Join us for this three-part series on Determining Water Needs for Your Field. As the temps continue to stay high, and many growers enter thier last irrigation cycle of the season, it is especailly important to make sure you are using the right amount of water and that it is working hard for your field. Please enjoy Part 3 and check out Part 1 on Evaporation and Transpiration and Part 2 on Evapotransporation and ETo Zones in case you missed them.

Part 3: How much water does my crop need?

Determining Water in Acre Inches per Crop

Water is always of primary concern to the growers who work with Holloway. Whether you are growing almonds, grapes or row crops, the amount of water and the access to water can make or break your yield. When discussing water, there is a fair amount to consider such as reservoir size, emitter size, line sizing, line PSI, filtration, well output, and surface water availability. Then there is also the matter of the actual application of the available water and how to best use it.

The irrigation needed for your field is determined by Multiplying the ETo (Location) x Kc Factor (Crop Types) = ETc.

The table below uses monthly data as a summary for how much water (in acre inches) that crop needs at that location, with certain irrigation methods. An acre-foot of water 325,851 gallons. An acre of water is 27,154 gallons of water. Ideally, when you are scheduling irrigation, you would account for well water that is available, surface water that is available, and rainfall. This table combines the math of the multiplication between the ETo (location) and the Kc Factor (Crop Types).

And in case you missed it, read Part 1 on Evaporation and Transpiration – What they are and how they work together to determine your field’s Evapotranspiration (ET), and Part 2 on Evapotransporation and ETo Zones – How to determine the Evapotransporation and ETo Zones for your particular field.