March 2019 - 14
WATER MANAGEMENT
Why Grow
DRY?
What are the benefits of growing with less water?
BY STEPHANIE BURNETT
I
rrigation technology has improved in
recent years, which has made it easier
to irrigate greenhouse-grown plants
efficiently. One of the most notable advances
was the development of moisture sensors
that are small, inexpensive and robust. These
sensors can be used to monitor substrate
moisture and provide feedback that can be
used to make irrigation decisions.
There are quite a few benefits to using
efficient irrigation systems, which are
discussed below in some detail. At the end of
the article, a brief description is provided of
how you might consider implementing sensors
in your greenhouse.
Reduced water use. One advantage of
using efficient irrigation is that it allows for
water savings. The amount of water saved
will depend on current and future irrigation
practices with moisture sensors. Some
growers have found they have reduced water
use by 25 percent. Based on the amount of
water that each plant receives when irrigated
with soil moisture sensors, it is possible to
save more. For example, we have found in
our research that heuchera may be watered
with 1 to 1.5 gallons of water over their
entire production period when irrigated using
moisture sensors.
Reduced plant disease incidence. There
seems to be a connection between improving
irrigation efficiency and reducing incidence
of plant disease. Pathogens were no longer
a problem in a crop of Gardenia jasminoides
grown at a commercial nursery in Georgia
using moisture sensors. Previously, pathogens
had been a major problem in this crop. Little
work has explored how efficient, sensorautomated
irrigation could potentially impact
incidence of pathogens. However, initial
research seems promising.
Control plant growth. Growing dry is a
common way to control plant growth without
the use of chemical plant growth regulators.
Using moisture sensors takes the guesswork
out of this process. At the University of
Maine, Dianthus gratianopolitanus 'Bath's
Pink' (Figure 1) irrigated at 5 percent were
smaller than those irrigated at 45 percent.
Many plants, including lavender, poinsettia,
rosemary, vinca and a wide variety of
ornamental plants will be shorter when
grown at a lower substrate moisture content.
Generally, if you would like to reduce the
height of your plants, growing them at a
moisture content of approximately 25 percent
would be appropriate.
Figure 1. Dianthus gratianopolitanus 'Bath's Pink' were grown using a moisture sensor automated irrigation system. They were irrigated at a variety of levels from
dry (5 percent) to near container capacity (45 percent) (Photo: Dr. Shuyang Zhen).
14 MARCH 2019 GPNMAG.COM
http://www.GPNMAG.COM
March 2019
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