July 10, 2003

 

Irrigation and Guidance Technology Tour at the Carrington Field Day

Optimizing pump energy usage, equipment guidance technology and irrigation water management methods will be the highlights of the irrigation tour at the annual field day, Tuesday, July 15, at the North Dakota State University Carrington Research Extension Center.

The irrigation and technology tour will start at 9:30 am. Presentations on the tour will deal with new technologies that can help farmers better manage their irrigation systems, field equipment and crop water needs. Topics will include:

• Energy efficiency. With energy costs for pumping irrigation water increasing, Tom Scherer, NDSU Extension Service agricultural engineer will talk about energy optimization and savings using a variable-speed motor controller on an irrigation pump with variable flow requirements. He will also discuss a new type of irrigation valve called a "cycle-stop valve" that can be used for flow and pressure control.
• Guidance systems. Over the last couple of years, farmers have adapted Global Position System (GPS) guidance systems for use on sprayers, combines and other equipment. NDSU Extension Service agricultural engineer Vern Hofman will demonstrate light-bar and personal digital assistant (PDA)-based guidance methods.
• Disease research. Control methods for crop fungal diseases are always hard to research because nature can’t be relied on to consistently provide conditions for their growth. Bob Henson, agronomist at the Carrington Research Extension Center, will demonstrate and talk about misting systems for fungal research on canola, sunflowers and dry beans. Some of the misting systems use technology borrowed from the citrus industry.
• Water management. Effective irrigation water management depends on knowing the amount of soil moisture in the root zone. NDSU agricultural engineer Dean Steele will demonstrate different types of soil moisture measuring equipment. In addition, Paul Hendrickson, irrigation specialist at the center will discuss prototype irrigation scheduling software that runs on a PDA.
• Irrigated wheat. Wheat is a good rotation crop for irrigation because it helps with soil and disease management. However, yields under irrigation are typically too low to grow it economically. NDSU irrigation research specialist Paul Hendrickson and Dean Steele will discuss research on intensive wheat management and variety selection to improve yields under irrigation.
• Irrigation technology. If time permits, specialists will outline low-pressure sprinkler package selection for center pivots and computerized center pivot control panels.

The Carrington Research Extension Center is located 3.5 miles north of Carrington on Highway 281. In addition to the livestock tour, crop management tours and other events will also be featured. Morning sessions will begin at 9 a.m. and afternoon sessions will begin at 1 p.m. A sponsored noon lunch will be served.

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Source: Tom Scherer, (701) 231-7239, tscherer@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu