WATER SAVING
The irrigation system with hose-reel irrigation machine doesn't waste water: any farmer is able to satisfy water needs of his cultivation during its growth, with the distribution of a precise quantity of water programmed by means of a computerized control panel: the constant movement of the gun on the field grants a perfect eveness in water distribution, by avoiding every minimum waste. On the contrary, as many people think, it is false that drip-system saves water. Recent tests, made with water-metres positioned on different irrigation system in iimportant farms, showed what some technicians already sensed: drip-system must deliver bigger quantities of water in order to take the cultivation to ripening, as regards the irrigation by means of a hose-reel irrigation machine, with peaks of medium water consuption over than 50% (see Table n. 4)
TAB.4 - TESTED FARMS FOR WATER CONSUPTION: MC/H DISTRIBUTED WATER
| Farms | Civilization | Hose-reel irrigation machine | Drip-system |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 - Az. Agr. Budrio - BO | Cipolla | mc. 1954 | mc. 2257 (+16%) |
| 2 - Az. Agr. Ozzano - BO | Patata | mc. 1654 | mc. 2900 (+75%) |
| 3 - Az. Agr. Malandriano - PR | Pomodoro | mc. 1699 | mc. 2202 (+30%) |
| 4 - Az. Agr. Rivergaro - PC | Pomodoro | mc. 1271 | mc. 1784 (+40%) |
| 5 - Az. Agr. S. Giorgio - PC | Pomodoro | mc. 1260 | mc. 1743 (+38%) |
During the phase of germination of seeds and helping the just transplatend cultivations, the drip-system was unuseful and wasted a lot of water: during year 2002 the farmers had to irrigate with a hose-reel irrigation machine the cultivation prepared with a drip-system, in order to make the seeds germinate and start growing the just transplanted cultivations.