Over hundreds of years of trial and error, growers have learned that the viability and optimization of their crops rely on a series of operations that require precise timing. This includes identifying the best times to apply fertilizers and chemicals (insecticides, fungicides and herbicides) to the crop and knowing the precise amount of those products that should be applied at the precise time.

With the continual price increases of fertilizers and the chemicals used to make insecticides, fungicides and herbicides, choosing the perfect times to apply them and the exact amounts that should be applied can often be the difference between a bumper crop or one that fails to meet expectations.

With all of the fertilizers and chemicals needed to ensure a maximized crop yield, the ultimate challenge for the grower comes down to applying them in precise amounts and at precise times while doing so in the most efficient, environmentally friendly and energy-conscious manner.

For growers looking to optimize cost, efficiency, return on investment and, most important, yield, the ultimate solution is a chemigation or fertigation system that utilizes metering pumps to introduce the grower’s desired amount of fertilizers and chemicals – no more and no less – into the farm’s center-pivot water irrigation system at the precise time.

Metering pumps – specifically hydraulic and mechanical diaphragm metering pumps from Neptune^? – are perfect for these operations because they are reciprocating positive-displacement (PD) pumps that deliver exact amounts of fertilizers and chemicals, which enables the grower to control the amount and the timing of the application. They are highly accurate, repeatable and provide flow rates that are easy to adjust. They are also able to meet the unique handling characteristics required for fertilizers (which are usually solutions) and chemicals (which are often suspensions of fine particles in liquid).

A chemigation/fertigation system that features a metering pump is perfect for use with a center-pivot watering system because the pump’s method of operation overcomes the challenges that often perplex the grower. Anybody that can use a calculator can set the needed flow rate for a metering pump. Once the flow rate is determined, that precise amount of fertilizer or chemical will be applied through the center-pivot irrigation system. Because of the metering pump’s efficiency, a large crop-growing operation can effectively and efficiently use one pump to service up to three center-pivot systems. Additionally, applying precise amounts of fertilizer via a metering pump through a center-pivot system at specific times during the growing season will boost yield while needing less fertilizer to realize those higher yields.

The ultimate benefit of utilizing metering-pump technology for the application of fertilizers and chemicals through the center pivot is the positive return to the grower’s bottom line. The rising prices of fertilizers and chemicals make it necessary to inject the exact amount of each at precisely the right time. Aerial application of insecticides, fungicides and herbicides is expensive and the timing of the applications is not completely under the grower’s control.

Click here to learn more about why Neptune metering pumps should be a key and cost-effective component in any center-pivot irrigation system.