Micro-irrigation, also called Micro-spray,localized, low-volume, low-flow, or trickle irrigation, is an

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...

method with lower

water pressure Pressure (symbol: ''p'' or ''P'') is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed. Gauge pressure (also spelled ''gage'' pressure)The preferred spelling varies by country and ev ...

and flow than a traditional sprinkler system. Low-volume irrigation is used in

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

for row crops,

orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit tree, fruit- or nut (fruit), nut-producing trees that are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also so ...

s, and

vineyard A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...

s. It is also used in

horticulture Horticulture (from ) is the art and science of growing fruits, vegetables, flowers, trees, shrubs and ornamental plants. Horticulture is commonly associated with the more professional and technical aspects of plant cultivation on a smaller and mo ...

wholesale Wholesaling or distributing is the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers; to industrial, commercial, institutional or other professional business users; or to other wholesalers (wholesale businesses) and related subordinated services. In ...

nurseries, in

landscaping Landscaping refers to any activity that modifies the visible features of an area of land, including the following: # Living elements, such as flora or fauna; or what is commonly called gardening, the art and craft of growing plants with a goal ...

for civic, commercial, and private landscapes and gardens, and in the science and practice of

restoration ecology Ecological restoration, or ecosystem restoration, is the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, destroyed or transformed. It is distinct from Conservation movement, conservation in that it attempts t ...

and

environmental remediation Environmental remediation is the cleanup of hazardous substances dealing with the removal, treatment and containment of pollution or contaminants from Natural environment, environmental media such as soil, groundwater, sediment. Remediation may be ...

. The lower volume allows the water to be absorbed into slow-

percolation In physics, chemistry, and materials science, percolation () refers to the movement and filtration, filtering of fluids through porous materials. It is described by Darcy's law. Broader applications have since been developed that cover connecti ...

soils such as

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...

, minimizing runoff.

System components

Sustaniable Micro irrigation in Northern Syria

A wide variety of system components are used in micro-irrigation systems. Most include a filter, such as pre-filters, sand separators,

media filter A media filter is a type of filter (water), filter that uses a bed of sand, peat, shredded tires, foam, crushed glass, geo-textile fabric, anthracite, crushed granite or other material to filter water for drinking, swimming pools, aquaculture, i ...

s, screen filters, and disc filters. The level of filtration required depends on the size of the emission device and the quality of the water source. A

Pressure regulator A pressure regulator is a valve that controls the pressure of a fluid to a desired value, using negative feedback from the controlled pressure. Regulators are used for gases and liquids, and can be an integral device with a pressure setting, a r ...

or regulating valve may be required to reduce the system pressure to the desired level. Automatically or manually operated valves are required to switch from one irrigated section to another. An irrigation controller is used with automatic systems and may be needed for back flushing the filter or sand separator. Since water conservation is a main reason for choosing micro-irrigation systems, soil moisture sensors, rain shutoff sensors and sometimes even weather stations may be installed to further reduce consumption.

Emission devices

Microtubing

Microtubing is one of the oldest types of

drip irrigation Drip irrigation or trickle irrigation is a type of micro-irrigation system that has the potential to save water and nutrients by allowing water to drip slowly to the roots of plants, either from above the soil surface or buried below the surfac ...

devices and was used in

greenhouses A greenhouse is a structure that is designed to regulate the temperature and humidity of the environment inside. There are different types of greenhouses, but they all have large areas covered with transparent materials that let sunlight pass an ...

in the 1970s. It consists of small diameter tubing. Flow is regulated purely by the tubing's length and diameter. Weights or stakes can be attached to the end of the tubing to keep it in place.

Flow drip emitters

Low-flow irrigation systems in gardens using drip apply water through two methods: *Pre-installed small holes in small diameter tubes placed on or below the surface * Self-cleaning emitters, in different precipitation rates, with different rate emitters on a supply line (i.e. trees-higher, perennials-lower). The Flexible supply pipe can be buried either underground or pinned on the surface. Low volume irrigation systems often use the two delivery components of drip systems to apply water through small holes in small diameter tubes placed on or below the surface. This is done instead of agricultural

surface irrigation Surface irrigation is where water is applied and distributed over the soil surface by gravity. It is by far the most common form of irrigation throughout the world and has been practiced in many areas virtually unchanged for thousands of years. ...

and furrow irrigation for vegetables, fruits and berries, and other high-value crops.

Adjustable drip emitters

Trickle emitters, also called "spider sprays," come in fixed or adjustable radius shapes and diameters, and are installed directly on the flexible supply pipe or on tubing connected to it, and mounted on small stakes. Trickle emitters work well for plants with more fibrous root systems, tree and large shrub basins, and in pots and container gardens—allowing automated watering on decks and patios.

Mist Mist is a phenomenon caused by small droplets of water suspended in the cold air, usually by condensation. Physically, it is an example of a Dispersion (chemistry), dispersion. It is most commonly seen where water vapor in warm, moist air meets ...

emitters can be used in pot, both on the ground and hanging, with humidity-fog watering for

epiphyte An epiphyte is a plant or plant-like organism that grows on the surface of another plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphyt ...

s and

fern The ferns (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta) are a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. They differ from mosses by being vascular, i.e., having specialized tissue ...

s replicating habitats. In the

industry,

growers and

plant nurseries A nursery is a place where plants are propagated and grown to a desired size. Mostly the plants concerned are for gardening, forestry, or conservation biology, rather than agriculture. They include retail nurseries, which sell to the general ...

often use trickle emitters for and larger container stock, to automate watering. Attached to longer supply tubing on short stakes, they are easily movable to new containers when stock is moved or sold.

emitters are used for propagation, epiphytes, and other plants needing higher

humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation (meteorology), precipitation, dew, or fog t ...

Micro-sprinklers

Low volume micro-sprinklers or high-efficiency nozzles may be attached to hard plastic risers or attached to standard sprinkler heads, but are also mounted on stakes and attached to small diameter micro-tubing connected to polyethylene tubing with a barbed connector. Some micro-sprinklers have a fixed spray or stream pattern, while others rotate. These are installed above ground and are often used for fruit and nut

s and

vineyards A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...

. These systems are expensive, even for large-scale agricultural use, and are predominantly reserved for high-value crops.

Macro-drip irrigation

High-volume, low-pressure irrigation systems for container gardening are known as Macro-Drip. A pressure regulator lowers the water pressure to under while a relatively large diameter hose or pipe delivers the water directly to a sprinkler head. This allows a larger volume of water to reach the flowerpot in a short amount of time, which will then be absorbed into the roots of the plant.

Sprinkler

Sprinkler irrigation sprays water onto the land. Sprinklers spread water in an equal balance. It decreases labor costs and saves up to 20%–40% in water supply. It can be applied to any soil that helps to increase crop production. A wide variety of sprinklers available in the market; one can choose carefully from the best of sprinkler systems.

Ecological restoration and phytoremediation projects

Low-flow irrigation systems are used on

native plant In biogeography, a native species is indigenous to a given region or ecosystem if its presence in that region is the result of only local natural evolution (though often popularised as "with no human intervention") during history. The term is equi ...

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

restoration and

projects. The lower operating pressure can be the only choice for remote locations with

well A well is an excavation or structure created on the earth by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...

s or small storage

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

water sources. It is used in temporary installations during initial establishment periods, and on the soil surface is easily removable with minimal damage to the recovering

plant community A plant community is a collection or Association (ecology), association of plant species within a designated geographical unit, which forms a relatively uniform patch, distinguishable from neighboring patches of different vegetation types. The comp ...

. An example is its use in riparian zone restoration, and environmental remediation projects using phytoremediation and

bioremediation Bioremediation broadly refers to any process wherein a biological system (typically bacteria, microalgae, fungi in mycoremediation, and plants in phytoremediation), living or dead, is employed for removing environmental pollutants from air, wate ...

techniques.

Water conservation

As municipal and agricultural water supplies become more constrained due to increasing population, droughts and

climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...

; city, water district, and state-province level regulations and codes are beginning to encourage or mandate reduced water consumption. Micro-irrigation is an efficient way to conserve water and reduce water consumption. According to the EPA report, a typical American home uses 30% of its water outside, and up to 50% of that water might be lost to runoff, wind or evaporation, partly due to the improper irrigation system. Micro-irrigation supplies water only where it is required and delivers water directly to the root zone of plants at a lower flow rate, allowing the water to soak into the soil rather than run off. According to research, micro-irrigation systems consume 20–50% less water than traditional spray sprinkler systems. Use of micro-irrigation systems on

green building Green building (also known as green construction, sustainable building, or eco-friendly building) refers to both a structure and the application of processes that are environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a building's li ...

candidate projects can help them to accumulate points for LEED - (''Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design'') certification rating and awards.

References

External links

DWP-Be Waterwise blog: "The Garden Spot"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Low-Flow Irrigation Systems Irrigation Low-flow irrigation systems Water conservation Sustainable agriculture Sustainable gardening