Irrigation of Greenhouse Crops

Precision agricultural greenhouse systems indicate considerable scope for improvement of irrigation management practices, since growers typically irrigate crops based on their personal experience. Soil-based greenhouse crop irrigation management requires estimation on a daily basis, whereas soilless systems must be estimated on an hourly or even shorter interval schedule. Historically, irrigation scheduling methods have been based on soil or substrate monitoring, dependent on climate or time with each having both strengths and weaknesses. Recently, plant-based monitoring or plant reflectance-derived indices have been developed, yet their potential is limited for estimating the irrigation rate in order to apply proper irrigation scheduling. Optimization of irrigation practices imposes different irrigation approaches, based on prevailing greenhouse environments, considering plant-water-soil relationships. This article presents a comprehensive review of the literature, which deals with irrigation scheduling approaches applied for soil and soilless greenhouse production systems. Irrigation decisions are categorized according to whether or not an automatic irrigation control has the ability to support a feedback irrigation decision system. The need for further development of neural networks systems is required.

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Modelling water requirements of greenhouse spinach for irrigation management purposes

Hydrology Research ◽

10.2166/nh.2016.079 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 48 (3) ◽

pp. 776-788 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Andrea Bianchi ◽

Daniele Masseroni ◽

Arianna Facchi

Keyword(s):

Irrigation Management ◽

Model Performance ◽

Crop Coefficient ◽

Field Capacity ◽

Irrigation Scheduling ◽

Balance Model ◽

Water Requirements ◽

Greenhouse Crops ◽

Using Data ◽

Nitrogen Treatments

Estimating water requirements of plants cultivated in greenhouse environments is crucial, both for the design of greenhouse irrigation systems and the improvement of irrigation scheduling. Spinach is one of the main vegetables sold as ‘ready-to-eat’ bagged produce; it is very sensitive to water stress and thus requires accurate irrigation. In this work, a water balance model simulating the daily irrigation need for greenhouse crops based on the FAO-56 ‘single crop coefficient’ method was designed and applied (FAO-56-GH). Two experiments were conducted on two spinach varieties grown in pots in different periods. For each experiment, four nitrogen treatments were considered. Irrigation was managed weighing the pots every day, and restoring soil water to field capacity. Crop coefficient (Kc) values were calibrated using data of the first experiment, the model was successively validated using the second dataset. Results showed a good model performance both in the validation and calibration periods (R2 = 0.80 and 0.84, root mean square error (RMSE) = 0.41 and 0.21 mm day−1, Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) = 0.78 and 0.83). Analysis of variance (ANOVA) test revealed a scarce dependence of irrigation needs to nitrogen treatments. This study suggests the possibility of adopting the FAO-56-GH model with site-specific Kc to improve irrigation management and planning in greenhouse environments.

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Irrigation scenarios for artichokes and dry bean as a result of soil variability on the basis of resistivity mapping in southwest Italy

Italian Journal of Agronomy ◽

10.4081/ija.2015.631 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 10 (3) ◽

pp. 151

Author(s):

Alaa Aldin Alromeed ◽

Roberta Rossi ◽

Gianfranco Bitella ◽

Rocco Bochicchio ◽

Mariana Amato

Keyword(s):

Electrical Resistivity ◽

Deficit Irrigation ◽

Irrigation Management ◽

Daily Basis ◽

Irrigation Scheduling ◽

Weather Data ◽

Dry Bean ◽

Winter Crop ◽

Visualization Techniques ◽

Irrigation Requirements

This work aims at comparing irrigation strategies on the basis of deficit irrigation and soil spatial variability assessed through electrical resistivity mapping (ERM) conducted by an automatic resistivity profiler on-the-go sensor. Profiles chosen along a range of soil electrical resistivity showed different soil properties linked to water holding capacity within a field, with total available water (TAW) values of the coarser-textured zone corresponding to about 50% of TAW in the finertextured zone within the field. Multi-year weather data were obtained on a daily basis and scenarios were developed for climatic demand conditions representing dry average and wet years. The ISAREG water balance and irrigation scheduling model was afterwards applied to the different soil profiles and with different strategies for full and deficit irrigation, to compute water and irrigation requirements as well as related yield impacts of deficit irrigation for artichokes and dry beans. Deficit irrigation allowed calculated water savings up to about 50% for the winter crop and 33% for the summer crop with yield losses lower than 10%. Irrigation requirements within irrigation strategy were 10 to 44% different between profiles, and this indicates that soil visualization techniques such as ERM can be used for the identification of zones for site-specific irrigation management.

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Demonstrated benefits of using sensor networks for automated irrigation control in nursery and greenhouse production systems

Acta Horticulturae ◽

10.17660/actahortic.2017.1150.70 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 507-514

Author(s):

J.D. Lea-Cox ◽

B.E. Belayneh ◽

J. Majsztrik ◽

A.G. Ristvey ◽

E. Lichtenberg ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sensor Networks ◽

Production Systems ◽

Greenhouse Production ◽

Irrigation Control

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Optimization of advanced greenhouse substrates based on physicochemical characterization, numerical simulations, and tomato growth experiments

10.32747/2014.7600009.bard ◽

2014 ◽

Author(s):

Markus Tuller ◽

Asher Bar-Tal ◽

Hadar Heller ◽

Michal Amichai

Keyword(s):

Numerical Modeling ◽

Management Practices ◽

Production Systems ◽

Physicochemical Characterization ◽

Theoretical Research ◽

Living Standard ◽

Agricultural Practice ◽

Irrigation Frequency ◽

Greenhouse Production ◽

Control And Management

Over the last decade there has been a dramatic shift in global agricultural practice. The increase in human population, especially in underdeveloped arid and semiarid regions of the world, poses unprecedented challenges to production of an adequate and economically feasible food supply to undernourished populations. Furthermore, the increased living standard in many industrial countries has created a strong demand for high-quality, out-of-season vegetables and fruits as well as for ornamentals such as cut and potted flowers and bedding plants. As a response to these imminent challenges and demands and because of a ban on methyl bromide fumigation of horticultural field soils, soilless greenhouse production systems are regaining increased worldwide attention. Though there is considerable recent empirical and theoretical research devoted to specific issues related to control and management of soilless culture production systems, a comprehensive approach that quantitatively considers all relevant physicochemical processes within the growth substrates is lacking. Moreover, it is common practice to treat soilless growth systems as static, ignoring dynamic changes of important physicochemical and hydraulic properties due to root and microbial growth that require adaptation of management practices throughout the growth period. To overcome these shortcomings, the objectives of this project were to apply thorough physicochemical characterization of commonly used greenhouse substrates in conjunction with state-of-the-art numerical modeling (HYDRUS-3D, PARSWMS) to not only optimize management practices (i.e., irrigation frequency and rates, fertigation, container size and geometry, etc.), but to also “engineer” optimal substrates by mixing organic (e.g., coconut coir) and inorganic (e.g., perlite, pumice, etc.) base substrates and modifying relevant parameters such as the particle (aggregate) size distribution. To evaluate the proposed approach under commercial production conditions, characterization and modeling efforts were accompanied by greenhouse experiments with tomatoes. The project not only yielded novel insights regarding favorable physicochemical properties of advanced greenhouse substrates, but also provided critically needed tools for control and management of containerized soilless production systems to provide a stress-free rhizosphere environment for optimal yields, while conserving valuable production resources. Numerical modeling results provided a more scientifically sound basis for the design of commercial greenhouse production trials and selection of adequate plant-specific substrates, thereby alleviating the risk of costly mistrials.

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Automatic Irrigation Control System for Soilless Culture Based on Feedback from Drainage Hydrograph

Applied Engineering in Agriculture ◽

10.13031/aea.11172 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 33 (4) ◽

pp. 531-542 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Daniel Rodríguez ◽

Juan Reca ◽

Juan Martínez ◽

Miguel Urrestarazu

Keyword(s):

Control System ◽

Low Cost ◽

Irrigation Management ◽

Irrigation Scheduling ◽

Soilless Culture ◽

Proportional Integral Derivative ◽

Tomato Crop ◽

Proportional Integral ◽

Irrigation Application ◽

Irrigation Control

Abstract. In a soilless culture, water and nutrients must be frequently and precisely applied due to the reduced volume and low water holding capacity of the substrate. We describe a low-cost and efficient control system for the irrigation management of soilless culture based on an irrigation tray. Both irrigation and drainage volumes from the irrigation control tray are measured automatically. The proposed irrigation scheduling options were based on applying both variable timing and amounts. A Proportional Integral Derivative (PID) algorithm was used to establish the irrigation timing option while two different irrigation application options, based on measurements from the drainage hydrograph, were developed and tested. A field test performed on a tomato crop was carried out to assess the performance of the two irrigation application options. Both irrigation algorithms performed well as they fitted the leaching fraction for every irrigation event to the target value. The fruit yield and quality were comparable to results obtained from the control treatment of the tomato crop. The designed low-cost irrigation control system, if implemented on commercial farms, could prove to be economically very beneficial. Keywords: Automation, Drainage hydrograph, Irrigation control tray, Irrigation scheduling, Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller, Substrate culture.

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Adaptation of the CROPGRO Model to Simulate Yield of Fresh-market Tomato

HortScience ◽

10.21273/hortsci.31.4.572f ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 31 (4) ◽

pp. 572f-572

Author(s):

J.M.S. Scholberg ◽

B.L. McNeal ◽

J.W. Jones ◽

S.J. Locascio ◽

S.R. Olsen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Crop Production ◽

Management Practices ◽

Production Systems ◽

Irrigation Management ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Crop Management ◽

Fresh Market ◽

Wide Range ◽

Yield Values ◽

Fertilizer Rates

Modeling the growth of field-grown tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) should assist researchers and commercial growers to outline optimal crop management strategies for specific locations and production systems. A generic crop-growth model (CROPGRO) was previously adapted to simulate the growth of fresh-market tomato under field conditions. Plant growth and development of field-grown tomato, and fruit yields, will be outlined and compared to model predictions for a number of locations in Florida, nitrogen fertilizer rates, and irrigation management practices. Possible application of the model to quantify effects of crop management on crop production will be discussed using simulated yield values for a wide range of environmental conditions.

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Kansas Center Pivot Uniformity Evaluation Overview

Applied Engineering in Agriculture ◽

10.13031/aea.13335 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 35 (6) ◽

pp. 867-874

Author(s):

Danny H Rogers ◽

Jonathan Aguilar ◽

Vaishali Sharda

Keyword(s):

Management Practices ◽

Irrigation Management ◽

Irrigation Scheduling ◽

Operating Conditions ◽

Extension Programs ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Common System ◽

Center Pivot ◽

Use Efficiency ◽

Coefficient Of Uniformity

Abstract. Center pivot irrigation systems are the most common system type in Kansas for a variety of factors – one of which is the ability to deliver a uniform depth of water application for a variety of crops and field conditions. Uniform applications are dependent on properly designed, installed and operated sprinkler nozzle packages. Uniformity evaluations were conducted as part of the Mobile Irrigation Lab (MIL) project to promote adoption of improved irrigation management practices with an emphasis on ET based irrigation scheduling. Since efficient and uniform water applications are critical to successful irrigation scheduling; MIL assessment included evaluation of sprinkler package performance using a single line catch can test. Catch can data was used to calculate the coefficient of uniformity (CU) and average application depth. The average CU value of the tested systems was 78.7 with a range of from 91.9 to 53.2. Many of the factors affecting pivot uniformity could have been identified and corrected with a visual inspection and/or comparison to the manufacturer’s sprinkler design specifications. Some of the catch tests indicated poorly designed and/or maintained sprinkler systems with reduced uniformity directly impacting crop performance, water use efficiency and economic results. Initial information was used in extension programs to illustrate the effect of various correctable sprinkler package deficiencies on performance and to encourage irrigation farmers to examine their nozzle packages and operating conditions. Keywords: Center pivot irrigation, Sprinkler packages, Uniformity.

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Gaseous irrigation control system: descriptions and phisical tests for performance assessment

Bragantia ◽

10.1590/s0006-87052006000300017 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 65 (3) ◽

pp. 501-510 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Adonai Gimenez Calbo ◽

Washington Luiz de Carvalho e Silva

Keyword(s):

Soil Water ◽

Irrigation Management ◽

Irrigation Scheduling ◽

Measuring System ◽

Measuring Device ◽

Soil Water Tension ◽

First Case ◽

Immersion Technique ◽

Irrigation Control ◽

Water Tension

Irrigas is a water tension measuring system made out of a porous cup (sensor), connected to a gas pressurizing/measuring device by a flexible tube. Water tension (T) is obtained from the equation T=Td-p or T=Ts-p, where Td is the sensor desorption critical water tension (bubbling beginning), Ts is the sensor sorption critical water tension (bubbling ceasing) and p is the applied gas pressure. Differently from conventional tensiometers, the irrigas porous cup cavity is filled with air. This characteristics makes the irrigas system nearly maintenance free and also eliminates the need of making hydrostatic pressure corrections for sensor depth. The system was tested both in the desorption and sorption modes. In the first case the Richards pressure chamber was used to adjus)t the soil water tension which makes the porous cup air permeable. The water tension thus obtained was always practically equal to the Td values measured by the bubbling method, observation that is a physical validation of the barrel immersion technique for irrigas usage for irrigation management. Important for instrument dimensioning, porous cup water loss as a function of water tension measured from zero to Td was diminutive, increased with the soil water tension and was smaller in higher Td porous cups. In the sorption mode, functioning as a gaseous tensiometer, driven by a steady air-flow source, irrigas sensors yielded, directly, water tension readings ranging from zero to Ts. For irrigation scheduling purposes, commercial irrigas water tension systems can be selected according to crop critical water tension requirements.

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Managing Landscape Irrigation to Avoid Soil and Nutrient Losses

EDIS ◽

10.32473/edis-ss586-2013 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 2013 (11) ◽

Author(s):

George Hochmuth ◽

Laurie Trenholm ◽

Don Rainey ◽

Esen Momol ◽

Claire Lewis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Natural Environment ◽

Management Practices ◽

Root Zone ◽

Irrigation Management ◽

Critical Factor ◽

Nutrient Losses ◽

County Agents ◽

The Right ◽

Soil And Water

Proper irrigation management is critical to conserve and protect water resources and to properly manage nutrients in the home landscape. How lawns and landscapes are irrigated directly impacts the natural environment, so landscape maintenance professionals and homeowners must adopt environmentally-friendly approaches to irrigation management. After selecting the right plant for the right place, water is the next critical factor to establish and maintain a healthy lawn and landscape. Fertilization is another important component of lawn and landscape maintenance, and irrigation must be applied correctly, especially following fertilization, to minimize potential nutrient losses. This publication supplements other UF/IFAS Extension publications that also include information on the role of soil and the root zone in irrigation management. This publication is designed to help UF/IFAS Extension county agents prepare materials to directly address nutrient losses from lawns and landscapes caused by inadequate irrigation management practices. This 6-page fact sheet was written by George Hochmuth, Laurie Trenholm, Don Rainey, Esen Momol, Claire Lewis, and Brian Niemann, and published by the UF Department of Soil and Water Science, October 2013. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ss586

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Citrus Irrigation Management

EDIS ◽

10.32473/edis-ss660-2017 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 2017 (5) ◽

Author(s):

Davie Mayeso Kadyampakeni ◽

Kelly T. Morgan ◽

Mongi Zekri ◽

Rhuanito Ferrarezi ◽

Arnold Schumann ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Water Stress ◽

Physiological Activity ◽

Irrigation Management ◽

Fruit Size ◽

Irrigation Scheduling ◽

Leaf Expansion ◽

Tree Canopy ◽

Limiting Factor ◽

Irrigation Frequency ◽

Citrus Production

Water is a limiting factor in Florida citrus production during the majority of the year because of the low water holding capacity of sandy soils resulting from low clay and the non-uniform distribution of the rainfall. In Florida, the major portion of rainfall comes in June through September. However, rainfall is scarce during the dry period from February through May, which coincides with the critical stages of bloom, leaf expansion, fruit set, and fruit enlargement. Irrigation is practiced to provide water when rainfall is not sufficient or timely to meet water needs. Proper irrigation scheduling is the application of water to crops only when needed and only in the amounts needed; that is, determining when to irrigate and how much water to apply. With proper irrigation scheduling, yield will not be limited by water stress. With citrus greening (HLB), irrigation scheduling is becoming more important and critical and growers cannot afford water stress or water excess. Any degree of water stress or imbalance can produce a deleterious change in physiological activity of growth and production of citrus trees. The number of fruit, fruit size, and tree canopy are reduced and premature fruit drop is increased with water stress. Extension growth in shoots and roots and leaf expansion are all negatively impacted by water stress. Other benefits of proper irrigation scheduling include reduced loss of nutrients from leaching as a result of excess water applications and reduced pollution of groundwater or surface waters from the leaching of nutrients. Recent studies have shown that for HLB-affected trees, irrigation frequency should increase and irrigation amounts should decrease to minimize water stress from drought stress or water excess, while ensuring optimal water availability in the rootzone at all times.

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