1. Drip irrigation for beginners
Clifton A. Slade, Slade Farms

2. Effective and Efficient Irrigation: Selecting the Right System
Clifton A. Slade, Slade Farms
Michael Pippen
Friday, Jan. 25, 2013

3. Pop Slade says “There’s enough ways for everybody to have a way”

4. Objectives
Using drip irrigation and plastic mulch to manage soils and fertilizers
Designing, installing, and running a drip irrigation system for fertilizing with minimum investment
Tips about soils, fertilizers, and drip irrigation

5. Feet of Row Per Acre (1Acre = 43,560 sqft)
36 Inch Row – 14,520 = 1 Acre

6. Irrigation Planning + Fertility Management=
Dependable Yields

7. Surry County, Virginia and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Surry, VA
Oklahoma City, OK

8. Southeast Virginia Water Deficit Chart

9. WHY PLASTICULTURE
Early Production
Quality
Increased Yields

10. Plastic Mulch-laying Equipment

11. $500 per Acre

12. PLASTIC MULCH

13. Rye Cover Crop (Dec. 13)

14. TRANSPLANTED

15. BEE HIVE

16. Pounds Mulched Per Acre

17. Irrigation

18. Irrigation and Fertilizer Equipment

19. Irrigation Central

20. Nutrient Content in Water
Irrigation Factors
Factors to consider before applying
drip-irrigation systems:
Surface Water
Well Water
Nutrient Content in Water
Soil Quality

21. Irrigation Tip
Water should be tested by a lab for ph and nutrient content.

22. Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations for 2012

23. Critical Periods of Water Need by Crops
Asparagus
Beans: Lima
Snap
Broccoli
Cabbage
Carrots
Cauliflower
Corn
Cucumbers
Eggplants
Lettuce
Melons
Onions: Dry
Peas
Peppers
Potatoes: white
sweet
Radishes
Strawberries
Squash: Summer
Tomatoes
Turnips
Brush
Pollination and pod development
Pod enlargement
Head development
Root development
Silking and tasseling, ear development
Flowering and fruit development
Bulb enlargement
Seed enlargement and flowering
Tuber set and tuber enlargement
Root enlargement
Establishment, runner development, fruit enlargement
Bud development
Early flowering, fruit set, and enlargement
Root Enlargement

24. Advantages
Uses less water and fertilizer than with sprinkle or surface irrigation systems
Lower energy and equipment cost than overhead equipment
Once in place, it requires very little labor to manage and operate
Disease and insect damage on the crop is reduced because the leaves do not get wet

25. Disadvantages *****Need to water on rainy days*****
Drip tubing can be damaged by insects, rodents, and laborers
Cost of pressure regulators and filtration equipment
Can not use the system for frost control

26. Hours Required to Apply 1 Inch of Water to Mulched Area
(gph/100ft)
(gpm/100 ft)
2.0
2.5
3.0
3.5
4.0 8
0.13
15.5
19.5
23.5
27.0
31.0 10
0.17
12.5
16.5
18.5
22.0
25.0 12
0.20
10.5
13.0
18.0
21.0 16
0.27
8.0
10.0
11.5
13.5 18
0.30
7.0
8.5
12.0
14.0 20
0.33
6.0
9.5
11.0 24
0.40
5.0
6.5
9.0 30
0.50 36
0.60
4.5 40
0.67
5.5 42
0.70 48
0.80 50
0.83 54
0.90 60
1.00
(gph/100ft)
(gpm/100 ft)
2.0
2.5
3.0
3.5
4.0 8
0.13
15.5
19.5
23.5
27.0
31.0 10
0.17
12.5
16.5
18.5
22.0
25.0 12
0.20
10.5
13.0
18.0
21.0 16
0.27
8.0
10.0
11.5
13.5 18
0.30
7.0
8.5
12.0
14.0 20
0.33
6.0
9.5
11.0 24
0.40
5.0
6.5
9.0 30
0.50 36
0.60
4.5 40
0.67
5.5 42
0.70 48
0.80 50
0.83 54
0.90 60
1.00
Trickle Tube Flow Rate
Mulched Width (ft)

27. Pole Butterbeans

28. Organic Compost

29. Greens

30. Greens – Marketing Day

31. Contact Information
Clifton A Slade
1111 Mt Ray Dr. Surry, VA 23883

32. Questions or Comments?
Thank You

33. Come to see us!
“The farm gate hangs on welcome hinges” - Pop Slade