Pulse Irrigation For Better Yields

Most growers still use old approaches to watering. The typical advice is to water deeply and infrequently. If you look all over the internet, this is the most common irrigation advice you will find. However, newer research has shown there is a better way to water your plants. Pulse irrigation, a modern and efficient watering technique, is the strategy the biggest and richest farming companies around the world are using to irrigate their crops. Why should they get all the fun? Let's dive into why you should use pulse irrigation in your home garden or on your farm.

Using pulse irrigation for high yields.

Studies on Pulse Irrigation Success

First of all, let's look at some studies that have examined pulse watering in the field. This study looked at the results on raspberry crops. The authors found that pulse watering increased yields and decreased water use. How's that for a win-win situation? Another study found that pulse irrigation improved lemon productivity, vitamin C content, and total soluble solids. The fact that the crops have consistent access to water to absorb their nutrients is a huge plus.

The myth of deep watering still prevails despite mounting evidence that isn't the most efficient way of irrigating plants. Most people have no clue how to transition to a pulse irrigation setup or schedule. How does it make you feel when you find out that you can get better results while using up to 80% less water? You probably don't believe it to be true. Let's look at how you can break up a deep watering schedule into a pulse irrigation schedule.

How to Set Up a Pulse Watering Schedule

Let's use an example from my hot climate veggie garden. I used to water every day for an hour because my soil is also sandy. Keep in mind that this is during 110F days with very low humidity. To make better use of this water, we're going to break the one hour watering period into 6 shorter pulses of water. We're also only going to water for 5 minutes for each pulse because longer pulses result in more runoff. That's a 50% reduction in water, however, we're getting higher yields and better soil quality.

It's going to depend on your climate and soil on how to do this in your own garden or farm situation, but the easy way is to break your larger watering schedule into smaller ones more frequently throughout the day. Forget about watering at night, too. Plants only need water when they are actively photosynthesizing so all you need to do is water during the day. Maybe 4-6 times throughout the day for 5-15 minutes each time? If I can get away with 5 minutes each station and 6 times a day in 110F, bone-dry weather, then you can probably do that, too.

Want to find out exactly what your pulse irrigation schedule should be? Contact us here for a consultation.

Another resource on pulse watering can be found here.

Finally, give this video a watch to learn more about how other growers are using pulse irrigation to their advantage.