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<br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />,f,: ";~";. ""J ": \) <br />v __..... .1 '-T.J <br /> <br />CULTURAL METHOOS ANO SOIL-PLANT-MOISTURE RELATIONSHIPS <br /> <br />A significant number of cost effective water conservation and water use <br />efficiency opportunities for High Plains irrigated agriculture can be <br />classified under the broad categories of cultural, tillage and land treatment <br />methods and improvements. Still others are more related to important soil- <br />plant-moisture relationships that can be adapted for improvements in water <br />uses. A general discussion of these methods is provided here, with more <br />detailed and specific treatment of individual practices in later sections. <br /> <br />Some of the more relevant cultural methods applicable to the High Plains <br />area represent annual or seasonal farm management decisions with direct <br />implication for water use. The selection of cropping systems, rotations, <br />crop/variety determinations, planting geometry (spacing, density, direction), <br />tillage practices, land preparation (grading, terracing, leveling), weed <br />suppression, mulching, fallowing and other cultural practices or decisions <br />all have impacts on water use and water conservation objectives. Farmer's <br />decisions on the use of many of these methods or practices have been fre- <br />quently determined by considerations other than water use/water conservation <br />objectives. The depletion of the Ogallala and the steadily rising costs of <br />irrigation are significant reasons for including water use impacts in the <br />decision process. <br /> <br />Other farm management decisions are influenced by significant soil- <br />plant-moisture relationships that are largely subject to control or on-farm <br />manipulation. Most of these can be identified with their potential effects <br />on rates of evapotranspiration. Modest changes (reductions) in ET rates <br />achievable through any of these methods can have very significant impacts on <br />water use due to the high percentage of total irrigation water losses <br />(nonrecoverable) attributable to ET. <br /> <br />Examples of opportunities to influence water budgets through soil- <br />plant-moisture relationships are: 1) selection of crops or varieties <br />genetically adapted for lower water use - e.g. drought or deficit water <br />tolerance, shorter growing season or earlier growing season adaptations, <br />2) fertilization/water requirement adjustments to take advantage of <br /> <br />9 <br />