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1/18/2017
1
Irrigation and Fertigation ControlMarc van Iersel
Irrigation: Why worry?
• Overlooked, but critical task
• Has major impact on quality
• Affects fertilization
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What determines water use?
• Plant size
• Environmental conditions
Two components to water use
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High water use Low water use
Transpiration and stomates
Stomatal opening depends on light
VPD
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Vapor pressure deficit
Temperature (oFahrenheit)
30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110
Vap
or p
ress
ure
(kilo
Pas
cals
)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Saturation vapor pressure
Vapor pressure deficit
Temperature (oFahrenheit)
30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110
Vap
or p
ress
ure
(kilo
Pas
cals
)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Saturation vapor pressureActual vapor pressure (40% RH)
VPD
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Vapor pressure deficit
Temperature (oFahrenheit)
30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110
Vap
or p
ress
ure
(kilo
Pas
cals
)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Saturation vapor pressureActual vapor pressure (40% RH)Vapor pressure deficit (40% RH)
VPD
Irrigation practices
• Based on grower judgment• Likely results in overwatering
• Timers• Don’t adjust for crop size or weather
• Light or VPD accumulator• Doesn’t adjust for crop size
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This project is all about water
Providing real‐time information to growers
About their microclimatic conditions
To schedule irrigation applications
Based on specific crop requirements
SCRI-MINDS Managing Irrigation and Nutrition via Distributed Sensing
What we have done:• Developed Wireless Sensor Networks, with
monitoring and control capabilities (hardware)
• Developed a Graphic User Interface, for intuitive decision making (software)
• Developed guidelines to Manage Irrigation
• Quantified impact on production (Quality, fertilization, runoff)
• Determined the Economic Impact of better irrigation management ($$$)
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What is a Wireless Sensor Network?
Production areasIrrigation Controller
Sensors Valves
RadioCommunication
Local Computer
Grower Input
Graphic user interface
Remote Computeror Smartphone
What is a Wireless Sensor Network?
• Hardware • Sensors• Nodes• Valves
• Software• Data visualization• Decision making
nR5
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SolenoidValve
H2O
DRY! GOOD !
Automated Irrigation System
Observed benefits
• Water savings• Plant quality• Faster growth• Fertilizer savings• Environmental
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Precision Control of IrrigationWater use reductions between 40 and 85%
Precision Control of Irrigation
• A 50% reduction in irrigation saved over 43 million gallons of water in one nursery in 2012
• Saved $6,500 in pumping costs
• In California (water costs are ~$750 / acre foot), this water costs ~$100,000
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Impact on Water Availability
• Cost of water is low compared to other variable costs
• Some operations are limited by the well or pump capacity
• Tree nursery was able to install an additional 30-acre production
Cut Snapdragons (Flowers by Bauers)
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0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
4500
5000
GROUP 1/2 GROUP 2 GROUP 2/3 GROUP 3 GROUP 3/4
82%
32%39%
31%
5%
Economic Analysis: Total Stems
Pre-Sensor: (2007 – 2009) Post-Sensor: (2010 – 2012)
Lichtenberg et al, 2015
$0.00
$0.10
$0.20
$0.30
$0.40
$0.50
$0.60
$0.70
GROUP 1/2 GROUP 2 GROUP 2/3 GROUP 3 GROUP 3/4
Economic Analysis: $ /stem
Pre-Sensor: (2007 – 2009) Post-Sensor: (2010 – 2012)
Lichtenberg et al, 2015
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2007 -2009 2010- 2012 Difference Change
Crops/ year 37 38 1 3 %
Stems/ year 106,308 139,382 33,074 31 %
Price/ stem $ 0.59 $ 0.62 $ 0.03 5 %
Labor costs $ 15,905 $ 17,893 $ 1,988 12 %
Electricity $ 4,109 $2,923 $ 1,186 -29 %
Sensor system $ 0 $7,147 $ 7,147 ---
Revenue $63,094 $ 85,679 22,585 36 %
Profit $43,080 $57,716 $14,636 34 %
Payback period on upfront costs <16 months
Economic Analysis: Annual Profitability
Pre-Sensor: (2007 – 2009) Post-Sensor: (2010 – 2012)
Lichtenberg et al, 2015
• Increased yields • Improved quality
= more profit
Cut Snapdragons (Flowers by Bauers)
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Alternative to Plant Growth Regulators
• Reduced substrate water content reduces elongation
Tracking curves to monitor poinsettia height
7
8
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16
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19
25‐Aug 1‐Sep 8‐Sep 15‐Sep 22‐Sep 29‐Sep 6‐Oct 13‐Oct 20‐Oct 27‐Oct 3‐Nov 10‐Nov 17‐Nov 24‐NovHei
gh
t fr
om t
he
Ben
ch T
op (
inch
es)
Date
Cultivar: Classic Red
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0 20 40 60 80
Height (inches)
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
Days after pinching
0 20 40 60 80
Height (inches)
8
10
12
14
16
18
208
10
12
14
16
18
20
Lower limit
Upper limits
Height
8
10
12
14
16
18
2014"
17"
15.5"
Control
Growth tracking curves
Days after pinching
‐20 0 20 40 60 80
Substrate volumetric water content (%)
10
20
30
40
5017"
‐20 0 20 40 60 80
Control
10
20
30
40
50
60
14" 15.5"
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Final plant height35.6 cm 39.4 cm 43.2 cm control
Bract size35.6 cm 39.4 cm 43.2 cm control
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Better Growth
Month
Feb
201
1
Mar
ch 2
011
Apr
il 20
11
May
201
1
June
201
1
July
201
1
Aug
ust
201
1
Sep
t 20
11
Oct
201
1
Nov
201
1
Dec
201
1
Jan
2012
Feb
201
2
Mar
ch 2
012
Apr
il 20
12
Num
ber
of p
lant
s
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
Forecast sales
Faster production cycle
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Month
Fe
b 20
11
Mar
ch 2
011
Apr
il 20
11
May
20
11
Jun
e 20
11
July
20
11
Au
gust
20
11
Sep
t 20
11
Oct
20
11
No
v 20
11
De
c 20
11
Jan
2012
Fe
b 20
12
Mar
ch 2
012
Apr
il 20
12
Num
ber
of p
lant
s
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
Forecast salesActual sales
Faster production cycle
23,400 plants
New Crop - 2012
Ready Oct. 20124 month
production cycle
Is it real?
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Disease Management
• Sensor-based irrigation decreased disease-related shrinkage in Gardenia from 30% to virtually zero
Profitability of Wireless Sensor Networks
Potential benefits found include:• Water/energy/labor savings• Reduced losses• Reduced management time• Accelerated production time
Analysis by Erik Lichtenberg, Univ. of Maryland
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No Sensors
Sensor-Based
Irrigation
Annualized Revenue $66,297 $ 145,505 Annualized Production Expenditures $30,539 $50,039 Annualized Sensor System Cost (3-year Lifetime, 6% Interest) $ 0.00 $3,755
Annualized Profit $35,758 $91,710
Annualized Profit per Acre $78,000 $ 200,000
Percent Change from Base Case +156%
System payback: less than one month!
Water & fertilizer interactions
• Fertigation; water soluble fertilizer• excessive irrigation result in high fertilizer
application • Excessive watering leaches nutrients from
containers• Nutrients movement in the substrate:
• mass flow • diffusion
• dependent on water in the substrate
• Thus plant nutrient uptake depends on substrate water content
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Water & fertilizer interactions
Bigger plantsless flowers
Bestplants
Water & fertilizer interactions
• Can fertilizer concentrations be decreased with more efficient irrigation?
• Because of less leaching
• Or do fertilizer concentrations need to be increased?
• Because less water is applied
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Materials and methods
• Petunia ‘Apple blossom’ was grown in 6” pots
Treatments
• Fertigation at two fertilizer concentrations100 and 200 ppm N (15–5–15 Cal-Mag)
• Soil moisture sensor-based drip irrigation system used
Solenoid valve
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Treatments
• Four irrigation treatments (volumes): • Control,• Low,• Medium &• High leaching
• Leachate collected weekly
Data collection
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Irrigation volume
Control Low Medium High
Tot
al le
achi
ng v
olum
e (m
L/p
lant
)
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
100 mg·L-1
200 mg·L-1
b
ab
a
aFertilizer Nconcentration
Leaching volume
Irrigation volume
Control Low Medium High
Sho
ot d
ry m
ass
(g/p
lant
)
0
20
40
60
100 mg·L-1
a aa a
Shoot dry mass
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Irrigation volume
Control Low Medium High
Sho
ot d
ry m
ass
(g/p
lant
)
0
20
40
60
100 mg·L-1 200 mg·L-1
b bb
b
a aa a
Shoot dry mass
CONCLUSIONS
• Irrigation and leaching volumes did not affect plant growth
• No evidence fertilizer concentrations can be reduced with more efficient irrigation
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Reduced fertilization
• Water-soluble fertilizers:• Less water = less fertilizer
• CRFs: • Less water = less leaching
• Less runoff
• Financial savings $5 – 10 million/year in Georgia alone
Towards commercializationDecagon’s PlantPoint system, being released now
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http://horttech.ashspublications.org/content/23/6.toc
HortTechnologySpecial Series:
Improving Irrigation with Sensor Networks:Implementation and Impact
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Low-cost alternative: Arduino
http://hortphys.uga.edu/irrigationcontrol.html
Build your own irrigation controller• Open source microcontroller (Arduino)
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http://hortphys.uga.edu/irrigationcontrol.html
Environmental Benefits
50% industry adoption rate in the ornamental industry:• Save enough water for 400,000
households a year• Prevent 620,000 lbs. of nitrogen and
400,000 lbs. of phosphorus from entering the environment
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Benefits
• Control over plant quality
• Reduced disease pressure
• Less leaching and runoff
• Water and fertilizer savings
• Higher profits
Funding provided by
USDA‐NIFA‐SCRI Award no. 2009‐51181‐05768
SCRI-MINDS Managing Irrigation and Nutrition via Distributed Sensing
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