Irrigation

Tasmania has relatively abundant fresh water by Australian standards. However, insufficient summer rainfall often inhibits plant growth in agricultural areas. There is growing use of irrigation on dairy pastures and in cropping areas to ensure optimum and reliable plant growth.

It is important to improve irrigation management in order to increase production, reduce the cost of production, reduce pests and diseases, optimise the use of a scarce resource and reduce impacts on the environment.

In this topic

  • Evaporation Pans
    Recording of evaporation pan data must be combined with rainfall records using a rainguage.
  • Tensiometers
    Tensiometers monitor changes in soil water without disturbing the roots of growing plants.