The supply of water to farmland so that crops can grow in areas where natural water supplies are scarce or unreliable.

This picture shows centre pivot irrigation where water is pumped from underground up a well and then used to irrigate a circular field through a large rotating beam sprayer.

Irrigation waters come either from groundwater supplies or from reservoirs and river diversions.

In dry countries irrigation can use more water than all other demands (home, industry, power) put together.

This is what spray irrigation looks like from the ground.