Optimizing Water Usage on Your Farm

Various farming tasks require water, which costs farmers millions of dollars a year. Fortunately, there are strategic ways to reduce your water usage and save money on water costs.

Here at Abell & Son, we strive to make your life easier. We gathered up the following ways to optimize water usage on your farm. For more strategies or to shop agricultural equipment for sale, head over to our dealerships in Lake Charles and Welsh, Louisiana. We also proudly serve Lafayette, Louisiana, and Beaumont, Texas.

Plant Dry Farming Crops

Crops differ in the amounts of water they need to thrive. One easy way to reduce your water usage is to choose crops that need small amounts of water or can evenly rely solely on rainfall.

Common crops for this approach include sorghum, pomegranates, millet, and some legumes. Some crops are drought tolerant and others only need the moisture existing in the soil. By choosing these types of crops, you can grow what you need without needing to use as much water.

Work Alongside Mother Nature

Another strategy is to schedule irrigation around rainfall. Make note of weather conditions, particularly when it rains. In many cases, you can schedule your irrigation and skip watering your crops after a decent rain.

Use Drip Irrigation

A popular way to reduce a farm's water usage is to take advantage of drip irrigation. With this type of system, the water can more easily gets directly to the roots of the plants. This is in contrast to other methods, which simply spray the water over the field. Drip irrigation is a great method for getting crops the water they need while ensuring that none of the water gets wasted on the dry ground. If the drip irrigation system is correctly installed, it can reduce crop water usage by up to 80%.

Drip irrigation can play a key role in reducing a farm's water usage, but the benefits do not stop there. Many farmers who make the switch to drip irrigation find that they have improved crop yields because of the more efficient watering.

Make Your Farm Organic

Going organic can also help reduce your farm's water usage. With this farming approach, the existing soil moisture and bacteria is used to keep crops healthy. There won't be large amounts of pesticides used, which require a high amount of water in their application.

This is also a great approach for helping to recharge groundwater supplies and make sure they are free of toxic pollutants.

Farm yields can also be positively affected. Your farm yields could increase by up to 30% by going organic!

Looking to shop agricultural equipment for sale? Check out the selection at Abell & Son. Peruse the models online or stop by our dealership in Lake Charles and Welsh, Louisiana. We are also proud to serve those in Lafayette, Louisiana, and Beaumont, Texas.