A Closed-Type Irrigation System Performaces in the Plant House

Abstract

Water application in the plant house is usually done by surface irrigation and manual micro-irrigation. Because of the conventional irrigation system’s inefficiency, water-saving irrigation has been developed. Smart or automated irrigation usually uses a microcontroller to maintain irrigation timing and soil moisture conditions. This automation is highly efficient in water application and can increase plant productivity. However, this system is costly and the irrigation components are not always available for smallholder farmers. Here we develop an automatic irrigation technology based on the capillarity principle that dramatically reduces the cost. This irrigation technology does not use any microcontroller device and the components can be easily acquired. This system was tested in an organic vegetable plant house from February to March 2018. This technology is able to maintain soil water content between field capacity and wilting point. In addition, all plants perform well during the cultivation period. This technology only requires 0.038 m3 water in the whole period of cultivation (40 days). Compare with the sprinkler irrigation, it is 40% more efficient. Through this technology, all smallholder farmer can easily apply and reduce water loss in irrigation