Has anyone installed field tile to help drain their orchards? I’ve contracted a local farmer to install 3 lines, 450’ each to help drain the property from seasonal rains/snow. If you have installed tile, was your project successful?
1 Like
@OhioJeremy
Farmers around here do install drain pipes in tilled fields. Later the area they dump the water accumulates heavy sediments. They typically dump the sediments in a pond. It helps if around the plastic lines that are drains they leave a larger area as a mini pond. There are problems with the system design because the mini Ponds need cleaned out on a regular basis. What do you hope to accomplish with this? Do you have any photos? I’ve found that pouring the water through a series of small Ponds as the water exits the field is helpful at slowing the water down. I also use these systems myself. I have one completely buried now on the border of my property I used to correct an erosion problem. One trick use is dump sediments water in a large ditch and dam u one side of the ditch like a pond adding as drain tube at the top of the ditch dam. Eventually the ditch winds up not being a ditch.
The drain tiles we had in Illinois didn’t dump any sediment. The water drained out the end slowly as clear clean water. I can’t see drain tiles having a sediment issue. But maybe we’re talking about different types of systems. Our tiles were about 3-4ft deep and intended to lower the water table in poorly drained areas of a field so that planting wasn’t delayed and crops didn’t drown out. It would be a plus for most fruit trees in soils with a high water table in spring and after heavy rains.
3 Likes
Kansas soil is an odd thing. If you have ever seen the Kansas and Missouri rivers you understand that heavy sediments from this soil are part of it. Eventually that water with the consistency similar to chocolate milk winds up in the Mississippi and then on to the gulf of Mexico. In different soil like Ohio or Florida sediment is a non issue. Sometimes pictures say a thousand words On installation. Here is an example How agricultural drainage works
Never saw a system this big put in but I know the concept. In Kansas normally the Drainage pipes are not over 12" - 15". Pipe can be extremely expensive and the larger stuff is much more expensive. For a 15" stick of pipe 20 feet long it costs around $400 . Some used perforated pipe some prefer terraces to a location that collects in a small pond then drains through a pipe that’s perforated sitting verticle I have seen it both ways depending on the installer. Most systems are 4" to 6" for small areas like a yard. https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/culvert-hdpe-15-in-x-20-ft-hdpe-1520.
This is the small inexpensive system normally used at a house we here referred to as a French drain.
Water like what’s in my pond was ran through a rock filter so would be considered relatively clean for this area
https://growingfruit.org/t/ponds-are-a-great-investment/7033
2 Likes
We have put down miles of tile and the water that comes out of the pipe looks so clear you could drink it. We have had issues with tree roots clogging the corrugated pipe. We started using solid pipe when we get close to the woods. I don’t know how well it will do in an orchard, probably better than septic lines, but it could be an issue.
Picture of tile plow
3 Likes
A friend has a 5 acre pond close to here that is nearly silted in from the sediments coming out of the field. The system was put in about 20 years ago.
Areas of my property where the drainage was good, the vigor of the fruit trees is incredibly good. Areas where I have standing water the trees just don’t grow well. A well known apple orchard near me has the same local farmer put in tile in their new high density orchards and they swear by it. I assume for the same reason why corn and soy farmers put tile in their fields. I have 1 acre of trees where the tile is going, 3 lines running about 450’ each run. There will be about 250 trees on that acre. Mostly on G11 Rootstock.
2 Likes
There is more than one solution to your problem. Callery pear as an example will tolerate water as do BET rootstocks. You can graft any scions to the hardy rootstocks. Part of my land is very wet and that’s what I grow there. I’ve seen callery pears grow in areas where water stands 8 months out of the year. Pears do not need the Drainage apples do necessarily. Cherries are picker than apples or pears and will tolerate no wet feet at all. The reason I bring up alternatives is the course of action your taking is expensive. If you have you have your heart set on apples you have a very good plan to fix the issue you have. Thank you for the explanation it makes sense.
Suspect the systems work great for years until they don’t. There is also the question of did someone save money where they should not have? Did someone make a mistake? Perforated pipe is fine but without enough gravel to act as the filter the silt can freely enter the pipes. Washed gravel is more expensive than unwashed gravel. Sometimes cloths of types are used in the systems that rot over time. What I do know is silt is coming through that pipe on some of these systems now many years later silting in Ponds that receive water draining from those fields. In my case I use mostly terraces and a waterway with a series of mud ponds. Planted blackberries across the waterway to hold the soil. I’m dealing with very high volume of water. Originally I used a charcoal filter but the water quickly clogged that filter but the water at first was crystal clear we filtered. Realized in my case I did not care that much. Worked with my neighbors to correct most of their issues that impacted me. There are still some minor problems. This video gives a hint to the long term problems I’m eluding to with French drain type systems in kansas
Here is what my soil and nearby soil looks like shown below. When a crew here put in an electric line they disturbed the soil. Based on the above video what do you think happens to a pond that catches the water from an entire 30 acre field over 20 years? I’m not saying it must be that way saying special attention must be given to get different results.
This is what good water looks like here that is fairly clean coming out of my pond. It’s fairly low in sediment in comparison to where it comes in my water system. The people down the hill from me are fortunate.
Here is what a Kansas drought looks like
This is wet soil that drys out
So back to my point if you use a French drain with fabric you get clear water but gain little Drainage in this soil. In my area they use a French drain with catch basin which causes heavy sediment. Catch basin is like a small pond with a vertical pipe running to it from the lateral pipe underneath. Again it’s working but it may make how you use it change. Knowing what you know now do you use fabric or just gravel? Catch basin or none? See this video
Field tile is just a larger version of a French drain.
If it was me I would wrap the top of the verticle pipe with fabric I could clean if needed. I would use a verticle pipe but then it’s no longer 100% maintenance free. You would not get sediment and the water would run clean. This is all assuming you have clay soil and the problems exist I’m bringing up with the system. All that said I’m no expert on the subject just giving some ideas. Finally I got to bring up the fact that trees roots are deep. They get away with pipe here for soybeans because of the fact the roots are shallow but the pipe needs to be proportionally installed to the depth of the roots. Consider frost line as well. The one line I had that I retired served it’s purpose very well which was to stop erosion, drain water, and give vegetation time to grow.
This year we have been very wet in Kansas but irrigation from my water tanks has been necessary for the garden do to the timing of the rains. Proper water management is the most importsnt thing you can do on your property. It has been everything for me!
1 Like