Irrigation Scheduling
Fresh Produce Consultancy Ltd
has been providing irrigation scheduling
services for salads and vegetable
crops in East Anglia since 2000.
We cover all field vegetable and
salad crops which includes, lettuce,
onions, leeks, potatoes, carrots,
celery, parsnips and brassicas.
Because we have an in depth background
in crop agronomy, including plant
physiology, plant anatomy and soil
science we are better placed than
most to interpret soil moisture
readings and advise on water application.
Soil Moisture Monitoring
Soil moisture monitoring sites
are established in fields after
planting or drilling. We remove
a soil core by auger and insert
an access tube, a minimum of two
access tubes are inserted for each
monitoring site. Tubes are generally
60cm in depth, which covers the
main rooting zone for root and
salad crops. Readings are taken
at weekly or twice weekly intervals,
as required, using an electrical
capacitance device, the Sentek
Diviner. The probe is non-radioactive
and highly accurate, recording
the volumetric water content to
an accuracy of less than 1% at
each 10cm depth point throughout
the soil profile. The two probe
site readings are compared to eliminate
any insertion issues such as gaps
or stones. |
|
Irrigation Advice and Recommendations
The data is taken back to our
PC, downloaded and prepared into
a graph showing water usage and
a table giving more detail of moisture
changes at each depth, graphs can
be produced showing water use at
each individual depth if required. |
Soil Moisture Report
Graph of Soil Moisture Content
- 10-30 cm Depth Zone Summed
Table showing soil
moisture at individual 10cm depth
bands
Soil Depth |
Total Soil Moisture
at Present |
Last Reading (mm) |
Profile Full Point
(mm) |
Soil Moisture
Deficit - mm (surplus) |
Change over week
(mm) |
10cm |
12 |
17 |
24 |
-12 |
-5 |
20cm |
17 |
28 |
29 |
-12 |
-11 |
30cm |
32 |
37 |
38 |
-6 |
-5 |
40cm |
42 |
42 |
42 |
0 |
0 |
Total |
103 |
124 |
133 |
-30 |
-21 |
Advice reports are e-mailed or
faxed to clients on the day of
reading, providing you with up
to date management information
on which to base water use priorities.
The service is highly cost effective,
requires no recording or time input
from the grower/crop manager and
provides professional, accurate
third party evidence of water need.
Whole Farm Water Management
In addition to irrigation
scheduling Fresh Produce Consultancy
Ltd are
able to provide other water management
services including, calculation
of whole farm or farm enterprise
water requirement, demonstration
of need for irrigation water, GPS
mapping of water resources including
reservoirs, feeder and extraction
points. |
