Chapter 3 - Crop Water Needs

10/7/2015
CHAPTER3:CROPWATERNEEDS
Producedby:NaturalResources
ManagementandEnvironment
Department
Title:IrrigationWaterManagement:Irrigationwaterneeds...
Moredetails
3.1INFLUENCEOFCLIMATEONCROPWATERNEEDS(ETo)
3.2INFLUENCEOFCROPTYPEONCROPWATERNEEDS(Kc)
3.3CALCULATIONOFTHECROPWATERNEED
Thecropwaterneed(ETcrop)isdefinedasthedepth(oramount)ofwater
neededtomeetthewaterlossthroughevapotranspiration.Inotherwords,itis
theamountofwaterneededbythevariouscropstogrowoptimally.
Thecropwaterneedalwaysreferstoacropgrownunderoptimalconditions,i.e.a
uniformcrop,activelygrowing,completelyshadingtheground,freeofdiseases,and
favourablesoilconditions(includingfertilityandwater).Thecropthusreachesitsfull
productionpotentialunderthegivenenvironment.
Thecropwaterneedmainlydependson:
theclimate:inasunnyandhotclimatecropsneedmorewaterperday
thaninacloudyandcoolclimate
thecroptype:cropslikemaizeorsugarcaneneedmorewaterthan
cropslikemilletorsorghum
thegrowthstageofthecropfullygrowncropsneedmorewaterthan
cropsthathavejustbeenplanted.
Section3.1indicatestheinfluenceoftheclimateoncropwaterneeds:thisinfluenceis
givenbythereferencecropevapotranspiration(ETo).Section3.2indicatesthe
influenceofthecroptypeandgrowthstageoncropwaterneeds:theinfluenceofthe
cropisexpressedinthecropfactor(Kc).
3.1INFLUENCEOFCLIMATEONCROPWATERNEEDS(ETo)
3.1.1Introduction
3.1.2PanEvaporationMethod
3.1.3BlaneyCriddleMethod
3.1.4CalculationExampleBlaneyCriddle
3.1.5IndicativeValuesofETo
3.1.1Introduction
http://www.fao.org/docrep/s2022e/s2022e07.htm#3.13%20blaney%20criddle%20method
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Themajorclimaticfactors(seeFig.4)whichinfluencethecropwaterneedsare:
sunshine
temperature
humidity
windspeed
Fig.4Majorclimaticfactorsinfluencingcropwaterneeds
Table3indicatestheeffectofthevariousclimaticfactorsoncropwaterneeds.
Table3EFFECTOFMAJORCLIMATICFACTORSONCROPWATERNEEDS
ClimaticFactor
Cropwaterneed
High
Low
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Temperature
hot
cool
Humidity
low(dry)
high(humid)
Windspeed
windy
littlewind
Sunshine
sunny(noclouds) cloudy(nosun)
Thehighestcropwaterneedsarethusfoundinareaswhicharehot,dry,windyand
sunny.Thelowestvaluesarefoundwhenitiscool,humidandcloudywithlittleorno
wind.
Theinfluenceoftheclimateoncropwaterneedsisgivenbythereferencecrop
evapotranspiration(ETo).TheEToisusuallyexpressedinmillimetresperunitof
time,e.g.mm/day,mm/month,ormm/season.Grasshasbeentakenasthereference
crop.
Definitionofthereferencecropevapotranspiration(ETo):
EToistherateofevapotranspirationfromalargearea,coveredbygreengrass,8to15cm
tall,whichgrowsactively,completelyshadesthegroundandwhichisnotshortofwater(see
Fig.5).
Fig.5Referencecropevapotranspiration
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ThereareseveralmethodstodeterminetheETo(seeFig.6).Theyareeither:
experimental,usinganevaporationpan,or
theoretical,usingmeasuredclimaticdata,e.g.theBlaneyCriddle
method
Fig.6Methodstodeterminereferencecropevapotranspiration
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3.1.2PanEvaporationMethod
Evaporationpansprovideameasurementofthecombinedeffectoftemperature,
humidity,windspeedandsunshineonthereferencecropevapotranspirationETo(see
Fig.7).
Fig.7Panevaporationmethod
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Manydifferenttypesofevaporationpansarebeingused.Thebestknownpansarethe
ClassAevaporationpan(circularpan)(Fig.8a)andtheSunkenColoradopan(square
pan)(Pig.8b).
Fig.8aClassAevaporationpan
Fig.8bSunkenColoradopan
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Theprincipleoftheevaporationpanisthefollowing:
thepanisinstalledinthefield
thepanisfilledwithaknownquantityofwater(thesurfaceareaofthe
panisknownandthewaterdepthismeasured)
thewaterisallowedtoevaporateduringacertainperiodoftime(usually
24hours).Forexample,eachmorningat7o'clockameasurementis
taken.Therainfall,ifany,ismeasuredsimultaneously
after24hours,theremainingquantityofwater(i.e.waterdepth)is
measured
theamountofevaporationpertimeunit(thedifferencebetweenthetwo
measuredwaterdepths)iscalculatedthisisthepanevaporation:Epan
(inmm/24hours)
theEpanismultipliedbyapancoefficient,Kpan,toobtaintheETo.
Formula:ETo=KpanEpan
with:
ETo:referencecropevapotranspiration
Kpan:pancoefficient
Epan:panevaporation
Ifthewaterdepthinthepandropstoomuch(duetolackofrain),waterisadded(see
Fig.9a)andthewaterdepthismeasuredbeforeandafterthewaterisadded.Ifthe
waterlevelrisestoomuch(duetorain)wateristakenoutofthepan(seeFig.9b)and
thewaterdepthsbeforeandafteraremeasured.
Fig.9aAddwaterwhenthewaterdepthinthepandropstoomuch
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Fig.9bTakewateroutofthepanwhenthewaterdepthrisestoomuch
DeterminationofKpan
WhenusingtheevaporationpantoestimatetheETo,infact,acomparisonismade
betweentheevaporationfromthewatersurfaceinthepanandtheevapotranspiration
ofthestandardgrass.Ofcoursethewaterinthepanandthegrassdonotreactin
exactlythesamewaytotheclimate.Thereforeaspecialcoefficientisused(Kpan)to
relateonetotheother.
Thepancoefficient,Kpan,dependson:
thetypeofpanused
thepanenvironment:ifthepanisplacedinafalloworcroppedarea
theclimate:thehumidityandwindspeed
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FortheClassAevaporationpan,theKpanvariesbetween0.35and0.85.AverageKpan=
0.70.
FortheSunkenColoradopan,theKpanvariesbetween0.45and1.10.AverageKpan=
0.80.
TheKpanishighif:
TheKpanislowif:
thepanisplacedinafallowarea thepanisplacedinacroppedarea
thehumidityishigh(i.e.humid) thehumidityislow(i.e.dry)
thewindspeedislow
thewindspeedishigh
Detailsofthepancoefficientareusuallyprovidedbythesupplierofthepan.
Ifthepanfactorisnotknowntheaveragevaluecouldbeused(seebox).Ifmore
accuracyisrequired,thepanfactorsgiveninAnnex1shouldbeapplied.Thesevalues,
however,onlyrefertotheClassAevaporationpanandtheSunkenColoradopan.
Someexamples
1) Typeofpan:ClassAevaporationpan
Waterdepthinpanonday1=150mm(seeFig.10a)
Waterdepthinpanonday2=144mm(after24hoursseeFig.10b)
Rainfall(during24hours)=0mm
Kpan=0.75
Calculation: Epan=150144=6mm/day
ETo=0.756=4.5mm/day
Fig.10aMeasuringthewaterdepthonday1*
Fig.10bMeasuringthewaterdepthonday2(after24hours)*
*Measuringdevicesareusuallymoreaccuratethantherulerindicatedin
Fig.10andthusallowformoreaccuratereadings(seeDataSheet1).
2) Typeofpan:SunkenColoradopan
Waterdepthinpanonday1=411mm
Waterdepthinpanonday2=409mm(after24hours)
Rainfall(during24hours)=7mm
Kpan=0.90
Calculation: Epan=411409+7=9mm/day
ETo=0.909=8.1mm/day
DATASHEET1DeterminationETo:PanEvaporationMethod
3.1.3BlaneyCriddleMethod
Ifnomeasureddataonpanevaporationareavailablelocally,atheoreticalmethod(e.g.
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theBlaneyCriddlemethod)tocalculatethereferencecropevapotranspirationETohas
tobeused.TherearealargenumberoftheoreticalmethodstodeterminetheETo.
Manyofthemhavebeendeterminedandtestedlocally.Ifsuchlocalformulaeare
availabletheyshouldbeused.Ifsuchlocalformulaearenotavailableoneofthe
generaltheoreticalmethodshastobeused.
ThemostcommonlyusedtheoreticalmethodisthemodifiedPenmanmethodwhichis
describedindetailinFAOIrrigationandDrainagePaper24.Thismethod,however,is
rathercomplicatedandbeyondthescopeofthismanual.
HereonlytheBlaneyCriddlemethodisgiven.TheBlaneyCriddlemethodissimple,
usingmeasureddataontemperatureonly(seealsoFig.11).Itshouldbenoted,
however,thatthismethodisnotveryaccurateitprovidesaroughestimateor"orderof
magnitude"only.Especiallyunder"extreme"climaticconditionstheBlaneyCriddle
methodisinaccurate:inwindy,dry,sunnyareas,theEToisunderestimated(upto
some60percent),whileincalm,humid,cloudedareas,theEToisoverestimated(up
tosome40percent).
Fig.11TheBlaneyCriddlemethod
TheBlaneyCriddleformula:ETo=p(0.46Tmean+8)
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ETo=Referencecropevapotranspiration(mm/day)asanaveragefora
periodof1month
Tmean=meandailytemperature(C)
p=meandailypercentageofannualdaytimehours
TheuseoftheBlaneyCriddleformula
Step1:Determinationofthemeandailytemperature:Tmean
TheBlaneyCriddlemethodalwaysreferstomeanmonthlyvalues,bothforthe
temperatureandtheETo.If,forexample,itisfoundthatTmeaninMarchis28C,it
meansthatduringthewholemonthofMarchthemeandailytemperatureis28C.
Ifinalocalmeteorologicalstationthedailyminimumandmaximumtemperaturesare
measured,themeandailytemperatureiscalculatedasfollows:
Step2:Determinationofthemeandailypercentageofannualdaytimehours:p
Todeterminethevalueofp.Table4isused.Tobeabletodeterminethepvalueitis
essentialtoknowtheapproximatelatitudeofthearea:thenumberofdegreesnorthor
southoftheequator(seeFig.12).
SupposethepvalueforthemonthMarchhastobedeterminedforanareawitha
latitudeof45South.FromTable4itcanbeseenthatthepvalueduringMarch=
0.28.
Fig.12Thelatitude
Table4MEANDAILYPERCENTAGE(p)OFANNUALDAYTIMEHOURSFOR
DIFFERENTLATITUDES
Latitude North Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
South July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May June
60
.15
.20
.26 .32 .38
.41
.40
.34
.28 .22 .17
.13
55
.17
.21
.26 .32 .36
.39
.38
.33
.28 .23 .18
.16
50
.19
.23
.27 .31 .34
.36
.35
.32
.28 .24 .20
.18
45
.20
.23
.27 .30 .34
.35
.34
.32
.28 .24 .21
.20
40
.22
.24
.27 .30 .32
.34
.33
.31
.28 .25 .22
.21
35
.23
.25
.27 .29 .31
.32
.32
.30
.28 .25 .23
.22
30
.24
.25
.27 .29 .31
.32
.31
.30
.28 .26 .24
.23
25
.24
.26
.27 .29 .30
.31
.31
.29
.28 .26 .25
.24
20
.25
.26
.27 .28 .29
.30
.30
.29
.28 .26 .25
.25
15
.26
.26
.27 .28 .29
.29
.29
.28
.28 .27 .26
.25
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10
.26
.27
.27 .28 .28
.29
.29
.28
.28 .27 .26
.26
.27
.27
.27 .28 .28
.28
.28
.28
.28 .27 .27
.27
.27
.27
.27 .27 .27
.27
.27
.27
.27 .27 .27
.27
Step3:CalculateETo,usingtheformula:ETo=p(0.46Tmean+8)
Forexample,whenp=0.29andTmean=21.5CtheEToiscalculatedasfollows:
ETo=0.29(0.4621.5+8)=0.29(9.89+8)=0.2917.89=5.2mm/day
3.1.4CalculationExampleBlaneyCriddle
Given
Latitude35North
MeanTmaxinApril=29.5C
MeanTmininApril=19.4C
Question
DetermineforthemonthAprilthemeanEToinmm/dayusingtheBlaney
Criddlemethod
Answer
Formula:ETo=p(0.46Tmean+8)
Step1:determineTmean:
Step2:determinep: Latitude:35North
Month:April
FromTable4:p=0.29
Step3:calculateETo:ETo=0.29(0.4624.5+8)=5.6mm/day
ThusthemeanreferencecropevapotranspirationETo=5.6mm/dayduringthewhole
monthofApril.
3.1.5IndicativeValuesofETo
IfonlyaroughestimateoftheETovalueisrequired.Table5canbeused.
Table5INDICATIVEVALUESOFETo(mm/day)
Meandailytemperature
Climaticzone
low(lessthan15C) medium(1525C) high(morethan25C)
Desert/arid
46
78
910
Semiarid
45
67
89
(Moist)Subhumid
34
56
78
Humid
12
34
56
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DATASHEET2Calculationofthemeanmonthlytemperature:TmaxandTmin
DATASHEET3DeterminationETo:BlaneyCriddleMethod
Note:
ETo=p(0.46Tmean+8)
3.2INFLUENCEOFCROPTYPEONCROPWATERNEEDS
(Kc)
3.2.1Introduction
3.2.2DeterminationoftheTotalGrowingPeriod
3.2.3DeterminationoftheGrowthStages
3.2.4DeterminationofCropFactors
3.2.1Introduction
Insection3.1theinfluenceoftheclimateoncropwaterneedshasbeendiscussed.
TheinfluenceoftheclimateisgivenbythereferencecropevapotranspirationETothe
referencecropusedforthispurposeisgrass(seeFig.13a).
Fig.13aReferencecropevapotranspiration
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Thissection(3.2)dealswiththeinfluenceofthecroptypeandgrowthstageoncrop
waterneeds.Inotherwords,thissectiondiscussestherelationshipbetweenthe
referencegrasscropandthecropactuallygrowninthefield.
Therelationshipbetweenthereferencegrasscropandthecropactuallygrownisgiven
bythecropfactor,Kc,asshowninthefollowingformula:
EToKc=ETcrop
with ETcrop= cropevapotranspirationorcropwaterneed(mm/day)
Kc=
cropfactor
ETo=
referenceevapotranspiration(mm/day)
BothETcropandEToareexpressedinthesameunit:usuallyinmm/day(asan
averageforaperiodofonemonth)orinmm/month.
Fig.13bCropevapotranspirationorcropwaterneed
Thecropfactor,Kc,mainlydependson:
thetypeofcrop
thegrowthstageofthecrop
theclimate
Kcandthetypeofcrop
Fullydevelopedmaize,withitslargeleafareawillbeabletotranspire,andthususe,
morewaterthanthereferencegrasscrop:Kc,maizeishigherthan1.Cucumber,also
fullydeveloped,willuselesswaterthanthereferencegrasscrop:Kc,cucumberisless
than1.
Kcandthegrowthstageofthecrop
Acertaincropwillusemorewateronceitisfullydeveloped,comparedtoacropwhich
hasjustrecentlybeenplanted.
Kcandtheclimate
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Theclimateinfluencesthedurationofthetotalgrowingperiodandthevariousgrowth
stages.Inacoolclimateacertaincropwillgrowslowerthaninawarmclimate.
Thus,todeterminethecropfactorKc,itisnecessary,foreachcrop,toknow
thetotallengthofthegrowingseasonandthelengthsofthevariousgrowth
stages.
ThedeterminationoftheKcvaluesforthevariousgrowthstagesofthecropsinvolves
severalsteps:
Step1Determinationofthetotalgrowingperiodofeachcrop
Step2Determinationofthevariousgrowthstagesofeachcrop
Step3DeterminationoftheKcvaluesforeachcropforeachofthe
growthstages
The3stepsmentionedabovearedealtwithinthesections3.2.2,3.2.3and3.2.4
respectively.Section3.3explainshowthecropwaterneedorcropevapotranspiration
isdetermined.
3.2.2DeterminationoftheTotalGrowingPeriod
Thetotalgrowingperiod(indays)istheperiodfromsowingortransplantingtothelast
dayoftheharvest.Itismainlydependenton:
thetypeofcropandthevariety
theclimate
theplantingdate
Asthegrowingperiodheavilydependsonlocalcircumstances(e.g.localcrop
varieties)itisalwaysbesttoobtainthesedatalocally.Onlyifnodataareavailable
locallyshouldTable6beused.
AscanbeseenfromTable6thereisalargevariationofvaluesnotonlybetweencrops
butalsowithinonecroptype.Ingeneralitcanbeassumedthatthegrowingperiodfor
acertaincropislongerwhentheclimateiscoolandshorterwhentheclimateiswarm.
Table6INDICATIVEVALUESOFTHETOTALGROWINGPERIOD
Crop
Totalgrowingperiod
(days)
Crop
Totalgrowingperiod
(days)
Alfalfa
100365
Millet
105140
Banana
300365
Oniongreen
Barley/Oats/Wheat
120150
Oniondry
150210
7095
Beangreen
7590
Peanut/Groundnut
130140
Beandry
95110
Pea
90100
Cabbage
120140
Pepper
120210
Carrot
100150
Potato
105145
Citrus
240365
Radish
3545
Cotton
180195
Rice
90150
Cucumber
105130
Sorghum
120130
Eggplant
130140
Soybean
135150
Flax
150220
Spinach
60100
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Grain/small
150165
Squash
95120
Lentil
150170
Sugarbeet
160230
Lettuce
75140
Sugarcane
270365
Maizesweet
80110
Sunflower
125130
Maizegrain
125180
Tobacco
130160
Melon
120160
Tomato
135180
3.2.3DeterminationoftheGrowthStages
Oncethetotalgrowingperiodisknown,theduration(indays)ofthevariousgrowth
stageshastobedetermined.
Thetotalgrowingperiodisdividedinto4growthstages(seeFig.14):
1.Theinitialstage:thisistheperiodfromsowingortransplantinguntil
thecropcoversabout10%oftheground.
2.Thecropdevelopmentstage:thisperiodstartsattheendoftheinitial
stageandlastsuntilthefullgroundcoverhasbeenreached(groundcover
7080%)itdoesnotnecessarilymeanthatthecropisatitsmaximum
height.
3.Themidseasonstage:thisperiodstartsattheendofthecrop
developmentstageandlastsuntilmaturityitincludesfloweringandgrain
setting.
4.Thelateseasonstage:thisperiodstartsattheendofthemidseason
stageandlastsuntilthelastdayoftheharvestitincludesripening.
Table7showsthedurationofthevariousgrowthstagesforsomeofthemajorfield
crops.Foreachcropthe"minimum"and"maximum"durationoftotalgrowingperiod
(seealsoTable6)havebeentakenandsubdividedinthevariousgrowthstages.
Fig.14Growthstages
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Table7APPROXIMATEDURATIONOFGROWTHSTAGESFORVARIOUS
FIELDCROPS
Total
Initial
stage
CropDevelopment
stage
Midseason
stage
Lateseason
stage
Barley/Oats/Wheat 120
15
25
50
30
150
15
30
65
40
75
15
25
25
10
90
20
30
30
10
95
15
25
35
20
110
20
30
40
20
120
20
25
60
15
140
25
30
65
20
100
20
30
30
20
150
25
35
70
20
180
30
50
55
45
195
30
50
65
50
105
20
30
40
15
130
25
35
50
20
130
30
40
40
20
140
30
40
45
25
150
20
30
60
40
165
25
35
65
40
150
20
30
60
40
Bean/green
Bean/dry
Cabbage
Carrot
Cotton/Flax
Cucumber
Eggplant
Grain/small
Lentil
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Lettuce
Maize,sweet
Maize,grain
Melon
Millet
Onion/green
Onion/dry
Peanut/Groundnut
Pea
Pepper
Potato
Radish
Sorghum
Soybean
Spinach
Squash
Sugarbeet
Sunflower
Tomato
170
25
35
70
40
75
20
30
15
10
140
35
50
45
10
80
20
25
25
10
110
20
30
50
10
125
20
35
40
30
180
30
50
60
40
120
25
35
40
20
160
30
45
65
20
105
15
25
40
25
140
20
30
55
35
70
25
30
10
95
25
40
20
10
150
15
25
70
40
210
20
35
110
45
130
25
35
45
25
140
30
40
45
25
90
15
25
35
15
100
20
30
35
15
120
25
35
40
20
210
30
40
110
30
105
25
30
30
20
145
30
35
50
30
35
10
15
40
10
10
15
120
20
30
40
30
130
20
35
45
30
135
20
30
60
25
150
20
30
70
30
60
20
20
15
100
20
30
40
10
95
20
30
30
15
120
25
35
35
25
160
25
35
60
40
230
45
65
80
40
125
20
35
45
25
130
25
35
45
25
135
30
40
40
25
180
35
45
70
30
Example
Carrots:the"minimum"growingperiodis100days.Thisgrowingperiodcorresponds
withthefollowingdurationofgrowthstages:
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Initialstage
:20days
Cropdevelopmentstage :30days
Midseasonstage
:30days
Lateseasonstage
:20days
Total 100days
Forthe"maximum"growingperiodof150daysthefollowingvaluesapply:respectively
25,35,70and20days.
Should,undercertainlocalcircumstances,thedurationofthegrowingperiodbe120
days,thedurationofthegrowthstagescouldbeestimatedasfollows:
Initialstage
:25days
Cropdevelopmentstage :35days
Midseasonstage
:40days
Lateseasonstage
:20days
Total 120days
WithrespecttoTable7thefollowingshouldbenoted:
1.Thetablealwaysrefersto"sown"crops.Whenthecropistransplanted,thelengthof
theinitialstageshouldbereduced.Forexample:
Tomatoes:
growingperiod180daysfromsowing
Directsowing:
initialstage35days
Transplanted:
(estimated)initialstage15days
Thegrowingperiodfromtransplantisthus(18020)=160days
Directsowing
Initialstage cropdevelopmentstage midseasonstage lateseasonstage
35days
45days
70days
30days
Transplanting
Initial.Stage cropdevelopmentstage midseasonstage lateseasonstage
15days
45days
70days
30days
2.Whenacropisharvested"green"or"fresh"thelateseasonstageisshort.
Compare,forexample,greenbeanswithdrybeans(Table7).Thedurationofthelate
seasonstageis10and20daysrespectively.
3.Ifacropisplantedinthewinterorisgrowinginthecoolseasonthetotalgrowing
periodislong.Thesameisthecasewiththeindividuallengthsofgrowingstages.The
differencewillbemostpronouncedforthestageduringwhichthetemperatureisthe
lowest.
Itshouldbekeptinmindthattheinfluenceofvariationsinthetotalgrowingperiodon
thecropwaterneedisveryimportant.Lessimportantisthechoiceofthevarious
lengthsofgrowthstages.
Inotherwords:itisimportanttoobtain(preferablylocally)anaccurateestimateofthe
totalgrowingperiod.Thedurationofthefourgrowthstagescanbeestimatedwiththe
helpofTable7.
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Note:Thesumofthefourgrowthstagesshouldalwaysequalthe
totalgrowingperiod.
SOMEEXAMPLES
QUESTION
Estimatethedurationofthefourgrowthstagesforthefollowingcrops:
cotton(190days),lentils(160days),sweetmaize(100days),potatoes
(130days),tomatoes/transplanted(140daysfromtransplant),etc.(the
figuresinbracketsrefertothetotalgrowingperiod).
ANSWER
Crop
Initialstage
(day)
Cropdev.
stage(days)
Midseason
stage(days)
Lateseason
stage(days)
Cotton(190days)
30
50
60
50
Lentils(160days)
25
30
65
40
SweetMaize(100
days)
20
30
40
10
Potatoes(130days)
30
35
40
25
Tomatoes/Transplanted
(140daysfrom
transplant)
15
40
60
25
Surfaceirrigationofalargefield
3.2.4DeterminationofCropFactors
Percrop,fourcropfactorshavetobedetermined:onecropfactorforeachofthefour
growthstages.Table8indicatespercroptheKcvaluesforeachofthefourgrowth
stages.
Table8VALUESOFTHECROPFACTOR(Kc)FORVARIOUSCROPSAND
GROWTHSTAGES
Crop
Initialstage Cropdev.stage Midseasonstage Lateseasonstage
Barley/Oats/Wheat
0.35
0.75
1.15
0.45
Bean,green
0.35
0.70
1.10
0.90
Bean,dry
0.35
0.70
1.10
0.30
Cabbage/Carrot
0.45
0.75
1.05
0.90
Cotton/Flax
0.45
0.75
1.15
0.75
Cucumber/Squash
0.45
0.70
0.90
0.75
Eggplant/Tomato
0.45
0.75
1.15
0.80
Grain/small
0.35
0.75
1.10
0.65
Lentil/Pulses
0.45
0.75
1.10
0.50
Lettuce/Spinach
0.45
0.60
1.00
0.90
Maize,sweet
0.40
0.80
1.15
1.00
Maize,grain
0.40
0.80
1.15
0.70
Melon
0.45
0.75
1.00
0.75
Millet
0.35
0.70
1.10
0.65
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Onion,green
0.50
0.70
1.00
1.00
Onion,dry
0.50
0.75
1.05
0.85
Peanut/Groundnut
0.45
0.75
1.05
0.70
Pea,fresh
0.45
0.80
1.15
1.05
Pepper,fresh
0.35
0.70
1.05
0.90
Potato
0.45
0.75
1.15
0.85
Radish
0.45
0.60
0.90
0.90
Sorghum
0.35
0.75
1.10
0.65
Soybean
0.35
0.75
1.10
0.60
Sugarbeet
0.45
0.80
1.15
0.80
Sunflower
0.35
0.75
1.15
0.55
Tobacco
0.35
0.75
1.10
0.90
ThetableaboveshowsaverageKcvaluesforthevariouscropsandgrowthstages.In
fact,theKcisalsodependentontheclimateand,inparticular,ontherelativehumidity
andthewindspeed.Thevaluesindicatedaboveshouldbereducedby0.05ifthe
relativehumidityishigh(RH>80%)andthewindspeedislow(u<2m/sec),e.g.Kc=
1.15becomesKc=1.10.Thevaluesshouldbeincreasedby0.05iftherelative
humidityislow(RH<50%)andthewindspeedishigh(u>5m/sec),e.g.Kc=1.05
becomesKc=1.10.
DATASHEET4Determinationofcropfactors
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3.3CALCULATIONOFTHECROPWATERNEED
3.3.1Introduction
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3.3.2CropWaterNeedCalculationExample
3.3.3SpecialCases
3.3.4IndicativeValuesofCropWaterNeeds
3.3.1Introduction
Insection3.1thedeterminationofthereferencecropevapotranspirationETohasbeen
discussed,whileinsection3.2ithasbeenindicatedhowthecropfactorKccanbe
determined.
Thissection(3.3)explainshowthecropwaterneedETcropiscalculated(seeFig.15)
onamonthlybasis,usingtheformula:ETcrop=EToKc.
Fig.15Calculationofthecropwaterneed(ETcrop)
AlthoughtheformulatocalculateETcropiseasytoapply,therearestillsomepractical
problemstobeovercome,whichcanbestbeexplainedusinganexample.
3.3.2CropWaterNeedCalculationExample
QUESTION
Determinethecropwaterneedoftomatoes
GIVEN
Month
Jan
FebMar Apr May June July
ETo(mm/day)
4.0
5.05.8
Humidity
medium
(60%)
Windspeed
medium (3m/sec)
6.3 6.8
7.1
6.5
Durationofgrowingperiod(fromsowing):150days
Plantingdate:1February(directsowing)
CALCULATION
Step1:Estimatethedurationofthevariousgrowthstages,usingTable7.
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Crop
Totalgrowingperiod
(days)
Initial
stage
Cropdev.
stage
Midseason
stage
Lateseason
stage
Tomatoes
150
35
40
50
25
Step2:Indicateontable,asperexamplebelow,theETovaluesandthedurationof
thegrowthstages.
Note:Whencalculatingthecropwaterneeds,allmonthsare
assumedtohave30days.Forthecalculationofthereferencecrop
evapotranspiration(ETo,section3.1),theactualnumberofdaysof
eachmonthisusede.g.,January31days,February28or29days,
etc.
Plantingdate
1Feb
Initialstage,35days
1Feb5Mar
Cropdevelopmentstage,40days 6Mar15Apr
Midseasonstage,50days
16Apr5Jun
Lateseasonstage,25days
6Jun30Jun
Lastdayoftheharvest
30Jun
Step3:EstimatetheKcfactorforeachofthe4growthstages,usingTable8and
bearinginmindthatthehumidityandwindspeedaremedium
Kc,initialstage=
Kc,cropdevelopmentstage=
Kc,midseasonstage=
Kc,lateseasonstage=
0.45
0.75
1.15
0.8
TheKcvaluesareinsertedintheTable:
Itcanbeseenfromthetableabovethatthemonthsandgrowthstagesdonot
correspond.AsaconsequencetheEToandtheKcvaluesdonotcorrespond.
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YettheETcrop(=EToKc)hastobedeterminedonamonthlybasis.Itisthus
necessarytodeterminetheKconamonthlybasis,whichisdoneasfollows:
(seealsothetableabove)
February: KcFeb=0.45
March: 5days:Kc=0.45
25days:Kc=0.75
NOTE: TheKcvaluesareroundedtothenearest0.05or0.00.
ThusKc,March=0.70
April: 15days:Kc=0.75
15days:Kc=1.15
ThusKc,April=0.95
May: Kc,May=1.15
June: 5days:Kc=1.15
:25days:Kc=0.80
ThusKc,June=0.85
Insummary:
Step4:Calculate,onamonthlybasis,thecropwaterneed,usingtheformula:
ETcrop=EToKc(mm/day)
February: ETcrop=5.00.45=2.3mm/day
March: ETcrop=5.80.70=4.1mm/day
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April:
May:
June:
ETcrop=6.30.95=6.0mm/day
Insummary:
Step5:Calculatethemonthlyandseasonalcropwaterneeds.
Note:allmonthsareassumedtohave30days.
February
March
April
May
June
ETcrop=302.3=69mm/month
Thecropwaterneedforthewholegrowingseasonoftomatoesis786mm.In
summary:
3.3.3SpecialCases
Intheprevioussectionsithasbeenindicatedhowthecropwaterneediscalculatedfor
avarietyoffieldcrops:ETcrop=KcETo.Howevertherearesomecropsthatdonot
directlyfitthismodel:theircropfactorKcisdeterminedinadifferentway.The
determinationoftheircropfactorisexplainedinthissection.OncethecropfactorKc
hasbeendetermined,thesameprocedure(asdescribedinthesections3.3.1and
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3.3.2)isusedtocalculatethecropwaterneeds.
Thespecialcasesinclude:
alfalfa,pastureandclover
bananas
citrus
rice
sugarcane
cacao,coffee,tea
olives
grapes
Alfalfa,PastureandClover
Alfalfa,pastureandcloverareregularlycutduringtheyear.Justaftercuttingtheyare
inthe"initialstage",whilejustbeforethenextcutting,theyareinthe"lateseason
stage".Todeterminethecropwaterneeditisbesttouseanaveragevalueofthecrop
factorKc.TheaverageKcvaluesaregiveninTable9.
Table9KcVALUESFORALFALFA.PASTUREANDCLOVER
Climate:
Alfalfa Pasture Clover
HumidLight/mediumwind 0.85
0.95
1.0
DryLight/mediumwind
0.95
1.0
1.05
HumidorDryStrongwind 1.05
1.05
1.05
Bananas
Theestablishmentofanewbananaplantationtakesapproximately6monthsfrom
plantingtofullgroundcover.Oneyearafterplanting,thefirstharvesttakesplace,after
whichtheshootsthathaveproducedareremoved.Meanwhileyoungshootshavefully
developedandtakeovertheproduction.
TheKcvaluesforthefirst6monthsafterplantingareindicatedinTable10.After6
monthstheKcvalueremainsconstant:Kc=1.1.
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Table10KcVALUESFORBANANA
Monthsafterplanting 1
Kc
6 7onward
0.7 0.75 0.8 0.75 0.9 1.0
1.1
Citrus
ThecropfactorKcforcleancultivatedcitrusis0.70yearround.Thisvalueisapplicable
forlargematuretrees,coveringsome70%ofthegroundsurface.Ifthereisnoweed
control,aKcvalueof0.90yearroundshouldbeused.
Rice
ForpaddyricethevaluesindicatedinTable11shouldbeused.
Table11KcVALUESFORPADDYRICE
Climate
Littlewind Strongwind
Growthstage(days)
dry humid dry humid
060daysaftertransplantordirectsowing 1.1 1.1
1.1
1.1
Midseason
1.2 1.05
1.35 1.3
last30daysbeforeharvest
1.0 1.0
1.0
1.0
Example:Supposethetotalgrowingseasonofricefromsowingtoharvest=150days
inahumidclimatewithstrongwind
Kcday0to60:
1.1
Kcday60to120: 1.3
Kcday120to150: 1.0
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Sugarcane
Cropcoefficientsforsugarcanevarywidelydependingonclimateandsugarcane
variety.Itisbesttouselocallyavailabledata.Ifsuchdataarenotavailable.Tables12a
and12bcanbeused.
Table12areferstoavirginsugarcanecropfromestablishmenttofirstharvest,whichis
assumedtotake18months.Table12breferstoaratooncrop,whichistheregrowth
aftertheharvestofthevirgincrop.Theregrowthisassumedtotake12months.
Sometimes,dependingonlocalpractices,avirgincropisfollowedby2or3ratoon
crops.
Table12aKcVALUESFORVIRGINSUGARCANE
Climate
Growthstage(days) dry humid dry humid

02
0.4
0.5
0.5
0.6
24
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.85
46
1.1
1.0
1.2
1.1
612
1.25 1.05
1.3
1.15
1217
0.95
0.8
1.05
0.85
1718
0.7
0.6
0.75
0.65
Table12bKcVALUESFORRATOONSUGARCANE
Climate
Growthstage(days) dry humid dry humid

01
0.4
0.5
0.5
0.6
12
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.85
24
1.1
1.0
1.2
1.1
410
1.25 1.05
1.3
1.15
1011
0.95
0.8
1.05
0.85
1112
0.7
0.6
0.75
0.65
Cacao,coffee,tea
Forcacao,coffeeandteathefollowingyearroundKcvaluesarerecommended:
nocovercrop,noshade:Kc=0.95
withcovercropsandshadetrees:Kc=1.1
Olives
FormatureolivetreesthefollowingyearroundKcvaluesarerecommended:
widespacingoftrees:Kc=0.4
closespacingoftrees:Kc=0.7
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Grapes
Withtheassumptionthatthegrapeharveststartssome5monthsafterthefirstleaves
appear,theKcvaluesindicatedinTable13canbeusedforthemonthsstartingwith
thefirstleafappearance.
Table13KcVALUESFORGRAPES(35%GROUNDCOVER)
Monthsafterfirstleavesappear
Kc
0.25 0.45 0.65 0.75 0.75 0.7 0.55 0.45 0.35
3.3.4IndicativeValuesofCropWaterNeeds
Table14givesindicativevaluesofthecropwaterneedsforthetotalgrowingperiodof
variousimportantfieldcrops.
Thevaluesindicatedinthetableprovidearoughestimateandshouldonlybeusedif
thecropwaterneedscannotbecalculatedmoreaccuratelyduetolackofdata.
Table14givesforeachcropaminimumandamaximumvalueforthecropwater
need.Asthecropwaterneedsdependheavilyonthedurationofthetotalgrowing
period,themaximumvalueshouldbeusedinthecaseofalongtotalgrowingperiod
(seealsoTable6)andtheminimumvalueshouldbeusedwhenthetotalgrowing
periodisshort.Anaveragevalueistobeusedwithamediumtotalgrowingperiod.
Inaddition,Table14givesanindicationofthesensitivityofthevariouscropstowater
shortagesordrought.Ifthesensitivityishighitmeansthatthecropcannotwithstand
watershortagesverywellandsuchshortagesshouldbeavoided.Ifthesensitivityis
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lowitmeansthatthecropisrelativelydroughtresistantandcanwithstandwater
shortagesfairlywell.
Table14INDICATIVEVALUESOFCROPWATERNEEDSANDSENSITIVITYTO
DROUGHT
Crop
Cropwaterneed
Sensitivitytodrought
(mm/totalgrowingperiod)
Alfalfa
8001600
lowmedium
Banana
12002200
high
Barley/Oats/Wheat
450650
lowmedium
Bean
300500
mediumhigh
Cabbage
350500
mediumhigh
Citrus
9001200
lowmedium
Cotton
7001300
low
Maize
500800
mediumhigh
Melon
400600
mediumhigh
Onion
350550
mediumhigh
Peanut
500700
lowmedium
Pea
350500
mediumhigh
Pepper
600900
mediumhigh
Potato
500700
high
Rice(paddy)
450700
high
Sorghum/Millet
450650
low
Soybean
450700
lowmedium
Sugarbeet
550750
lowmedium
Sugarcane
15002500
high
Sunflower
6001000
lowmedium
Tomato
400800
mediumhigh
DATASHEET5Determinationofcropwaterneeds(seealsoDataSheet4)
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low(lessthan15C) medium(1525C) high(morethan25C)

Initialstage Cropdev.stage Midseasonstage Lateseasonstage

FebMar Apr May June July

Alfalfa Pasture Clover

0.7 0.75 0.8 0.75 0.9 1.0

dry humid dry humid

060daysaftertransplantordirectsowing 1.1 1.1

Growthstage(days) dry humid dry humid

Growthstage(days) dry humid dry humid

0.25 0.45 0.65 0.75 0.75 0.7 0.55 0.45 0.35

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