NEED FOR IRRIGATION WATER

The balance of water in and out of a field is very important to maintain plant health and soil
fertility. This equilibrium occurs when the amount of water entering through rainfall, irrigation or other
water sources is balanced with the amount of water coming out through evaporation, transpiration,
infiltration into the soil or discharge.
Factors such as climate, topography, soil and plant type can affect the water balance in a field. In
areas with a lot of rainfall, for example, water more easily enters the soil and naturally irrigates plant
roots. However, if too much water gets into the soil, it can cause inundation and eventually damage the
roots of plants.
On the other hand, in areas with low rainfall or long dry seasons, water availability becomes a
limiting factor in agriculture. Plants need enough moisture content to grow properly so farmers must
take measures to store and conserve water resources during dry periods.
To maintain water balance in a field, efforts can be made such as:
1. Ensure adequate drainage in certain areas to avoid inundation.
2. Add through efficient irrigation techniques, such as drips or flow, to supply water to plants
appropriately and avoid excess moisture.
3. Grow cover crops that can help absorb and reduce surface runoff in the field.
4. Using specific tillage methods such as beds or land maturation to regulate the layout and discharge
of water so that plants can be planted at the right time and can grow well at optimal conditions.
5. Manage the vegetation of areas surrounding farmland, such as forests or shrubs, to help maintain
the balance of the natural water cycle.
6. Increase awareness and education of farmers on the responsible use of water resources and prioritize
these resources so that they can be sustainable in the future.

By maintaining a good balance of water in and out of a land, agricultural productivity can
increase and contribute to food availability for the community around the area.
Water needs for plant are influenced by evaporation events (the process of changing water into
steam), transpiration (the process of water vapor leaving the plant body or evaporation in plants),
evapotranspiration (the process of evaporation that occurs in water bodies and plants).
Evapotranspiration is often referred to as the consumptive needs of plants.
Evaporation and transpiration occur simultaneously and are not easily separated. Evaporation
from the ground surface in addition to being influenced by the availability of water in the topsoil is also
mainly determined by the share of solar radiation that reaches the ground surface. The amount of solar
irradiation that reaches the soil surface will decrease with the growing size of plants. When plants are
young, water loss in agricultural land (rice fields) is mainly due to evaporation, on the contrary, when
plants have grown large and cover the soil surface, transpiration becomes dominant.
Some of the factors that affect the water requirements of rice fields for rice growth are as follows:
1. Soil type: Water requirements for rice growth depend on the type of soil, clay content and physical
and chemical properties of the soil.
2. Rice varieties: Each rice variety has different water requirements depending on the type, age, and
method of planting.
3. Climate: Areas with high rainfall have more water supply than areas with low rainfall so irrigation
must be carefully determined.
4. Topography: Rice fields on slopes really rely on the contour of the land to regulate irrigation and
drainage because the flow of water will be uneven if the land is too sunken.
 By adjusting the water needs of rice fields to these factors, the use of water resources in agriculture
can be optimized so that there is enough water available for rice growth while maintaining the balance
of ecosystems and the sustainability of natural resources for future generations.
The tillage period requires the most water when compared to the growth stage. Water needs for
land treatment are influenced by several factors, including
1. Soil characteristics
2. Processing time
3. Availability of manpower and livestock
4. Mechanization of agriculture
Water requirements for preparation can be determined based on soil depth and soil porosity in
rice fields, as proposed in the Irrigation Planning Criteria. The increasing demand for irrigation water
will mainly be met with the overexploitation of both renewable groundwater and fossil groundwater,
encouraging seawater intrusion leading to soil salinization problems in case of ineffective irrigation
management. Indeed, irrigation is often wasteful and very inefficient.(Coppola et al., 2019)

A. Irrigation Efficiency
Field application efficiency (e) is the relationship between the amount of water provided at the
field inlet and the amount of water needed, and supplied, for evapotranspiration by plants to avoid
unwanted water stress on plants during the growth cycle.
Evaluation of the efficiency of field applications requires measuring water delivery to every field
and groundwater content measurement before each irrigation water application. Although such
measurements are certainly necessary in research, they can hardly be practiced in the field. Effective
irrigation scheduling systems are possible on soils that have a high water-holding capacity or in areas
where reliable data on consumptive use and good meteorological data are available. Here, only periodic
soil moisture checks need to be carried out to ensure that irrigation is carried out before the soil moisture
reaches the wilting point and the application is no more than the remaining water-holding capacity
within the root zone.(Bos & Nugteren, 1990)