| Surface irrigation methods, such as furrow or flood, have the highest potential for water losses of typical irrigation practices. These losses are generally in the form of tail-water discharge (runoff) and excess deep percolation caused by the over-application of water. Focus was placed on reducing runoff to manage field-level water losses thereby increasing water application efficiency. Based around an inflow cutoff method, a set of volume-balance algorithms were generated to limit runoff over multiple irrigations during a growing season. To apply these algorithms a series of wireless wetting-front advance sensors were developed with ∼0.5 mile range and a cellular communication system. Using only sensor measurements, field test data from 2011 and 2012 were used to monitor surface flow behavior and verify these methods in border-check irrigated alfalfa (around Yolo County, CA). If applied properly, with managed inflow setups, these algorithms have the potential to minimize surface runoff in irrigated fields. |
