interval of irrigation. Then a curve is drawn by plotting the rate
of use of water against the time from this curve, seasonal water use of crops is determined.

d) Water balance method:

This method is used for determination of consumptive use of large areas. It is expressed by the
following equation.
Precipitation = Evapotranspiration + surface runoff + deep percolation + change in soil water
contents

Except evapotranspiration, all the factors in the above equation are measured. Evapotranspiration
is determined from the equation.

2) Determination of Evapotranspiration using equations:

1) Blaney- Criddle method

This method is suggested where only temperature data are available. The Blaney- Criddle
method formula to calculate mean value over the given month is expressed as:

ETo = C[ P (0.46T+8)] mm/day

Where ETo= reference crop evapotranspiration in mm/day for the

month considered.
8

Lecture notes
 T= mean daily temperature in oc over the month
P= mean daily percentage of total annual day time hours
obtained from table 1 for a given month and latitude.
C = adjustment factor which depends on minimum relative
humidity, sunshine hours and daytime wind estimates.
Figure 1 can be used to estimate ETo using calculated values of p(0.46T+8) for i) three levels
of minimum humidity (RH min)
ii) three levels of the ratio of actual to maximum possible sunshine
hours (n/N) and
iii) three ranges of daytime wind conditions at 2m height (Uday).

Note:
Minimum humidity refers to minimum daytime humidity
wind refers to daytime wind. Generally Uday/Unight =2 and mean 24 hr wind data should be
multiplied by 1.33 to obtain mean daytime wind.
After determining ETo, ETcrop can be predicted using the appropriate crop coefficient (Kc).

ETcrop= Kc * ETo

Example
Given: Cairo, Egypt,: latitude 300N, altitude 95m, month July.
Calculation
Tmax = Tmax daily values/31 350c.
Tmin = Tmin daily values/31 220c.
Tdaily mean = Tmean/31 or [(Tmax/31) +(Tmin/31)]/2 28.50c
P (from table for 300N) 0.31
P(0.46T+8) = 0.31(0.46*28.5 +8) 6.6mm/day
RH min (from climates of Africa) medium
n/N (from climates of Africa) high to medium
U2 day time (from climates of Africa) moderate
ETo Fig. 1 8.0 mm/day

A more simplified form of Blaney- Criddle equation in which the potential

evapotranspiration ( consumptive use ) depends only in the mean monthly
temperature and monthly day light hours is given as :
u = Kf

Where u= monthly consumptive use ,m

K = empirical crop coefficient
F = monthly consumptive use factor

4.6 * Tm  81.3 
The monthly consumptive use factor , f = P 
 100 

Lecture notes
Where p is monthly day light hours expressed as a percentage of the total day light
hours of the year . It depends on the latitude of the location . Tm is mean monthly
temperature in oC. Obtain values of P from standard tables.

The crop coefficient K depends on the location and type of crop . Values of varies
according to the different stage of crop growth period.This method gives good
results if the value of K is selected judiciously after field test.

The seasonal consumptive use (U) will be the sum of each months consumptive
use (u) for the crop growing period.
n n
 4.6 * Tm  81.3 
U= u
1
=  K * P
1 100


Where n= number of months in crop period
Limitation: This method is an approximate method , since it doesn’t consider a
number of important factors such as humidity , wind velocity and altitude

Example: Determine the consumptive use for wheat from the following data by
Blaney-Criddle method. Take K= 0.7

Month Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.

o
Mean temp. C ,Tm 20 16 14 15
% monthly day light hrs, P 7.19 7.15 7.3 7.03

Solution:
For the month of November, f=P* 4.6Tm +81.3
100
=7.19*(4.6*20+81.3
100
=12.46
u=kf =0.7*12.46=8.72cm
Like wise the values of u for months Dec., Jan.,and Feb. are computed as 7.75,
7.44 and 7.40cm respectively. Thus, seasonal consumptive use,
U=∑u=8.72 +7.75 +7.74 +7.40=31.31cm

2.Thornthwaite method

According to the Thornthwaite equation , based on the data from the eastern
U.S.A , the monthly consumptive use or the potential evapotranspiration is given
by
a

PET = 1.6 b  m 
10T
, cm / month
 I 

10

Lecture notes
Where , Tm = mean monthly temperature in oC.
I = annual heat index , obtained from monthly heat index I of the year
1.514 1.514

i =  m   Tm 
12 12
T
 5 
and I= i =
n 1
  
n 1  5 

The values of the exponents a and b are obtained from the relation
a = (67.5*10-8) I3 - ( 77.1*10-6) I2 + ( 0.01791)I + 0.492

b = maximum number of sun shine hrs in the month

12*30

Example: Estimate the potential evapotranspiration for a crop for the month of
June using the Thornthwaite equation from the following data.

Month Apr. may June July Aug. Sep. Oct.

o
Temp. Tm ( C) 4.5 12.5 20.4 20.2 21.5 10.5 5.5
Max. sun shine hrs 370 380 365 358 355 350 345

Solution:
Step 1. Obtain the monthly heat index, i
Step 2. Calculate the annual heat index , I
Step 3 . Determine the constants a & b and finally estimate PET for each month.

The monthly heat index is determined as i=(Tm/5) 1.514

Month Apr. May June July Aug. Sep. Oct.

Heat 0.85 4.00 8.40 8.28 9.10 3.07 1.16

index i
Factor 1.03 1.06 1.01 0.99 0.99 0.97 0.96
b

Now I =∑I =0.85 +4.00 +8.4 + 8.28 + 9.10 + 3.07 + 1.16 = 34.86
And from eq.(iii ) a = 1.051
From eq. (iv ) b = 1.01
Then potential evapotranspiration for the month june is given by
PET = 1.6 b ( 10Tm/I ) n = 1.6* 1.01* ( 10*20.4/34.86)1.051
=10 .35cm

3. Hargreaves class A pan Evaporation

11

Lecture notes
ET or CU is related to pan evaporation (EP) by a constant Kc, called consumptive use
coefficient.

ET = Kc * Ep
Determination of Ep
(a.) Experimentally
(b.) Christiansen formula
Ep = 0.459R * Ct*Cw*Ch*Cs*Ce

Ct = Coefficient for temperature

Ct = 0.393 +0.02796Tc+0.0001189Tc2 Tc= mean temperature, 0c
Cw = Coefficient for wind velocity

Cw= 0.708+0.0034v-0.0000038v2 v=mean wind velocity at 0.5m

above the ground, km/day.

Ch= Coefficient for relative humidity.

Ch= 1.250-0.0087H-0.75*10-4H2 –0.85*10-8H4
H= mean percentage relative humidity at noon
Cs= Coefficient for percent of possible sunshine
Cs= 0.542+0.008S-0.78*10-4S2+0.62*10-6S3
S= mean sunshine percentage
Ce= Coefficient of elevation
Ce= 0.97+ 0.00984E E= elevation in 100 of meters.

4. Modified Penman Method

For areas where measured data on temperature, humidity, wind and sunshine duration or
radiation are available, the penman method is suggested.

The penman equation consists of two terms:

- the energy (radiation) term and
- The aerodynamic (wind and humidity) term.

The relative importance of each term varies with climatic conditions. Under calm weather
conditions the aerodynamic term is usually less important than the energy term. It is more
important under windy conditions and particularly in the more arid regions.

A slightly modified penman equation from the original (1948) is suggested here to determine
ETo involving a revised wind function term.

The method uses mean daily climatic data, since day and night time weather conditions
considerably affect level of ET; an adjustment for this is included.

The modified penman equation is ,

ETo = c ( W.Rn + (1 – W) * f(u). (ea – ed))

Radiation Aerodynamic term
term
12

Lecture notes
Where:
ETo = reference crop evapotranspiration ,mm/day
W = temperature – related weighting factor
Rn = net radiation in equivalent evaporation in , mm/day
F(u) = Wind – related function
(ea-ed) = difference between the saturation vapor pressure at mean air temp. and
the mean actual vapor pressure of the air in mbar.
C = adjustment factor to compensate for the effect of day and night weather
conditions.

Due to the interdependence of the variables composing the equation, the correct use of units in
which variables need to be expressed is important (see example below).

Description of variables and their Method of calculation

a) Vapor pressure (ea-ed)

Air humidity affects ETo. Humidity is expressed here as saturation vapor pressure deficit (ea-ed),
(ea-ed) is the difference between mean saturation water vapor pressure (ea) and the mean actual
vapor pressure (ed).

Air humidity data are reported as:

- Relative humidity (RH max ad RH min in percentage)

- Psychometric readings (T oC of dry and wet bulb) from wet and dry bulb
thermometers, or as a dew point temperature j (Tdew point 0C)

Time of measurement is important, but is often not given. Fortunately actual vapor pressure (ed)
is a fairly constant element and even one measurement per day may suffice.
Vapor pressure must be expressed in mbar. If ed is given in mm Hg multiply by 1.33 to find
mbar.

Tables 5 and 6 give values of ea and ed from available climatic data.

Example:

Altitude is 0 m.
I Given:

T max 350c, T min 22oc , RHmax 80%, RHmin 30%

Calculation

T mean = 28.5 oc
RHmean = 55%
ea at 28.5oc (Table 5) = 38.9 m bar
ed = ea * RHmean/100 = 21.4 m bar
(ea-ed) = 17.5 m bar

13

Lecture notes
In many regions RH during the night is near 100%, Hence Tmin = Twetbulb = Tdawpoint, and ed can
then be determined from ea at Tmin.

b) Wind function (f(u))

The effect of wind on ETo has been studied for different climates resulting in a revised wind
function and is given as:

 U 
f(u) = 0.27 1  
 100 
Where U is 24 – hr wind run in km /day at 2 m height (Table 7).

Where wind data are not collected at 2 m height, the appropriate corrections for wind
measurements taken at different heights are given below:

Height (m)
0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

1.35 1.15 1.06 1.00 0.93 0.88 0.85 0.83

Correction factor

Example

Given:

Wind speed at 3 m height is 250 km/day

Calculation

U , applying correction = 232 km/day ( 0.93* 250= 232)

f(u) = 0.90 ( from table 7 )
 U 
OR f (u) = 0.27* 1  2 
 100 

C) Weighting factor (1-w)

(1-w) is a weighting factor for the effect of wind and humidity on ETo

W= /( +)

Where = the rate of change of the saturation vapor pressure with temperature, and
 = the psychometric constant.

14

Lecture notes
 Values of (1-w) as related to temperature and altitude are given in Table 8.

Example:
Given:
Altitude 95 m, Tmax =35oC, Tmin = 22oC

Calculation: Tmean = 28.5oC

(1-w) (Table 8) = 0.23

d) Weighting factor (W)

W is the weighting factor for the effect of radiation of ETo. values of W as related to temperature
and altitude are given in Table 9. For temperature use (Tmax + Tmin)/2.

Example
Given :
Altitude 95 m, Tmax 35 oC , Tmin 22oC

Calculation
Tmean = 28.50C

W (Table 9) = 0.77

e) Net radiation (Rn).

Net radiation (Rn) is the difference between all incoming and out going radiation. It can be
measured, but such data are rarely available.

Rn can be calculated from solar radiation or sunshine hours (or degree of cloud cover),
temperature and humidity data. The amount of radiation received at the top of the atmosphere
(Ra) is dependent on
- latitude and
- time of the year only (Table 10).
Part of Ra is absorbed and scattered when passing through the atmosphere the remainder,
including some that is scattered but reaches the earth’s surface is called the solar radiation (R s).
Rs is dependent on Ra and the transmission through the atmosphere that is dependent on cloud
cover.

Part of Rs is reflected back directly by the soil and crop and is lost to the atmosphere. Reflection
() depends on the nature of the surface cover and is approximately 5 to 7% for water and
around 15 to 25% for most crops. (i.e. it depends on crop cover and wetness of the exposed soil
surface). That, which remains is net short-wave solar radiation (Rns).

Additional loss at the earth’s surface occurs since the earth radiates part of its absorbed energy
back through the atmosphere as long wave radiation. This is normally greater than the down
coming long wave atmospheric radiation.

15

Lecture notes
The difference between out going and in coming long wave radiation is called net long wave
radiation (Rn  ). Since outgoing is greater than incoming, Rn  represents net energy loss.

Total net radiation (Rn) = Rns-Rn  .

Radiation can be expressed in different units. It can be given as the energy required to evaporate
water from an open surface and is given here as equivalent evaporation in mm/day.

To calculate Rn the steps are

i) It measured Rn is not available, select Ra value in mm/day from Table 10 for given
month and latitude.
ii) To obtain Rs , correct Ra value for n/N by
iii) For most crops  = 0.25 Table 12 can be used to calculate Ras from the ratio n/N and
 = 0.25.
iv) Not long wave radiation (Rn  ) can be determined from T, ed and n/N. Values for the
function f (T), f(ed) and f(n/N) are given in Tables 13, 14, and 15 respectively.
v) To obtain total net radiation (Rn), the algebraic sum of Rns and Rnl is calculated.
Rnl always constitutes a net loss so
Rn = Rns - Rnl.

Example :
Given : Sunshine n = 11. 5 hr/day.
Calculation
Ra Table Ro
Rs = ( 0.25 + 0.50 n/N) Ra n = 11.5 hr
Table 11 N = 13.9 hr
n/N = 0.83 Hence Rs = 8.4 mm/day
Rns = (1-) Rs Table 12
Rnl = {f(T), f(ed), f{n/N)}
Table 13 f(T) = 16.4
Table 14 f(ed) = 0.13
Table 15 f((n/N) = 0.85 = 1.8 mm/day
Rn = Rns = - Rnl = 6.6 mm/day

f) Adjustment factor (C)

The Penman equation given assumes the most common conditions where
- radiation is medium to high
- RH max is medium to high
- Moderate daytime wind about double the night time wined.
However, these conditions are not always met. For other conditions the penman equation should
be corrected (Table 16 for values of C depending on RHmax , Rs , U day and
U day / U night )

Example
RH max 90% , Rs 12 mm/day U day 3 m/sec U day / U night 3  C = 1.28 (Table 16)
16

Lecture notes
RH max 60% , Rs 6 mm/day U day 3 m/sec U day / U night 2  C = 0.91 (Table 16)

The reference crop evapotranspiration (ETo) Can be calculated using

ETo = C { W.Rn + (1 - W). f(u), (ea - ed)}

Example
Given ; Cairo , July

W = 0.77 , Rn 6.6 1 - W = 0.23

f(u) = 0.90 ( ea - ed) = 17.5 C = 1.01

Calculation:

ETo = 1.01 ( 0.77x6.6 +0.23x0.90 x17.5) = 8.8 mm/day

3.3 Irrigation Efficiencies

i) Water storage efficiency

Water storage efficiency (Es), is the amount of water actually stored in the subject area expressed
as a percentage of the volume of water that can be stored.
The general form of the Es equation is given as follows.

Wf
Ec= *100 OR
Wd

L Lov
 Zdx   Zdx  Zr Lov
ES  o o X 100
Zr
Where Z = amount infiltrated (m 3. m -1)
L = channel length (m)
Lov = length of that part of the channel that received an amount of water
equal to or in excess of the perceived requirements (m)
Zr = required amount of application (perceived requirements ) (m3.m-1)

ii- Water Distribution Efficiency (Ed)

This shows how uniformly water is applied to the field along the irrigation run. In sandy soils
there is generally over irrigation at upper reaches of the run when as in clayey soils, there is
over- irrigation at the lower reaches of the run.
17

Lecture notes
  y
Ed  1  x100 Where Ed = water distribution efficiency
 d
d = average depth of water penetration.
y = average deviation from d.

iii- Field Canal Efficiency (Ef)

This is a measure of the efficiency with which the water is conveyed through the field channels
until it feeds the
Wp
Ef  *100 where Ef = Field canal efficiency
Wf
Wp = water delivered to the plot at the head of furrows
and strips
Wf = water delivered to the field channel

iv- Water Use Efficiency

This shows the yield of the crop per unit volume of water used. It may be expressed in
Kg/ha.cm or q/ha.cm

A. Crop Water Use Efficiency: is the ratio of the crop yield (Y) to the amount of water
consumptively used by the crop.

Y
Ew 
CU
B. Field Water Use Efficiency: is the ratio of the crop yield (y) to the total water requirement
of crops including Cu losses and other needs.

Y
Et 
WR

v- Project Efficiency (Ep)

This shows how efficiently the water source used in crop production. It shows the percentage of
the total water that is stored in the soil and available for consumptive requirements of the crop. It
indicates the overall efficiency of the systems from the head work to the final use by plants for
Cu. It is given as
Ep = Ec * Eb * Ea * nw

Example: - A stream size of 150 lit /sec was released from the diversion headwork to irrigate a
land of area 1.8 hectares. The stream size when measured at the delivery to the field channels is
120lit/sec. The stream continued for h hours. The effective root zone depth is 1.80m. The
application losses in the field are estimated to be 440m3. The depth of water penetration was
1.80m and 1.20m at the head and tail of the run respectively. The available water holding
capacity of the soil is 21cm/m and irrigation was done at 60% depletion of Am. Find Ec, ,Ef, Ea,
Es and Ed. The stream size delivered to the plot was 100 lit/sec.
18

Lecture notes
Solution
Wf 120 lit / sec
Ec  x100  x100  80%
Wd 150 lit / sec
Wp 100 lit / sec
Ef  x100  x100  83.3%0
Wf 120 lit / sec
100 x 60 x 60 x8
 2880m3
Water delivered to the plot = 1000

Water stored in the root zone =2880m3 – Application losses

= 2880m3 - 440m3 = 2440m3

Ws 2440m3
Ea  x100  x100  84.7%
Wp 2880m3
Total A.M = 21cm/m x 1.80m = 37.80 cm
60
x 37.80 cm  22.68 cm
RAM = 100

3
22.68
x1.8 x104  4082.4m
In volume, RAM = 100

Ws 2440m3
Es  x 100   59.8%  60%
Wn 4082.4m3
1.8  1.20
Average water penetration d   1.50m
2
Numerical deviation at upper end =1.80 –1.50=0.30m
At lower end = 1.50 – 1.20 =0.30m

2 x 0,30
Average numerical deviation = 0,30m
2
 y  0,30 
Ed 100 x 1    100 x 1   80%
 d  1.50 

3.4 IRRIGATION SCHEDULING

Scheduling of irrigation application is very important for successive plant growth

and maturity. Water is not applied randomly at any time and in any quantity.
Irrigation scheduling is the schedule in which water is applied to the field. If in an
important aspect of an efficient operation of an irrigation system. The scheduling
of irrigation can be field irrigation scheduling and field irrigation supply schedules.

Field irrigation Scheduling is done at field level. The two scheduling parameters of field
irrigation scheduling are the depth of irrigation and interval of irrigation.

19

Lecture notes
 1. Depth of irrigation (d)

This is the depth of irrigation water that is to be applied at one irrigation. It is the
depth of water that can be retained in the crop root zone b/n the field capacity and
the given depletion of the available moisture content. All the water retained in the
soil b/n FC and PWP is not readily available to crops. The readily available
moisture is only some percentage of the total available moisture. Thus, depth of
irrigation is the readily available portion of the soil moisture. In other words, it is
the depth of irrigation water required to replenish the soil moisture to field
capacity.

The depth of irrigation (d) is given by

d(net) = As . D (FC – PWP) . P ,m

Where As = Apparent specific gravity of soil

D = Effective root zone depth in m
FC = water content of soil at F.C
PWP = Water content of soil at PWP
P = depletion factor
Because of application lasses such as deep percolation and runoff losses, the total depth of water
to be applied will be greater than the net depth of water.
The gross depth of application
d(gross) = As.D(FC-PWP).P ,m
Ea
Where Ea = Field application efficiency and other parameters as defined above

2. Interval of Irrigation (i)

The interval of irrigation is the time gap in days b/n two successive irrigation applications. It
depends on the type of the crop, soil type and climate conditions. Thus interval of irrigation
depends on the consumptive use rate of the crop and the amount of readily available moisture in
the crop root zone. The consumptive use rate of the crop varies from crop to crop and also

during different stages of the crop. The RAM moisture also varies from soil to soil depending on
soil water constants. The interval (frequency) of irrigation is given by :

As .DFC  PWP  . P
i(days) = , where ETcrop(peak) is the peak rate of crop evapotranspiration in
ETcrop peak
m/day.

For the same crop and soil science the ETcrop (peak) goes on increasing from the initial stage to the
development and mid season stage the interval of irrigation will go on decreasing and increasing
during rate season stage.

Field Irrigation Supply Schedules (Irrigation Scheduling in a Command Area)

20

Lecture notes
 This is the schedule of water supply to individual fields or command area. This is a schedule of
the total volume of water to be applied to the soil during irrigation. It depends on crop and soil
characteristics.
It is expressed as: -

q.t 
10
 AS .D ( Fc  pwp .P. A , m3
Ea
Where q= Stream size (application rate ) lit/sec
t = Application time in sec
Ea = Application efficiency
As = Apparent specific gravity
D = Effective root zone depth ,m
P = Depletion factor
A = Area of the command (field) in ha
From the above equation, if either of the application time or the stream size fixed, one of them
can be determined.

In the above equation q.t indicates the total volume of water applied to the field during irrigation
at the head of the field. But the total volume of water diverted at the headwork will obviously be
greater than this value, because there is loss of water during conveyance and distribution canals.
The total volume of water to be diverted is given by :
As .D. FC  PwP , p. A.
10
Q.t = , m3
Ep
Where Q = flow rate at the head work, let/sec.
Ep = project efficiency and others as defined above.

Example 1.
For the data below, determine depth & interval of irrigation during different stages.
Depth of the root zone = 1 m , FC = 20 %, PwP = 8 %
Dry density of soil = 1.6 gm/cm3 and density of water = 1 gm/cm3 . The rates of consumptive
uses during different stages are as follows. A depletion of 50% during initial period, 60 %
during development and mid – season stage and 70 % during late season stage is allowable.
Determine the depth and interval of irrigation during different stages of the crop. The CU during
different stages is as follows.

Month June July August September

Dec 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3
Stage ini ini In/de dev dev dev mid mid mid Late Late Late
v
ETcrop/mm/day 3.5 3.5 5.0 5.2 5.8 6.50 6.6 6.6 6.6 6.2 6.0 5.80
Root 0.30 0.30 0.4 0.50 0.60 0.70 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80
depth(m)
D.Factor(p) 0.50 0.50 0.50 0.60 0.60 0.60 0.60 0.60 0.60 0.70 0.70 0.70
Depth of 28.8 28.8 38.4 57.60 69.1 80.6 92.16 92.2 92.2 107. 107.52 107.5
irrigation
(mm)
Interval of 8 8 7 11 11 12 13 13 3 17 17 18
21

Lecture notes
irrigation
(days)
*Irrigation 7 11 13 17
interval (days)

22

Lecture notes
Example 2 .A crop has in effective root zone of 120 cm (1.20 m) prior to irrigation, soil
samples were taken from different depths to determine the moisture status of the soil.

Depth of rootzone (m) Weight soil sample (gm) Weight of oven dry soil (g)

0 – 0.30 m 98.80 94.60

0.30 – 0.60 m 96.60 92.10

0.60 – 0.90 m 95.00 90.60

0.90 – 1.20 m 94.00 89.40

The water holding capacity of the soil at field capacity is 19.60 cm/meter. The
apparent specific gravity of the soil is 1.60. Determine, the moisture content in the
root zone at different depths total depth of water available in the root zone at
different depths, total depth of water available in the root zone and the soil
moisture deficit.

Solution

For depth from 0  0.30 m

Mass of water  98.80 gm  94.60 gm  4.20 gm

4.20 gm
Moisture content , W  * 100  4.44 %
94.60 gm
In depth of water, d = As. D .p =1.6*0.3*0.0444=0.0213m=2.13cm

For depth 0.3-0.6m

Mass of water=96.60-92.10=4.50gm.
W=4.50/92.10 *100= 4.88%
In depth, d = As. D.P = 1.60 * 0.30* 0.0488 = 0.0234 = 2.34 cm

For depth 0.60  0.90 m

Mass of water  95.00  90.60  4.40 gm

4.40
W  * 100  4.86 %
90.60

 In depth of water, d = As.D.P = 1.60 x 0.30* 0.0486 = 0.0233 = 2.33 cm

2
 For depth 0.90  1.20 m
Mass of water  94.00 gm  89.40 gm  4.60 gm

4.60
W  * 100  5.14 %
89.40

In depth, d = As .D.P = 1.60 x 0.30 * 0.0514 = 0.0247 m = 2.47 cm

The total depth of water in the root zone is the total of all the water retained at different depths.

 Total depth = 2.13 cm + 2.34 cm + 2.33 cm + 2.47 cm = 9.27 cm

Water retained at field capacity = 19.60 cm/m

Water in the root zone = 19.60 * 1.20 m = 23.52 cm
The soil moisture deficit prior to irrigation is therefore,
FC – depth of water during sampling
= 23.52 cm – 9.27 cm = 14.25 cm
This deficit is the amount of water which should be added to the soil to bring the
soil moisture content to field capacity. Thus, it represents the depth of irrigation.
Assuming that the peak rate of consumptive use during the stage of the plant is
8mm/day
depth 142.50 mm
Interval, i=   17.8  17 days =
peak cu 8 mm / day

The next watering will be done after 17 days. The interval should not be made 18 days, because
the plant may suffer shortage of water for one day.

2
 Assignment I

1. i. The following data refers to the evaporation from standard class A open pan
evaporimeter (Average over the decade)

Month June July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Decade 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3
Ep 8.0 8.2 8.4 7.5 7.2 7.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.8 6.6 6.4 6.8 7.4 7.8 7.6 7.8 8.0 8.2 8.0 8.2
(mm/day)

The pan coefficient (KP) recommended is 0.70

ii. The crops proposed to be suitable in the area are Maize and potato. They have
the following characteristics.

Maize

Stage Initial Development Mid Late Total

Length of stage (days) 20 40 40 20 120
Kc values 0.40 1.00 0.60
Rooting depth (m) 0.60 1.00 1.00
Depletion (P) 0.60 0.60 0.60 0.70

Potato

Stage Initial Development Mid Late Total

Length of stage (days) 20 30 50 30 130
Kc values 0.55 1.10 0.70
Rooting depth (m) 0.30 0.60 0.60
Depletion (P) 0.25 0.30 0.30 0.50
Planting date for Maize is June 1 and for that of potato is August 1.

iii . The rainfall record for 12 years of each month is the following

Month /year 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983
Jan 62.0 64.3 52.8 53.6 61.0 46.0 55.2 57.6 63.4 66.2 58.5 54.3
Feb 46.2 44.5 48.3 42.8 40.0 38.8 47.7 50.2 49.5 54.5 48.5 49.4
Mar 66.5 65.2 62.4 69.2 68.5 66.2 70.2 72.5 64.2 68.5 72.2 69.5
Apr 70.5 72.6 68.2 75.5 74.2 73.5 79.2 76.8 71.0 70.2 68.5 74.5
May 66.8 68.5 65.4 62.3 61.3 58.2 59.5 61.4 64.8 68.5 67.2 70.2
June 72.3 73.5 76.4 76.3 78.4 79.3 72.5 72.8 68.5 69.2 77.7 79.9
July 78.5 77.8 79.4 80.8 72.4 81.2 76.6 78.8 80.4 85.5 86.7 84.2
Aug 85.8 86.8 84.9 88.2 87.4 90.2 84.4 85.5 82.7 89.4 90.2 83.2
Sept 68.4 69.2 64.5 62.8 63.4 65.5 66.2 67.6 62.2 61.2 59.4 67.8
Oct 56.6 58.2 53.4 52.3 51.2 58.4 56.8 55.5 50.8 50.0 49.8 48.8
Nov 54.2 54.8 53.8 48.6 49.7 45.6 53.3 54.5 50.5 58.6 56.4 53.8
Dec 44.4 52.3 53.8 50.6 60.2 55.6 58.8 47.7 46.2 42.3 41.2 40.8

2
The 80 % dependable rainfall is to be used for computation of effective rainfall and 70 % of 80
% dependable rainfall is effective.

The area under the crops has the following soil properties.

Field capacity = 18 %
Permanent wilting point = 8 %
A parent specific gravity, As = 1.50

a) Calculate the Net irrigation requirement (NIR) on daily basis and on decade basis for
each crop.
b) Schedule the irrigation for each crop & find out the gross depth of application for each
decade and on daily basis assuming 80% application efficiency (Ea). Assume constant
interval during each stage.

2. A main canal has a CCA of 100 ha. The crops proposed in the area are sugarcane and
cotton. The duty of the water for each crop is as follows at the head of the field.

Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
DSugarcane
ha/cumec 1400 1300 1200 1100 1100 1200
D cotton
ha/ cumec 1000 1000 1000 900 900 900 800 800 800 900 900 900

The area under the crops is as follows

Sugarcane (perennial) = 40 ha
Cotton (seasonal) = 60 ha

The losses in canals & field channels are

15 % and 10% of the discharge at the head of the field for sugarcane
10 % and 6 % of the discharge at the head of the sugarcane field for cotton

a) What is the duty of the canal water for each crop at the head of the main canal?
b) What is the design discharge of the main canal?

3) An area of 2 ha is to be irrigated by lift method, with a pump running 10 hours per day, FC =
19 % , PWP = 10 % and As = 1.60. The rooting depth of the crop= 1.60 m. Application
efficiency = 80 % and a depletion level of 60 % is allowable. The peak crop
evapotranspiration rate is 5 mm/day. Determine
a) The volume of water pumped per irrigation
b) The pump capacity in liters/ second.