Activity 1: Effect of Drip Irrigation System on Yield and Water Use Efficiency (WUE) of Tomato at Bako Agricultural Research Centre

Abstract: Drip irrigation is one of the modern irrigation methods which   aimed to distribute water near the roots, in small quantities, in a concentrated and hesitant manner in order to maintain the soil moisture needed for the plants. In addition, drip irrigation is suitable for all types of soils, certified agriculture, the conditions of available water and the land shapes. The utilization of drip irrigation methods could reduce the manpower, when using automatic instruments, thus, that one person can manage all the irrigation process. Drip irrigation system performance evaluation was conducted in Bako Agricultural Research centre for two consecutive years. The uniformity parameters, Emission Uniformity (EU %) and Uniformity Coefficient (UC %) were determined for the drip irrigation system installed over a year of performance. The procedures are based on taking measurements of emitter discharge along selected driplines on a sub-main.  Results indicated that the uniformity of water application was 90% indicating that the emitter was still good after a year of installation. The average discharge rate was 1.33 l/h. The uniformity coefficient (UC %) for the drip irrigation system was 95%, indicating excellent water application uniformity and was quite significant for the evaluation of the uniform distribution of water for the design. The expansion of this irrigation method in rural communities could contribute to relevant water savings in most areas of the r West Part of Ethiopia.