Our previous article provided practical bucket testing resources specifically focused on fixed grid irrigation.
A new bucket testing app is now available from the team at Irrigation NZ and CropX . This new app has many new features and everyone is being encouraged to use it for all new bucket tests.
The App is available to download from both Google Play and the App Store, or you can search “bucket test” and look for this icon:
Irrigation NZ also publish informative guidelines specific to fixed grid and solid set irrigation, click here to download a copy.
The bucket test is an important way of determining how well your irrigation system distributes water, but it also confirms the depth of the irrigation. Achieving a high level of distribution uniformity (>0.8) means that all plants/crops under irrigation are getting the same amount of irrigation.
We particularly like the “catch can” container shown in the photo above. These are available from Irrigation Australia as a practical alternative to a regular bucket.
Providing evidence of good farming practises requires good record keeping and is needed for farm environmental plan (FEP) audits. The Bucket Test provides a valuable insight into your irrigation system’s performance and is also evidence you can submit with you FEP.
There are also many qualified service providers available to perform Bucket Tests for you, but if you want to do these yourself, attending a short Irrigation NZ workshop would be valuable.
The Water-Insight IMS cloud platform is a great tool to assist you in providing documentation and records. For example, the sprinkler “operating time summary reports” can now be printed to show the irrigation schedule for each sprinkler.
Of course, IMS can be used to also show rainfall and soil moisture data. Please click here or get in touch for further details.