Article taken from the Agronomist & Arable Farmer Vegetable Guide
The goal of irrigation management is to use water in the most profitable way at sustainable production levels without impacting the environment. For production agriculture this generally means supplementing precipitation with irrigation.
Water management of crops, especially high value vegetable crops is vital to allow continuity of supply, maximising growth periods for yield and quality. With the cost of irrigation water licences, abstraction and application, maximising water use efficiency is vital. Over-irrigation can lead to crop damage, localised water-logging, nitrogen leeching and soil structure damage, reduction in quality of the harvested product as well as depletion of aquifers and damage to the public’s perception of sustainable use.
All Environment Agency licences have pump restrictions for irrigation water. Increases in energy prices means that pumping extra irrigation water increases irrigation expenses without increasing income.
The technology is now available and proven in broad acre and specialist crops to monitor, manage and justify water use. Using telemetry technology allows growers and managers to see at a glance what the soil moisture deficit is at any given moment, and coupled with knowledge of the soil type and parameters required for a particular crop apply irrigation accurately and in good time.
Regular and frequent applications up to soil capacity keep the crop at maximum growth potential and prevent sudden burst of growth causing cracks and blemishes within the produce.
To help improve the precision of key irrigation decisions, Agrovista provides a unique and innovative soil moisture monitoring service with an email alert of drying conditions and confirmation of water applied.
Plantsystems from Agrovista offers professional solar-powered GSM/GRPS monitoring units with rain gauge, multi-level soil moisture and soil temperature sensors. A range of depths can be monitored from 10-90cm. Air temperature and humidity sensors can also be added for frost or disease monitoring purposes. This data is then relayed to a central server, allowing any web-based device to view the information at anytime.
These stations can be deployed in reference crops in almost any location. A continuous record of data is available 24/7 to the grower via web browser, smart phone and tablet. This allows managers to inspect the soil moisture, rainfall and irrigation impact at anytime and adjust the application accordingly. Services offered include email alerts that are triggered when soil water content drops below a user-defined threshold and when significant irrigation or rainfall is captured. The system also keeps a complete record of water applied to the crop, the water content of the soil and rainfall, allowing growers to justify their water inputs to end markets and for protocol purposes.
Key benefits
Plantsystems’ active irrigation scheduling service provides a weekly manager’s report of current and forecast irrigation requirements of reference crops. This is delivered by email.
Plantsystems takes current soil moisture readings from soil moisture stations installed in your reference crops and combine these with local weather forecast data to predict future irrigation requirements. The inclusion of soil moisture sensors dramatically improves the accuracy of irrigation scheduling as current soil conditions are continuously measured.
The environmental regulators in Britain have the duty to promote both the protection of the water environment and to encourage the efficient use of water resources. It is part of the application for abstraction authorisation to justify the amount and periods of use. In addition, farmers are required to report storage, use and discharge of water.
Utilising the Plantsystems management services, water use on crops can be planned, monitored and adjusted to take account of environmental factors.
Scheduling takes into account local weather data, weather forecasts, soil moisture sensing equipment and crop canopy and root development to predict and justify water use.
The goal of irrigation management is to use water in the most profitable way at sustainable production levels without impacting the environment. For production agriculture this generally means supplementing precipitation with irrigation.
Water management of crops, especially high value vegetable crops is vital to allow continuity of supply, maximising growth periods for yield and quality. With the cost of irrigation water licences, abstraction and application, maximising water use efficiency is vital. Over-irrigation can lead to crop damage, localised water-logging, nitrogen leeching and soil structure damage, reduction in quality of the harvested product as well as depletion of aquifers and damage to the public’s perception of sustainable use.
All Environment Agency licences have pump restrictions for irrigation water. Increases in energy prices means that pumping extra irrigation water increases irrigation expenses without increasing income.
The technology is now available and proven in broad acre and specialist crops to monitor, manage and justify water use. Using telemetry technology allows growers and managers to see at a glance what the soil moisture deficit is at any given moment, and coupled with knowledge of the soil type and parameters required for a particular crop apply irrigation accurately and in good time.
Regular and frequent applications up to soil capacity keep the crop at maximum growth potential and prevent sudden burst of growth causing cracks and blemishes within the produce.
To help improve the precision of key irrigation decisions, Agrovista provides a unique and innovative soil moisture monitoring service with an email alert of drying conditions and confirmation of water applied.
Plantsystems from Agrovista offers professional solar-powered GSM/GRPS monitoring units with rain gauge, multi-level soil moisture and soil temperature sensors. A range of depths can be monitored from 10-90cm. Air temperature and humidity sensors can also be added for frost or disease monitoring purposes. This data is then relayed to a central server, allowing any web-based device to view the information at anytime.
These stations can be deployed in reference crops in almost any location. A continuous record of data is available 24/7 to the grower via web browser, smart phone and tablet. This allows managers to inspect the soil moisture, rainfall and irrigation impact at anytime and adjust the application accordingly. Services offered include email alerts that are triggered when soil water content drops below a user-defined threshold and when significant irrigation or rainfall is captured. The system also keeps a complete record of water applied to the crop, the water content of the soil and rainfall, allowing growers to justify their water inputs to end markets and for protocol purposes.
Key benefits
Irrigate to meet crop water requirements and improve yield
Avoid over-irrigation and washout of nutrients
Improve crop quality
Optimise water, fertiliser and energy input
Optimise use of available irrigation equipment
Network a series of units to manage irrigation equipment across an enterprise
Plantsystems’ active irrigation scheduling service provides a weekly manager’s report of current and forecast irrigation requirements of reference crops. This is delivered by email.
Plantsystems takes current soil moisture readings from soil moisture stations installed in your reference crops and combine these with local weather forecast data to predict future irrigation requirements. The inclusion of soil moisture sensors dramatically improves the accuracy of irrigation scheduling as current soil conditions are continuously measured.
The environmental regulators in Britain have the duty to promote both the protection of the water environment and to encourage the efficient use of water resources. It is part of the application for abstraction authorisation to justify the amount and periods of use. In addition, farmers are required to report storage, use and discharge of water.
Utilising the Plantsystems management services, water use on crops can be planned, monitored and adjusted to take account of environmental factors.
Scheduling takes into account local weather data, weather forecasts, soil moisture sensing equipment and crop canopy and root development to predict and justify water use.
Continuous soil moisture sensing
Continuous weather data monitoring
Water movement monitoring and leaching avoidance
Multiple depth moisture sensing
Flow metering and reservoir level sensing
Season irrigation review and report