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Prize winning irrigation in Griffith, NSW
Terry McFarlane, the winner of the 2002 Murrumbidgee Irrigated Farm competition, has undertaken a number of initiatives on his rice farm at Carawatha to improve water efficiency. These include monitoring and scheduling to meet crop water requirements and investing in an on-farm storage to increase water recycling.
He grows 66 ha of long-grain rice at Carawatha, and 80 ha of rice on a property next door.
His improvements in water use efficiency were helped by using evapotranspiration data for irrigation scheduling; using a neutron probe (to measure rootzone soil moisture); and choosing soil types appropriate for rice to achieve lower water use and reduce leakage to groundwater.
He grows 66 ha of long-grain rice at Carawatha, and 80 ha of rice on a property next door.
His improvements in water use efficiency were helped by using evapotranspiration data for irrigation scheduling; using a neutron probe (to measure rootzone soil moisture); and choosing soil types appropriate for rice to achieve lower water use and reduce leakage to groundwater.