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W Texas | I have GPS leveled ground in flood/border and it is far more efficient than pivots on my ground in my climate.
The only appropriate answer to the original question is "it depends on your unique circumstances" IMO.
Pivots work well basically everywhere on sand. Tight ground is a different situation.
Out here in the desert we have to put 30" on a cotton crop and with the tight soils can only put on .75" per pass due to runoff on the tight ground. Even if you preirrigate, still requires 30+ passes over the top. That cools off the cotton and leads to low Micronaire and low yield and high weed pressure and risk of foliar disease and boll rot. It also leads to high evaporation from top few inches of soil, which becomes sodic and crusts.
Pivot irrigated alfalfa here will be weedy starting from first year. Flood irrigated stands 7 years old still weed free. Flood irrigation yields 1 ton hay per 4" irrigation. Pivot irrigated hay yields 1 ton per 7" irrigation.
If you put on 20" of water with a pivot, add maintenance cost, electric cost to run pivot, extra power cost to pump against 30 psi pressure, depreciation on pivot, it costs about $140/acre per year to run a pivot. After ground is laser leveled and head ditches set up, only added cost to flood irrigation is labor, which is less than $10/acre over and above pivots.
Plus you can plant and harvest in straight lines and don't have to worry about someone getting too acquainted with 480v electric. | |
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irrigation input cost verses return
