Introduction
Agricultural drainage systems are systems that are used to drain water from the soil to improve production. During rain or irrigation, the soil becomes filled with moisture. This makes the soil wet and better equipped for the growth of crops. However, on occasion, the soil can be filled with too much water which saturates the pores in the soil and reduces the amount of air available to the root of crops causing damage to the crops.
Over time, this water would move downwards and the air is able to fill the pores of the soil. However, if not helped along, this might take a long time and make the soil unfavorable to crops.
This is where drainage comes into play. It is a system whereby excess water is drained from the soil to enhance or improve agriculture. It refers to all the processes and practices used to remove excess water from the soil.
Types of Agricultural Drainages
There are many types of agricultural drainages, however, they are all classified under;
- Surface Drainage: surface drainage methods are the cheapest and easiest methods of agricultural drainages. In this system, water is drained from the surface of the soil by flowing it over the natural or artificial slope of the soil.
Surface Drainage System Image courtesy of www.britannica.com
- Subsurface Drainage: There are situations in which surface irrigation methods are not sufficient for example when the soil is not very porous and does not drain well. In this case subsurface drainage is used. Perforated or punctured pipes are placed or buried below the surface of the soil to drain the water from the soil.
Sub-surface drainage system. Image courtesy www.prestontrailfarms.com
Fig 2: The subsurface Drainage system
Benefits of Agricultural Drainages
The benefits of drainages are very important and some of them include:
- Drainages ensure the soil is properly aerated as too much water in the soil can choke the crops
- Drainages reduce the loss of nutrients and can limit the impacts of soil erosion.
- Drainages can be used to reduce the risk of soil slippage and landslides.
- It also reduces cost as it is more expensive to cultivate wet areas.
References
- Agricultural Drainage retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drainage_system_(agriculture)
- Michigan State University (2010) Agricultural Drainages. Extension Bulletin E3370
- Benefits of agricultural drainage retrieved from https://www.prestontrailfarms.com/why-is-drainage-important-for-your-crops/
- Benefits of agricultural drainage retrieved from https://williammorfoot.co.uk/what-we-do/land-drainage/agricultural-land-drainage/benefits-of-agricultural-land-drainage/