Survey of Irrigation Methods in California in 2001
Publication: Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Volume 134, Issue 1
Abstract
Reliable information on irrigation methods is important for determining agricultural water demand trends. Therefore, a study was conducted during 2002 to collect information on irrigation methods that were used by growers to irrigate their crops in 2001. The results were compared to earlier surveys to assess trends in cropping and irrigation methods. A one-page questionnaire was developed to collect information on irrigated land by crop and irrigation methods. The questionnaire was mailed to 10,000 growers in California that were randomly selected from a list of 58,000 growers by the California Department of Food and Agriculture, excluding rice, dry-land, and livestock producers. From 1972 to 2002, the area planted has increased from 15 to 31% for orchards and from 6 to 16% for vineyards. The area planted to vegetables has remained relatively static, while that planted to field crops has declined from 67 to 42% of the irrigated area. The land irrigated by low-volume (drip and microsprinkler) irrigation has increased by about 33%, while the amount of land irrigated by surface methods has decreased by about 31%. Sprinkler usage has decreased in orchards and vineyards, but it has increased in vegetable crops.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
Edinger-Marshal, S., and Letey, J. (1996). “Irrigation shifts toward sprinklers, drip and microsprinklers.” Calif. Agric., 51(3), 38–40.
Hagan, R. M., and Wagner, R. J. (1983). “Irrigation methods in California: An update.” California Dept. of Water Resources Division of Planning and Local Assistance, Sacramento, Calif.
Merriam, J. L., and Keller, J. (1978). “Farm irrigation system evaluation: A guide for management.” Agriculture and Irrigation Engineering Dept., Utah State Univ., Logan, Utah.
Snyder, R. L., Plas, M. A., and Grieshop, J. I. (1996). “Irrigation methods used in California: Grower survey.” J. Irrig. Drain. Eng., 122(4), 259–262.
Stewart, J. I. (1975). “Irrigation in California: A report to the State Water Resources Control Board.” Standard Agreement No. 2-2-65, Univ. of California and the California Water Resources Control Board, Sacramento, Calif.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Copyright
© 2008 ASCE.
History
Received: Jul 31, 2006
Accepted: May 18, 2007
Published online: Feb 1, 2008
Published in print: Feb 2008
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.