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access
to
water
and
sanitation
for
all
acres only. The water is sourced either from a river or shallow
ground water aquifer. Sprinkler irrigation, commonly found
in sandy and hilly areas, is the method most popular with
farmers for vegetable and field crop production. High value
vegetable production typically uses fertigation techniques
where liquid fertilizer is mixed into water during drip and
micro jet irrigation. Micro jet irrigation is also used for
nursery fields and orchards.
Increasing water supply and reducing water demand
Research is being conducted into fully utilising the available
water resources for crop production through increasing the
water supply and reducing water demand.
The first phase of water management typically focuses on
increasing water supply. This involves the construction of
dams and barrages across a river. Alternative options for the
increasing of water supplies include agricultural water recy-
cling and re-use, groundwater exploration, and increased
on-farm water storage. For the reduction of water demand,
Fig. 4: Construction and testing of a shallow tube well for a small scale
irrigation project
Fig 3: Rainfall distribution and irrigation events using
tail water during main season 2014–15
Source: Malaysian government
2014–2015
Rainfall
Planting season start
Rainfall / irrigation (mm)
Planting season end
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
10 Oct
15
20
25
30
4 Nov
9 (Planting)
14
19
24
29
4 Dec
14
19
24
29
3 Jan
13
18
23
28
1
6 Feb
11
16
21
28
9 (Harvest)
13 Mar
Tail water
Image: MARDI