Rain Stone: Precision underground irrigation

Agriculture consumes 70% of the world's fresh water, but only uses 30%, the rest is lost through evaporation, filtration and runoff.

Mainly arid areas face problems producing food, which is why the cost and environmental impact of bringing food to areas where it is not produced increases.

 In Mexico, more than 70% of the national territory presents some degree of drought.

It is an irrigation system based on porous emitters made with baked clays, which allow irrigation by capillarity, taking advantage of the absorption carried out by the roots of the plants and which, together with the force of gravity, mean that the system does not require continuous pumping systems. , it only requires a water container that rises to more than one meter in height. The greater the surface and the emitters, the higher the height of the water tank will be required so that gravity provides sufficient pressure to irrigate the entire area.  

This system allows us to optimize up to 70% of water, compared to sprinkler and drip irrigation.

 It does not require continuous pumping, since it uses the force of gravity and the absorption carried out by the roots of the plants, which results in savings in electrical or diesel energy costs.

 Because water is dispersed only around the roots, lower maintenance costs are also achieved, as fewer weeds are generated around the plant, avoiding the expense of labor.

 Our system is also compatible with fertigation, so that the amount of soluble fertilizers is optimized since they go directly to the roots, avoiding waste compared to application using spraying equipment or leaf litter, in addition to avoiding damage to pollinator species.

    This system has a much longer useful life than other systems, calculated at least 10 years, so less plastic waste is generated, since the micro-drippers or compensated drippers are damaged by the effect of the sun and air and generate blockages due to incrustations. . having to replace them between 3 to 18 months maximum, which generates a significant amount of plastic waste.

The target population is farmers who produce food mainly in arid areas and do not have sufficient water supply.

Currently there are drip or sprinkler irrigation systems that save water compared to flood irrigation, however, these systems use pumps to irrigate, making their operation expensive because they must pay monthly for electricity or diesel.

The cost is high and so is the maintenance. This makes agriculture an unprofitable activity for farmers who have plots of less than 5 hectares.

Water is scarcer and these systems require a higher supply to function properly.

With our system you will be able to have very important savings to produce more and at a lower cost.

The operation and maintenance cost of our system is lower than other pressurized systems.

We are a recent organization that, after researching and developing our irrigation system for 15 years, we have obtained a viable product that can be used by a wide number of people in agriculture and gardening, both on a small scale and on a commercial scale, therefore We currently want to bring our innovation to a greater number of users, which will also be reflected in significant savings in the amount of cubic meters of water used for food production.

We are committed to sustainability and continue researching and developing products that allow us to optimally use water, mainly in agriculture.

We are producers of pitahaya (Dragon fruit) so we know first-hand the difficulties faced by the agricultural sector mainly in the south-central part of Mexico, where the productive plots are small, the soil is poor and the rain is very scarce.

For many years, in addition to our productive and research activity, we have facilitated advisory processes to agricultural producers of vegetables and fruit trees, so we know and have the necessary proximity to understand the social dimension of the problem.

We work in the Mixtec region of Puebla, Mexico, where the shortage of rain and water is widespread and has become more acute in the last 3 years. We believe that our solution will transform the way water is used and will increase food production in arid areas. Since with this system we can implement food security gardens in gardens, roofs, backyards and practically anywhere.

In 2004 we began the development of our irrigation device and we improved it by testing it on different crops until we had a prototype ready to market.

We have installed it in food security gardens through non-governmental organizations in the states of Hidalgo and Oaxaca, and through some government programs in Puebla and Tlaxcala.

Crop types:

Fruit trees  Pitahaya, papaya     melón, grape.

Vegetables Tomato, garlic, onion, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, lettuce, carrot, celery.

Aromatics lavender, rue, oregano, mint, rosemary, chamomile, citronella

Ornamental plants:  anthurium, moses crib, geraniums, succulents, gardenia, violets

We are applying to take advantage of the mentoring and training that you can provide us to develop our business model, since we are beginning the stage of first sales, we still do not have a website, we have not made advertising efforts, we are in the process of establishing ourselves as a company and we consider that Your support would benefit us a lot. On the economic side, if we manage to be in the finalists it would benefit us a lot to scale our production since until now we produce small batches through direct sales and we do not have enough capital to equip and produce on a large scale, and diversify marketing channels

The irrigation systems that exist on the market are superficial and necessarily use a pump that drives the water, using electric or diesel energy, and then regulates the flow through coils, connections and hoses so that a drop finally comes out, or in its If the sprinklers are boosted at higher pressure. This means significant electrical energy costs, in addition to the impact on the environment as the carbon footprint increases.

In our research and analysis of the problem, we think about all of these conditions differently, so we look for a way to get the water to the plants without having to use an electric pump, taking advantage of the slope of the land by lowering the water by gravity through of thinner tubes that require less precision.

Our device was designed to allow water to disperse by capillarity, which allows us to irrigate different types of soil more homogeneously, whether clay soil, sandy soil or loam soil, this allows the root zone to have a better water supply, without using electrical energy. This can truly transform the way we use water, since by installing our system underground we avoid water loss through evaporation, filtration and runoff, achieving savings of up to 70% of water in food production and gardening.

After almost 20 years of research and development we are convinced of the impact it has, since with the use of this system food can be produced practically anywhere, which is very important in terms of food safety and health, as well as utilization of the water

We can measure water savings in liters or cubic meters used to produce food.

The replacement of pressurized irrigation systems generates savings in electrical energy for each growing period, which may be different depending on the type of crop. The impact can also be measured by the number of people who grow their own food, when the system is installed in food security gardens.

Our solution is based on the analysis of the problem by applying knowledge of physics, biology, soil mechanics, physiology and plant nutrition, in addition to taking advantage of ancestral systems and knowledge combined with modern technologies. The simplification of all these elements leads us to generate a sustainable system that reduces the impact on the environment and contributes to the achievement of several of the objectives of sustainable development

Actualmente trabajamos 4 personas de forma directa y algunos procesos nos apoyamos en contratistas, ya que no tenemos todo el proceso productivo integrado, hemos producido a pequeña escala, para realizar pruebas piloto del funcionamiento de nuestro sistema de riego, producimos nuestras capsulas porosas sobre pedido.

Queremos ya pasar a producir a mayor escala y poder comercializar de manera nacional e internacional.

We began the research and development stage in 2004, focusing on the search for a more efficient and economical irrigation system, since we are producers of pitahaya (Dragon fruit) and the area where we produce is of very high quality, with poor soils and very scarce water. and of poor quality.

We developed this system by searching and experimenting with new ways of irrigating, we tested different crops, especially vegetables and fruit trees, in 2020 we began the patent registration, which is already in process.

  It has been almost 20 years of research and development to have a functional prototype which we will launch on the market very soon

At the moment we are few people since we are in the initial stage of our venture. We consider that our process could allow the collaboration of all types of people since there are various productive and administrative activities, some that require force, some that require precision manual processes, etc.

Some people with mobility limitations can participate and we are open to the collaboration of people of sexual diversity, as well as those with different abilities and older adults.

Our model is currently based on the sale of porous capsules, as well as the installation and maintenance services of irrigation systems.

We have carried out small installations of backyard gardens and green roofs with the financing of civil associations such as Sikanda AC in the state of Oaxaca and Juvempro A.C. in the state of Hidalgo, who have hired us to provide training and install food security gardens.

We have also worked on these gardens with municipal government agencies of Atlixco, Puebla and Tlaxcala.

Our venture is viable from a financial and environmental point of view.

We will compete in a growing market that has grown more than 8% worldwide in recent years.

As our solution is disseminated, we are sure to be able to generate alliances with national and international organizations that promote irrigation technology and that use our system for its broad benefits.

We are currently on the eve of defining a contract for the installation of the irrigation system in a public park in Tehuacán, Puebla, Mexico, which will allow us to demonstrate the usefulness of our system applied in gardening, in addition to generating income that will allow us to invest in more equipment. to establish an appropriate larger scale manufacturing area.