CSIRO is identifying ways to improve the efficiency of Australian cotton industry's water use and assist growers to implement increasingly water efficient practices.
Water-use efficiency
With increasing demands on water, potentially reduced access and increased irrigation costs, cotton growers want to maximise their cotton production for each unit of water they use. While the Australian cotton industry is a world leader in crop water use efficiency under a surface irrigation system, there are opportunities to improve water use efficiency further.
By combining accurate flow measurement with crop models and other software tools, CSIRO aims to partner with commercial companies to develop water accounting models to help growers measure crop water use and drainage on their farms, and to maximise scheduling opportunities under limited water situations.
Responding to stress
Soil type and climate influence how a cotton plant responds to the amount of water in the soil, how quickly it experiences moisture stress and the duration of the stress. This stress affects plant growth and cotton fibre quality and yield.
CSIRO is researching the effects of this type of stress to help tailor irrigation plans for cotton crops grown in different conditions. The aim is to maximise production per unit of water applied.
CSIRO is also assessing alternative irrigation methods to the common surface or furrow irrigation.
Irrigation choices made easy
Two decision tools, HydroLOGIC and WaterPAK, are available to assist cotton growers and consultants make decisions about irrigation.
HydroLOGIC uses a cotton growth model containing the latest research in irrigation and water management, with a user friendly interface, to help users make informed choices about when to irrigate a given cotton field and the implications of irrigation decisions.
CSIRO provides training and support to HydroLOGIC users. HydroLOGIC is continually updated and is free to cotton growers and crop consultants in Australia.
WaterPAK was jointly developed by:
It is a reference manual on irrigation management in cotton containing information on:
There are opportunities to improve water use efficiency.
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whole farm water use efficiency
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irrigation design and management
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limited water situations
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crop water relationships
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crop growth responses to irrigation.
Waterlogging
Waterlogging becomes a problem when unexpected rainfall events occur close after irrigation of the crop. Even in dry conditions waterlogging can be a problem if an unpredicted storm event occurs and dumps a large amount of water on the crop in a short period of time. CSIRO estimates suggest that up to one bale of cotton per hectare per year is lost due to the effects of waterlogging in cotton crops – costing the industry an estimated $130 million per year.
CSIRO is researching the tolerance to waterlogging of some experimental GM cottons to assess aspects of their agronomic performance, including yield and fibre quality, under field conditions.
Related information sheets
Related scientific papers
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