DAGR 1060 - Irrigation and Water Management

3 sem hrs cr

This course covers the fundamental principles and practices of irrigation, including irrigation system characteristics, management, maintenance, and water law.

Transfer (UT) or Non-Transfer Course (UN): UT

• Promote the proper growth of plants and maintain the right levels of moisture for the soil
• Apply basic soil, plant, water, and atmospheric engineering principles for the purpose of determining the crop water need (use), both in time and amount
• Understand sustainable agricultural production that protects the environment
• Study a range of methods and instrumentation available to determine crop water use or evapotranspiration (water requirements), irrigation scheduling, and effective water use

Student Learning Outcomes

• Identify factors that influence irrigation and water-management decisions
• Identify different irrigation types
• Describe strategies for irrigating when water is limited
• Identify the key elements in a water management plan (e.g., parts of the crop life cycle where rainfall is critical, soil types that are more dependent on water)
• Discuss the importance of effective water management in agriculture
• Correctly use monitoring tools and systems to achieve irrigation goals/targets and design a water management plan
• Develop an irrigation-management strategy
• Perform basic troubleshooting on different irrigation types (pivot, inferno, drip)
• Correctly use monitoring systems and sensors to assess problems (e.g., soil probes)