Water is used for irrigation primarily to ensure crops receive the essential moisture needed for growth, especially when natural rainfall is inadequate.
The Purpose of Irrigation
Plants require water to live and grow, absorbing it from the soil through their roots. This water is crucial for photosynthesis, transporting nutrients, and maintaining structural rigidity. While natural precipitation (rain, snow) is the primary source of water for most crops, there are many situations where it's simply not enough. This is where irrigation plays a vital role in agriculture.
Based on the provided reference, the fundamental reasons for using water in irrigation are:
- Enabling Crop Production in Dry Climates: In arid regions where rainfall is scarce or unreliable, applying water through irrigation is often the only way to make agriculture possible. Without irrigation, many fertile lands in dry areas would be unproductive deserts.
- Supplementing Insufficient Rainfall: Even in humid regions, there can be periods during the crucial growing season where precipitation is insufficient to meet the crops' water needs. Irrigation bridges this gap, providing supplementary moisture to prevent drought stress and ensure healthy growth.
In essence, Water applied as irrigation allows for crop production in arid regions and supplements soil moisture in humid regions when growing season precipitation is insufficient.
By providing a reliable water supply directly to the crops, irrigation significantly impacts agricultural outcomes. It has been shown that irrigation has enhanced both the productivity and profitability of the agricultural sector. Increased productivity comes from higher yields and better crop quality, while profitability is boosted by reliable harvests and reduced risk of crop failure due to drought.
In summary, irrigation is a fundamental practice in agriculture that ensures crops have adequate water supply, enabling farming in dry areas and supporting growth during dry spells in wetter climates, ultimately leading to more productive and profitable farming operations.
