Calculate how much water your crop needs for irrigation. Enter crop type, field area, and soil type to get daily water requirement, pump hours, and monthly water volume.
Water requirement = Crop evapotranspiration (ET) in mm/day × Field area in m². Convert mm to litres: 1 mm of water per 1 m² = 1 litre. Account for irrigation efficiency to get gross water requirement.
Irrigation efficiency is the percentage of water pumped that reaches the crop root zone. Flood irrigation: 50-70%. Sprinkler: 75-85%. Drip: 85-95%. Higher efficiency means less water pumped for the same crop need.
Evapotranspiration is the total water lost from soil evaporation and plant transpiration per day, measured in mm. Reference ET (ETo) depends on temperature, humidity, and wind. Crop ET = ETo × crop coefficient (Kc).
Pump hours = Gross water requirement / Pump discharge rate. For 2 acres of sugarcane needing 10,000 litres/day with a 5,000 litre/hour pump: 2 hours/day. Run in early morning to reduce evaporation losses.
Drip irrigation delivers water directly to the root zone through emitters on pipes. Best for orchards, vegetables, and water-scarce regions. Saves 30-50% water vs flood irrigation. Higher installation cost but lower operating cost.
Number of emitters = Field area × plant density. Each emitter typically covers 1-4 m² depending on crop spacing. Flow rate per emitter (2-4 L/hour) determines the total pump capacity needed for simultaneous operation.
Sprinkler irrigation uses pressurised pipes and nozzles to spray water over crops like rainfall. Suitable for field crops, vegetables, and orchards. Provides 80% efficiency vs 65% for flood. Requires electricity or diesel for pressurisation.