Crop Water

Requirements

Assignment on Engineering Design

and Phasing of Irrigation Design
having some project
Crop Water Requirements

It is the total amount of water required by the crop in a given

period of time for normal growth, under field conditions.

It includes evapotranspiration, water used by crops for

metabolic growth, water lost during application of water and
the water required for special operations such as land
preparation, tillage and salt leaching etc.

it is expressed as the surface depth of water in mm, cm or

inches per unit cropped area.

CWR = Consumptive use (Cu) + conveyance losses

(Wu) + water required for special operation (Ws)
Sources of water for Crop Use

Effective Precipitation (ER):

It is that part of total precipitation which is used by
crop as soil water reserve. It is the precipitation falling
during the growing period of a crop that is available to
meet the evapotranspiration needs of the crop. It is
determined as:

ER = Total rainfall (P) Runoff (R) deep percolation (PW)

Gross Irrigation requirements of crops (IRg):

It refers to the amount of water applied to the field
from the start of land preparation to harvest of the
crop together with the water lost through distributaries
and field channels and during water application to the
crop field.
Sources of water for Crop Use

IRg = CWR (ER + SW + GW)

Net Irrigation requirements

It refers to the amount of water needed to replenish soil
moisture deficit in the crop field.

IRn = IRg x Efficiency of water application

= Cu ER - conveyance losses

Soil Water Contribution for Crop Use (SW):

It refers to the difference in moisture content at the time of
sowing and harvesting of the crops that may be positive or
negative. It is given as:
Sources of water for Crop Use
Where:
SW = soil water contribution in cm
Msi = moisture content at the time of sowing in the ith layer, %
Mhi = moisture content at the time of harvesting in the ith
layer, %
Asi = Apparent specific gravity of soil (The specific gravity of a
porous solid when the volume used in the calculations is
considered to exclude the permeable voids)
Di = depth of ith layer of the root zone soil, cm

Ground Water Contribution for Crop Use (GW):

It refers to the water used by crops due to capillary rise in case of
shallow water tables.
CWR = ER + IRg + SW + GW
Objective of Crop Water
Requirement Study:
To decide possible cropping pattern of area

Effective use of available water

Plan and design an irrigation project

Plan water resource development in an area

Assess irrigation requirement of an area

Management of water supply from sources

Evapotranspiration (ET) and
Consumptive use (Cu)
Evapotranspiration:
It is defined as the water transpired by crop plants and
the water evaporated from the soil in the crop field and
intercepted precipitation by areal parts of plants in any
specified time period

Consumptive use:
It is the evapotranspiration plus the water used by plants
for metabolic activities which is hardly 1 % of ET

Consumptive use is the water required by plants to fulfill

the evapotranspiration needs of crops. (FAO)

Consumptive use is the total amount of water used by the

plants in transpiration (building of plant tissues etc) and
evaporation from adjacent soils or from plant leaves in any
specified time period. (S.K. GARG)
Classification of Consumptive
use
Daily Consumptive use:
The amount of water consumptively used during 24-hours.

It is estimated usually to record the peak period

consumptive use rates to formulate the cropping pattern
and to decide the water supply from sources during
different periods of cropping.

Peak Period consumptive use:

It is the average daily consumptive use during a few days
(6 to 10 days) of highest consumptive use in a season.

It occurs when the vegetation is abundant, temperature is

high and crops are in flowering stage.

It is used in the planning of an irrigation system

Classification of Consumptive
use
Seasonal consumptive use:
It is the amount of water consumptively used by
crops during the entire cropping season/period.

It is used to evaluate and decide the seasonal

water supply to a command area of an irrigation
project.
Important terminology on
Evapotranspiration
Potential / reference crop evapotranspiration (ETo):
The highest rate of evapotranspiration (ET) by a short and
actively growing crop or vegetation with abundant foliage
(leafage) completely shading the ground surface and
abundant soil water supply under a given climate.

An extensive surface of short green grass cover of uniform

height (0.12m), actively growing, completely shading the
ground and no water shortage resembles the reference
crop.

Actual crop evapotranspiration (ETc):

It is the rate of evapotranspiration by a particular crop in a
given period under prevailing soil water and atmospheric
conditions.
Important terminology on
Evapotranspiration
It refers to the evapotranspiration from a disease
free crop growing in a large field under optimal soil
conditions with adequate water and fertility and
giving full potential production under the given
environment.

Usually calculated by multiplying the Crop

Coefficient (Kc) for the period with ETrc, thus
ETcrop = Kc. ETrc
Factors affecting
Evapotranspiration
Climatic factors:
Climatic factors include:
Precipitation, with greater frequency and amount of
rainfall, ET becomes higher. In un-irrigated areas, water
needs of crops are mainly met from precipitation and in
irrigated areas it decides the amount of water available for
irrigation.

Solar radiations, it supplies energy for ET processes. With

increasing day length or solar radiation, ET becomes more.

Temperature, Temperature of plant and soil rises because

of more amount of solar radiation received from the sun
and consequently increases ET.

Wind speed, ET from soil surface and plants occurs at a

higher rate on a windy day. The moist air in the immediate
vicinity of a moist soil or leaf surface is swept away by
wind and the dry air occupies the space.
Factors affecting
Evapotranspiration
Relative humidity, ET varies inversely with the
atmospheric humidity

Growing season:
Length of growing season and the actual date of
sowing and maturing are important factors. The
growing season of a crop coinciding with the hotter part
of the year is expected to increase ET. Crops grown in
different seasons have different ET.

Crop characteristics:
Growth habit, canopy development, leaf area index,
plant density, duration and time of year when the
growth is made, are important consideration to study
the effect of crop characteristics on ET.
Factors affecting
Evapotranspiration
Soil characteristics:
Hydraulic conductivity and water holding capacity
of soil affect ET.

Cultural Factors:
Irrigation frequency, method of irrigation, depth of
irrigation, fertilizer application and mulching are the
important cultural factors affecting ET.
Crop Coefficient

Crop coefficient:
It is the ratio b/w the actual crop Evapotranspiration
to the reference crop evapotranspiration.
Kc = ETc / ETo

It determined experimentally for various crops, Etc is

determined by Lysimeter technique and ETo by USWB
class A evaporation pan.

Kc is different for different crop and for different crop

growth stages.

It is mainly affected by crop type, soil type and climate

of the area.
Crop Coefficient (Kc) Curve
Duty of irrigation water, delta
of crops, base period
Duty of irrigation water:
It is defined as the no. of hectares (acres) of land irrigated
for full growth of a given crop by supply of 1 m 3/sec (1
ft3/sec) of water continuously during the entire base
period. It is affected by crop type, climate and season,
useful rainfall, type of soil and efficiency of cultivation
method etc.
Delta of crops:
It is the total quantity of water required by the crops for
full growth as depth to which water would stand on the
irrigated area.
Delta = Volume (acre-ft) / Area (acres)

Base period:
It is the time between first watering of crops at the time of
its sowing and the last watering of crops before harvesting
Relationship between Duty,
Delta and Base period
Let there be a crop of base period B days.

Now the volume of water applied to this crop during B days @ 1

m3/sec = V = (1 x 60 x 60 x 24 x B) m3 = 86400 B

By definition of duty, 1 m3 of water supplied for B days

matures/irrigates D hectares (104 m2)of land.

So total depth of water supplied to this land (Delta) = Volume/Area =

86400B/104D

Therefore,

Delta = = 8.64 B / D (meters)

Delta = = 864 B / D (centimeters)

Example: find the delta of a crop when its duty is 864 hectare/cumecs
with base period of 120 days.
Methods of estimating
Evapotranspiration
These methods are classified into three types:
Direct methods
Lysimeter method
Field experimentation method
Soil water depletion method
Inflow-outflow method

Pan evaporimeter method

USWB class-A pan evaporimeter

Empirical methods
Blaney criddle method
Penman method
Modified penman method
Radiation method
Penman Monteith equation
Direct Methods
Lysimeter method:
Used to measure ET and various components of water
balance
It is a container (usually 0.5m 2 m in diameter)
having an experimental soil separated from the
surrounding soil in the crop field
Lysimeter are installed in fields with a large guard
area having the same crop as in the lysimeter
Measurements of different components for water
balance studies such as water added to lysimeter
through precipitation and irrigation, change in soil
water storage and water lost through evaporation,
transpiration, runoff and deep percolation are made,
The relationship is:
ET ER IRn VSW
Direct Methods

Lysimeters are so constructed that measurements

of deep percolation and surface runoff are possible
or it is possible to avoid these losses
Both weighing and non weighing type lysimeters
are used for measurement of ET
For very short period (daily or hourly) estimates of
ET, weighing type lysimeter is used
Direct Methods

Field experimentation method:

Field experiments with varying level of irrigation are
carried out to estimate seasonal consumptive use of
irrigated crops
Measurement of water supplied to the crops
through effective rainfall and irrigation and changes
in the soil moisture reserves during the growing
season are made
The water thus supplied under varying levels of
irrigation is then correlated the yields obtained
The quantity of water used to produce most
profitable yield is taken as CU
Direct Methods

Soil water depletion method:

Soil water contents in different layers of root zone are
measured just before and after irrigation or rainfall and
during the period between two successive irrigations
as frequently as possible depending upon the degree
of accuracy desired
The soil water depletion during any short period is
considered as the consumptive use fro that period
The seasonal consumptive use is obtained by summing
up soil water depletion or losses during the different
periods of measurement in the growing season
Direct Methods

Inflow-outflow method:
Used to estimate yearly consumptive use over
large area, also called as water balance method

CU P I VGW R

Change in soil water storage is considered

negligible and it is assumed that the subsurface
inflow into the area is same as subsurface outflow
Pan evaporimeter method

USWB class-A pan evaporimeter:

There exist a close relationship between the rate of
consumptive use by crop and the rate of evaporation
from properly located pan evaporimeter.
Pan evaporation is the combined effect of all atmospheric
factors and is independent of plant and soil factors
Crop evapotranspiration rates for various crops may be
estimated from the pan evaporation rates multiplied by a
factor known as crop factor (K crop) which varies with the
stages of growth, extent of ground cover with foliage,
climate and geographical locations
USWB class-A pan
evaporimeter
It is the most widely used evaporimeter for finding
evaporation from the free water surface
The Class A Evaporation pan is circular, 120.7 cm in
diameter and 25 cm deep. It is made of galvanized
iron (22 gauge) with a stilling pan
The pan is mounted on a wooden open frame platform
which is 15 cm above ground level to facilitate the
circulation of air beneath the pan
Daily evaporation rate is given by the fall in water
level measured in the stilling well by hook gauge
Adjustments are made to the evaporation values if
rainfall occurs during a period of measurement
After measuring the drop in water level each
time, water is added to the pan to bring back the
water level to original position of pointer tip level
USWB class-A pan
evaporimeter
The relationship between potential
evapotranspiration and pan evaporation is given
as:
USWB class-A pan evaporimeter
Empirical methods

Blaney criddle method

Penman method
Modified penman method
Radiation method
Penman Monteith equation
Empirical methods

Blaney criddle method:

Developed a formula for estimating CU based on
temperature, daylight hours, and locally developed
crop coefficients

ktp
CU Cu KF kf
100
Empirical methods

Penman method
Developed the formula using important climatic
parameters such as solar radiation, temperature,
vapour pressure and wind velocity to compute the
evaporation from open free water surface
ET is obtained by multiplying with crop coefficient

Qn Ea
Eo

it is quite satisfactory for both humid and arid regions
under calm weather conditions
It drawback is that it uses many climatological
parameters that are difficult to obtain
Empirical methods

Modified Penman method

ETo * W .Rn (1 W ). f (u ).(ea ed )

ETo CETo *
ETo* = Refenrence crop Evapotranspiration (unadjusted)
ETo= Refenrence crop Evapotranspiration (adjusted)
C = adjustment factor to account for day and night weather effect
Empirical methods

Radiation method:

ETo C (W .Rs )
n
Rs (0.25 0.50 ) RA
N
 Penman-Monteith Equation

Where:
Rn is the net radiation,
G is the soil heat flux,
(es - ea) represents the vapour pressure deficit of the air,
a is the mean air density at constant pressure,
cp is the specific heat of the air,
represents the slope of the saturation vapour pressure
temperature relationship,
is the latent heat of vaporization and is psychrometric constant,
and
rs and ra are the (bulk) surface and aerodynamic resistances.
PET = mm/day
A = slope of ew vs temp in mm Hg/oC (Table)
Ea = parameter including wind vel. & saturation deficit
cons tan t 0.49mm _ of _ Hg / C
o

Ha = incident solar radiation outside the atm (Table)

n = actual duration of bright sunshine in hours

N = max. possible hr of bright sunshine (Table)
r = reflection coef. (albedo)
Stefan Boltzman _ cons tan t 2.01x10 9 mm / day
Ta = mean air temp. in degree kelvin=273 + oC
ea = actual mean vapour pressure in the air in mm of Hg
ew = sat. vapour press. at mean air temp. in mm of Hg (Tab
U2 = mean wind speed at 2m above the ground in km/day
Suface Range of r value
Close ground crops 0.15 0.25
Bare lands 0.05 0.45
Water surface 0.05
Snow 0.45 0.95
Penman-Monteith Equation
The surface resistance, rs, describes the resistance of vapour
flow through stomata openings, total leaf area and soil surface.

The aerodynamic resistance, ra, describes the resistance

from the vegetation upward and involves friction from air
flowing over vegetative surfaces.

The latent heat of vaporization, , expresses the energy

required to change a unit mass of water from liquid to water
vapour in a constant pressure and constant temperature
process. The value of the latent heat varies as a function of
temperature

The specific heat at constant pressure Cp is the amount of

energy required to increase the temperature of a unit mass of
air by one degree at constant pressure. Its value depends on the
composition of the air, i.e., on its humidity
Penman-Monteith Equation
The vapour pressure deficit is the difference between the
saturation (es) and actual vapour pressure (ea) for a given time
period.

The solar radiation received at the top of the earth's atmosphere

on a horizontal surface perpendicular to suns rays is called the
extraterrestrial (solar) radiation, Ra

The net radiation, Rn, is the difference between incoming and

outgoing radiation of both short and long wavelengths. It is the
balance between the energy absorbed, reflected and emitted by
the earth's surface or the difference between the incoming net
shortwave (Rns) and the net outgoing longwave (Rnl) radiation

The soil heat flux, G, is the energy that is utilized in heating the
soil. it is positive when the soil is warming and negative when the
soil is cooling. The soil heat flux is small compared to Rn and may
often be ignored
Components of Global energy
balance