5 MISTAKES TO AVOID IN FARM IRRIGATION SET UP

Farmers all over the world are experiencing the effect of climate change in form of short/insufficient rainfall and drought which has led to a significant decrease in crop production. This challenge has made it difficult for farmers to rely on rain-fed agriculture.

The best solution for tackling this menace, is installing suitable irrigation facilities on farms. However, as you are planning to install irrigation facilities on your farm, make sure that you are properly informed so as to avoid these common mistakes farmers make.

In this post, I will be sharing the mistakes you must avoid if you want to install irrigation facilities on your farm so as to avoid additional cost, waste of time and energy that accompanies bad irrigation set up.

1.       Insufficient Water Supply:  What is the use of installing irrigation on your farm when the water source on your farm cannot meet up with the water requirement of your farm? In this case, you will have to consider getting an additional source of water.

For example, if there is a stream on your farmland but it dries up at certain times of the year or it does not produce enough water, then you should consider an additional source of water before setting up an irrigation for your farm. An additional source of water like a deep well or a borehole will supply enough water supply to your farm and enable you to cultivate your crops all year round.

You may be wondering why you must ensure that you have enough water on your farm before you install irrigation on your farm.

Here is why

If you install irrigation on your farm and there is no water then the irrigation facilities become useless, although there is irrigation set up, there is no water to irrigate the farm.

2.       Lack of Power Supply: You will need power to pump water that will be used for irrigation. Therefore, you will have to consider reliable source(s) of power for pumping the water.

You should ensure that you don’t rely on only one source of power for operating your pumping machine. If you are using a generator esp. old one, get a backup generator if possible just in case one develops a fault. You will also need storage tanks that can hold water for a period of time. Make sure you factor the running cost of fuel into your budget.

3.       Purchasing Low Quality Irrigation Materials: You must be able to identify and purchase good quality irrigation materials or engage experienced irrigation professional/expert.

Sometimes the sellers may have the various irrigation materials and differentiate them based on their prices. Although the most expensive may not be the best but avoid making your decisions based on price but on quality that is why I advise to engage irrigation professional/expert.

Have you ever heard this saying ‘Penny wise pounds foolish’? That is exactly what comes to play when you buy poor quality irrigation materials for your farm because you feel they are cheap.

In the long run the irrigation materials will not be durable and you will need to change them therefore you will end up spending more.

4.       Bad Installation of the Irrigation Facilities: It is one thing to purchase high quality irrigation materials, it is another thing to have it properly installed on your farm.

Make sure you get irrigation expert to install the irrigation facilities on your farm so that it will function properly and it will be durable. The essence of this is so that, you can make substantial returns on the total cost of installing irrigation facilities on your farm.

You can state in the comment section if you need irrigation professionals/experts that will help you with the purchase and installation of quality and durable irrigation facilities on your farm.

5.       Lack of Technical Know-how of the Farm Workers: Beyond just setting up irrigation on your farm, you will want the irrigation set up to be durable so as to serve you for a long time. This will help you to make good returns on the money you invested in setting up the irrigation.

In order to avoid damage to the irrigation facilities, make sure you educate your farm workers on maintenance and how to carry out farming activities with the irrigation facilities installed in other to avoid accidental damage during operations such as weeding, fertilizer application and so on.

Show them the proper ways of operating the irrigation facilities, the precautions they need to take and what to do when they encounter certain difficulty in the course of using the irrigation facilities.

On any farm that our experts install irrigation on, we offer free sensitization for your workers so that the irrigation facility is properly maintained.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, you have to ensure that you plan properly, get the best irrigation system that suit your farm, purchase quality irrigation materials, it will save you a lot of money in the long run and ensure you get experts to properly install the irrigation materials on your farm but it does not end there, make sure you educate your farm workers on how to manage the irrigation facilities.

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