SOIL-SPECIFIC IRRIGATION STRATEGIES IN THE 21st CENTURY – AN OVERVIEW

Approximately 70% of the global water withdrawal and 85% of the consumptive water usage are for irrigation. Unfortunately, water use efficiency in the agricultural sector is very poor with more than 50% water loss. In most cases, the main goal in water management is to optimize irrigation water use efficiency not only to produce good quality, high-yield crops but also to ensure that the runoff and leaching are minimized. Most of the time climatic and phenological factors are used to regulate irrigation. However irrigation efficiency is also strongly influenced by soil properties.

To optimize irrigation practice economically and ecologically, it is essential to provide an objective basis for the irrigation process. However, atmospheric parameters as well as groundwater proximity must not be overrated: instead, close attention to the pedological conditions should be a primary consideration. Soil physical properties can change enormously over small distances but the composition and properties of the cultivated soils are rarely taken into consideration.

Based on comprehensive analyses of existing literature and author`s studies in this field of research, the review paper on hand will give an overview of the current development of irrigation strategies. Due to the fact that approaches of precision irrigation require precise knowledge of soil properties, this paper pays particular attention to soil site-specific irrigation methods.