CORN DRIPIRRIGATION

The complete guide

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South Africa

Indonesia

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In Europe, grain maize production is around 45.2 million tonnes. In Italy, cornproduction represents 4% of the total agricultural value, while the production ofgrain maze is around 11 million tonnes. The cultivation of this culture is mainlydistributed in the northern areas of Italy.

WORLDWIDE CORN PRODUCTION

Thanks to its many uses, maize is the most widely produced cereal in the world.For example, around 850 million tonnes of grain maize alone are producedannually on 162 million hectares, with a yield of 5.2 t/ha. In Italy, yields are oftenwell above 10 t/ha. The largest maize producers are United States and China, which togethercontribute for the 37% and the 21% of world production, respectively.

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PANEL 1: THE WORLD'S LARGEST CORN PRODUCERS

THOUSANDS OF TONNES OF CORN

Maize (Zea mays L.) is an annual plant belonging to the Maydeae of thePoaceae family.

Roots: the root system spreads out in width and remains very superficial.However, in optimal conditions it can reach up to 2m in depth.

Stem: made up of a series of internodes, it varies in height from 50 cm to 6 m;on average it is about 2 m high.

Leaves: arranged in two opposite rows on the stem nodes. They have a laminarshape and an average length that ranges from 30 to 150cm.

Inflorescences: these are spikelet and there are both male inflorescences,which are located at the apex of the stem, and female inflorescences, which arewhat we call cob and are located at the axil of the eighth leaf.

MAIZE CHARACTERISTICS

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Climate: prefers warm climates and requires high solar radiation. Temperaturesbelow 10°C and above 45°C may cause growth interruption.

Soil: Corn is a plant which adapts well to all types of soil so its growing needsare minimal. However, maize prefers a draining and, if possible, sandy and richin nutrients soil. For this reason, significant organic fertilisation with maturemanure is often associated with high yields.

Soil preparation: Two types of preparation can be carried out.

The first, also known as traditional preparation, is characterised by a deep tillageof the soil that allows water drainage and aeration of it, followed by a refinementprocess.

The second type is sowing on hard soils or with minimum tillage. Sowing on hardground does not involve any tillage and is carried out on the land as it is, whilethe technique with minimum tillage involves a surface refinement of the soil nodeeper than a few metres.

Biological cycle: the life cycle of maize can be divided into three main phases:germination and rooting, vegetative development, flowering and ripening. Thewhole cycle has a total duration of about 130-150 days, which may be shorter inshort-cycle varieties or longer in long-cycle varieties.

MAIZE REQUIREMENT

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Maize has many uses, it is consumed as a food, it is also widely used inzootechnics for feeding animals on farms, it is used in industry for the productionof flour and starch and finally it is also used as an energy source in biogas.The main categories of maize include grain maize and fodder maize.

GRAIN MAIZEMaize varieties are specifically selected for the production of grain maizespikelets. Once the maize has reached maximum growth, it is harvested bypicking the cobs with specific machines. After this process, cobs can be directlycommercialised or shelled. The grain will then be treated according to use.It can be subjected to brine processes for preservation and sale, it can be dry-milled to produce flour and wet-milled (immersed in water) to produce starch or itcan be selected for animal use.

FODDER MAIZEThe varieties used in fodder production are selected not only to give a goodgrain yield but also to produce an important amount of biomass.

MAIZE REQUIREMENT

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In the vegetative stages up to flowering, maize has the greatest need of waterand is therefore more likely to suffer from prolonged water stress if there is notenough rainfall or if the irrigation system is not used properly.Water stress can result in up to 8% loss of production for each day of watershortage, leading to an overall yield reduction of up to 50%.

MAIZE PROBLEMS: WATER STRESS

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PANEL 2: MAIZE WATER STRESS

UNINTERRUPTED DAYS OF WATER STRESS IN THE VEGETATIVESTAGE

% YIELDREDUCTION

As we have stated earlier, avoiding water stress in the plant's development is anabsolute priority. In this sense, drip irrigation can be considered an idealsolution.This is demonstrated by a study conducted by University of Padua incollaboration with the Piave drainage consortium. The study compared a dripirrigation system, a sprinkler system with a hose reel and a pivot system. Thetest was conducted on a farm in the Piave area in spring 2015 until harvesting inSeptember 2015.Research has shown that drip irrigation is the only irrigation technique that hasbeen able to avoid water stress without over-watering.Comparing this technique to pivot irrigation, although the latter made up forwater shortages by avoiding hydric-stress, it has also delivered about 37% morewater than needed. Drip irrigation has also given the best production results with11% more growth than pivot and 15% more than hose-reel irrigation.In the end, drip irrigation proved to be much more profitable for maize.

HOW TO OPTIMISE WATER USAGEWITHOUT HYDRO-STRESS THANKSTO DRIP IRRIGATION

Drip irrigation Pivot irrigastion Hose-reel irrigaiton no irrigation

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PANEL 3: GRAPH OF AVERAGE YIELD PER HECTARE BYIRRIGATED AND NON-IRRIGATED METHOD

Not irrigated with conventional manuring;Drip-irrigated with manuring;Drip-irrigated with fertigation manuring.

Drip irrigation provides many advantages in production, quality and yield of bothvarieties i.e. grain maize and fodder-biomass maize.The efficiency of the system is increased when fertigation is combined with it.Considering that the units of fertigation required by maize are very high (280units/ha of nitrogen - 130 units/ha of phosphorus - 280 units/ha of potassium),being able to divide the fertilizer supply during the development phases,especially the nitrogen supply, through fertigation ensures maximum efficiency incultivation.A four-year experiment (2012 through 2015) was carried out in China, which hasdemonstrated the efficiency of drip fertigation. A field was selected and dividedinto three different areas:

This marked increase was particularly evident in 2014 and 2015 wherefertigation was much more effective than conventional fertilisation by 53% and31% respectively.

THE BENEFITS OF DRIP IRRIGATIONON MAIZE CROPS

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Conventional Drip irrigation Fertigation

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PANEL 4: GRAIN MAIZE YIELD IN KG/HA

Another positive effect of the two most advanced techniques was an improvedvegetative development. The leaf blade of maize in the year 2014, if we comparethe conventional technique to the two others, was 79% larger with drip irrigationand 124% larger with fertigation.The drip system is very advantageous, especially in the driest periods because ithas the ability to compensate for water shortages during the most critical phasesbased on the real needs of the plant. In addition, with this system you will obtainmuch more vigorous and with higher commercial value yields.

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THE BENEFITS OF DRIP IRRIGATIONON MAIZE CROPS

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DESIGNING A DRIP IRRIGATIONSYSTEM:AN EXAMPLE

Q = up to 40 m3/hHead up to 6 bar i.e. 60 m.c.a

Q= 383 l/min corresponding to 23.0 m3/hHead of 5 bar

EXAMPLE OF AN INSTALLATION OF 10000 m2 (100x100m)

Soil type: medium mixtureCrop: grain maizeSpacing of the plants: 0.75x 0.15mSpacing on irrigation system: 1.5 x 0.3 mWater supply source: Well with water level at -30 mCapacity low rate: 22.200lt/h

Pump specifications:

By submerging the pump at 40m, we will obtain the followingperformances:

By choosing the SKY drip-tape Ø16 8mil, with drippers at 0,3 m it will besufficient a sector of 67 drip lines spaced 1.5 mt between them and with emittersof 1l/h. At this point we will adopt a header line that can handle pressures andflow rates of the pump. In this case we will choose a 3", 78mm Rioflex pressure.

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Never leave the crop in water stress;Roll out the drip tape after or together with the last hoeing;Do frequent irrigations, especially during summer;Opt for a spacing of 0.75 m between rows and 0.15/0.2 m between plants onthe same row, with drip tape laid every two lines (1.5m);Parcel nitrogen inputs out as much as possible through the use of fertigation.

Recommendations:

DESIGNING A DRIP IRRIGATIONSYSTEM:WHAT DO YOU NEED?

Approx 6600 m of SKY Ø16,8mil i.e. 3 coils of 2200 meach with 1 l/h drippers;1 Rioflex 3”,78 mm coil ofapprox 100 m;1 x 2” disc filter SABfilter;N. 67 tape-Rioflex fittingswith valve;Perla fittings (1 connector, 1end plug)

Briefly, what do you need forthe system is:

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RIOFLEX PRESSURERioFlex is a 100% PE layflat, light and fullyrecyclable;Nominal pressure: 4 bar;Diameter: 3”, 78mm.

DESIGNING A DRIP IRRIGATIONSYSTEM:WHAT DO YOU NEED?

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SKYDrip irrigation PE tape with a large sectionlabyrinth, high-performing and recyclable;Nominal pressure: 0,7 bar;Diameter: 16 mm;Spacing: 30 cm.

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DISC FILTER2" disc filter SABfilter;Maximum flow rate 30 mc/h.

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LAYFIT FITTINGS AND TAPECONNECTORN. 67 tape-rioflex fittings;Perla fittings (1 connector and 1 end plug).

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