Search
Close this search box.

Author name: Tony Tavares

Agriculture Irrigation Technology Transforming Farming

Leave a Comment / Drip Irrigation News /

Madera County farmer Tom Rogers thought he knew a lot about how to irrigate his family’s 175-acre almond ranch. But several droughts, including the current four-year dry spell, made him reconsider his approach on how to get the most out of his ever-shrinking water supply.

For the last two years, Rogers has received no surface water, relying purely on groundwater wells to keep the ranch’s trees alive and producing.

Nothing is taken for granted on the Rogers’ farm, and nothing is wasted, especially water.

Agriculture Irrigation Technology Transforming Farming Read More »

Dramatic Benefits of Drip Irrigation System for Idaho Grower

Leave a Comment / Drip Irrigation News /

For one Idaho Grower, the ultimate in water use efficiency on his farm boils down to two words: drip irrigation.

McKellip, who lives and works in the Treasure Valley north of Nampa, Idaho, installed his first drip irrigation — a Toro system — on one of RMF Farms’ fields in 2011. He installed a second system the following year; then, in 2013, a third. That 2013 field was seeded into sugarbeets. Prior to those drip systems, all his fields were grown under furrow irrigation.

A drip-irrigated field of mint in 2012 yielded 133 pounds of mint per acre, compared to a nearby furrow-irrigated mint field that came off at 94 pounds. The bottom line was $585 more income per acre, along with significant savings in water and fertilizer use, combined with less labor, fuel, equipment usage and insecticide inputs.

Dramatic Benefits of Drip Irrigation System for Idaho Grower Read More »

Farmer Solves Water Woes with Subsurface Drip Irrigation

Leave a Comment / Drip Irrigation News, Drought /

When Jim Bahrenburg looks across the land he’s worked in the Monument and Kimberly areas, he sees buried treasure.

That treasure isn’t gold, but water.

Drawn from the North Fork John Day River, this water flows through small underground tubes to gradually irrigate blocks of land for crops. Starting on the North Fork Ranch in the Kimberly area, Bahrenburg said he first planted rye to choke out the thistles on what was just a neglected pasture, and then continued the transformation by planting row crops.

Today the land produces corn, onions, beets, peppers, squash and dill.

Farmer Solves Water Woes with Subsurface Drip Irrigation Read More »

An estimated $10 Million in Grants Available for California Agriculture

Leave a Comment / California Drought, Drip Irrigation News, Drought /

The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is now accepting applications for the State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program (SWEEP), authorized by emergency drought legislation (Assembly Bill 91).

An estimated $10 million will be available for competitive grant funding to provide financial assistance to implement irrigation systems that reduce greenhouse gases and save water on California agricultural operations.

The funding is made available through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, the proceeds of California’s greenhouse gas Cap and Trade program.

An estimated $10 Million in Grants Available for California Agriculture Read More »

WATER EFFICIENCY EQUATION: Reducing Use Per Unit Gaining Traction

Leave a Comment / California Drought, Drip Irrigation News, Drought /

With California now firmly entrenched in its fourth drought year in a row, the irrigation industry is rightly focused on water efficiency.

Paul McFadden, who is senior sales manager for Toro Micro-Irrigation, El Cajon, CA, said while the focus is clear, that doesn’t always mean using less water. “It’s an equation: units of input vs. units of output.”

WATER EFFICIENCY EQUATION: Reducing Use Per Unit Gaining Traction Read More »

The Toro Company’s Commitment to Water Use Efficiency in Agriculture

Leave a Comment / California Drought, Drip Irrigation News, Drought /

While the drought in the Western U.S. has made water and resource use efficiency top-of-mind, Toro is proud of the various ways we practice and advocate for responsible crop irrigation. Here are some of the ways we’ve worked to improve water and resource-use efficiency in agriculture.

The Toro Company’s Commitment to Water Use Efficiency in Agriculture Read More »

U.S. Company Helps Smallholder Farmers Fight Hunger Abroad

Leave a Comment / Drip Irrigation News /

Source: FeedtheFuture.gov Written by: Eduardo Mendías, Senior Market and Product Development Manager, Toro Micro-Irrigation Business Posted: May 1, 2015 The United States has always been a world leader in the fight to end hunger and poverty. This spring, our partners share how recent efforts embody the best of the United States and why this leadership matters. The

U.S. Company Helps Smallholder Farmers Fight Hunger Abroad Read More »

Contact Information

Latest News

Scroll to Top