Farmer’s irrigator wins first place

Press, 28 November 1980, Page 15

Farmer’s irrigator wins first place

The travelling boom irrigator which won first prize in the section for a new machine or implement at the Canterbury show’, has been described bv one of the judges as representing an extremely useful approach. Mr G. Martin, Lincoln College, who judged the machinery section at the show with Messrs M. H. Oliver (Hororata) and D. W. Mulholland (Darfield), said the irrigator,,'which was designed and built by Mr J. C. Hewson (Geraldine), could be used at verv low water pressures. Instead of utilising sprinklers the boom has tubes which carry the water, to. the ground. ... Mr Hewson ‘said this was the reason the. water pressure could be kept low. He said he had found the unit saved a lot of diesel because a smaller pump was required.

Using tubes also had the added advantage of lessening wind effect so the irrigator could be used in most conditions. Mr Hewson has a dairy farm near Geraldine. Work on the farm has extended to making sheep and cattle ramps, cowshed construction, and in 1978 he. built bis first travelling irrigator.. . - The present irrigator was designed last year and features a boom 30 metres wide. .Nozzles attached to the end give a total spread of 36 metres. It has 150 metres of 80mm hose giving 'a 300metre run up.the paddock. Bellows are used to propel the unit, instead of a hydraulic ram. ? '. A total of 55 tubes are attached to the boom which delivers 54,480 litres of water an hour at 40 p.s.i. ' ’