Water Application Methods - Practices of Irrigation and On-farm Water Management - page 43

pumped from groundwater. In some instances, these energy costs can be substantial,
particularly with low water use efficiencies.
Cost and Economic Factor
Basin irrigation is generally the most expensive surface irrigation configuration to
develop and maintain but often the least expensive to operate and manage. Basin
system's costs can vary greatly, depending on crop and soil. A major cost in basin
irrigation is that of land grading or leveling, if required. The cost is directly related
to the volume of earth that must be moved. Typical operation and maintenance
costs for basin irrigation systems vary greatly, depending on local circumstances
and irrigation efficiencies achieved.
Advantage and Disadvantage
Advantages
(i) One of the major advantages of the basin method is its utility in irrigating fields
with irregular shapes and small fields
(ii) Best suited for lands/crops where leaching is required to wash out salts from
the root zone
(iii) Water application and distribution efficiencies are generally high
Limitations
(i) It requires accurate land leveling to achieve high application efficiency
(ii) Comparatively high labor intensive
(iii) Impedes surface drainage
(iv) Not suitable for crops which are sensitive to waterlogging
(v) Border ridges interfere with the free movement of farm machineries
(vi) Higher amount of water is required compared to sprinkler or drip irrigation.
2.3.3 Furrow Irrigation
2.3.3.1 Concepts and Features
Furrow irrigation is one of the oldest controlled irrigation methods. A furrow is
a small, evenly spaced, shallow channel installed down or across the slope of the
field to be irrigated parallel to row direction (Fig. 2.3 ) . In this method, water is
applied to furrows using small discharges to favor water infiltration while advancing
down the field. Furrow irrigation can thus be defined as a partial surface flood-
ing method of irrigation (normally used with clean-tilled crops), where water is
applied in furrows or rows of sufficient capacity to obtain the designed irrigation
system.