Gaining Perspective on Irrigation Systems

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This week I continued to learn more about irrigating. They use several different types of irrigation systems. I learned about a side roll which can move along its side and sprays out water from different pivots. The pivots move in a circular motion in order to spread the water throughout the pasture. I also learned about flood irrigation. We would use a tarp to block off water in the ditch so it would flood over and irrigate the pasture. We also use a center pivot to irrigate the pasture. The center pivot rotates around a center point and sprays out water underneath it. With both the center pivot and the side roll we have to make sure they are working properly and that nothing is plugged up. I learned about greasing equipment using an oil gun to make sure everything is running smoothly. We also put up an electric fence and moved the cows into a different pasture in order to provide them with fresh grass and to give the pasture that they were on a break.

I would challenge using a side roll as a form of irrigation. The side rolls can be difficult to move and they do not always move together as one when they are rolling. You also need to take pieces off of the end of the side roll when you are moving them down a pasture sometimes so they do not run into the fence. I noticed the side roll gets plugged up easily as well so sometimes you spend a lot of time unplugging the pivots. They do not always have high water pressure or rotate very well. There is a lot of effort that goes into the side roll and I think there are other forms of irrigation, like the center pivot, that work better to irrigate the pastures.

I have questions about what other forms of irrigation there are. I also want to know about the cost of installing different types of irrigation and how long it takes to put in systems, such as a center pivot or to set up a side roll. I am still learning a lot about irrigation and how it works. I have questions about the best way to irrigate the pastures and to get the most water coverage. I also want to learn more about the equipment used for irrigation and how to keep it maintained over time.

I plan to apply what I have learned this past week if I ever decide to have animals or run a ranch of my own someday. I will need to know how to irrigate the pastures and provide food for my animals. It will also be useful to know about the different types of irrigation systems and what works best, as well as how to maintain the equipment. If I ever work on another ranch in the future it will be useful to have background knowledge and experience with irrigation and keeping things running to the best of my ability.

Submitted by: Leiana Andrade Stout
Edits by: GrowinG Internship Team