July 2022 - 10

IRRIGATION & WATER MANAGEMENT
CropManage tool lowers fertilizer, water use
By Vicky Boyd
Contributing Writer
Since the free online irrigation
and fertility decision support tool
CropManage launched in 2011 for
use in lettuce fields, the University of
California has added more than two
dozen row and permanent crops.
Users can typically reduce fertilizer
and water use by
20% to 40% while
maintaining or
even increasing
yields, said
Michael Cahn, a
UC Cooperative
Extension farm
High-Tech Tools
2022
advisor in Monterey, San Benito and
Santa Cruz counties who spearheads
tool development.
Mark Mason, a pest control advisor
and farm manager for Nature's Reward
based in Salinas, said he's seen the
tool's benefits first-hand.
Since he began using the program on
Iceberg lettuce in about 2014, Mason
has added Romaine lettuce, leaf lettuce,
escarole, endive and most recently
celery. As a result, it also helped him
answer some pressing questions.
" How do we really know when to
water? " he said. " We always had this
increment and did so every so many
days and so many hours. How do I
really know when to fertilize? "
Working with Cahn, Mason
conducted a number of split block
trials comparing his standard practices
to CropManage recommendations.
" I kind of had to prove out the
model to myself, " he said. In the end,
he found significant savings for both
water and nitrogen applications.
The model helped them reduce
computer. Users set up a free online
account and begin entering information
for their farm or specific fields. Cahn
said they're also adding a Spanish
version.
To set up a field location, users simply
click on a Google map integrated into
CropManage. The soil type, based on the
National Resource Conservation Service
Soil Survey Geographic Database, is
automatically populated after the user
chooses the field location.
Then users select a nearby California
Irrigation Management and Information
System (CIMIS) station before choosing
the crop type in the drop-down menu.
Zheng Wang, a University of California Cooperative Extension vegetable and irrigation
farm advisor, has been working with two growers the past two years to validate
CropManage for watermelons. Photo: Zheng Wang, UCCE
nitrogen use about 30%, depending on
the year, as well as identify irrigation
system inefficiencies, Mason said.
Nevertheless, he still views it as a tool
to aid decision making.
" We don't follow exactly what it
says if we feel like it didn't recognize
something, " Mason said. " There's kind
of a strategy and some communication
that has to happen and some
management that has to happen more
than just going out to fertilize. "
State groundwater and
nitrogen regulations
Improving water and nitrogen
management has taken on new
meaning in recent years as produce
buyers increasingly seek sustainability
metrics from suppliers, Cahn said.
In addition, the state's Sustainable
Groundwater Management Act
requires severely overdrafted
groundwater basins to balance
extraction with recharge beginning
in 2040. And the Irrigated Lands
Management Program requires
growers to annually report irrigation
and nitrogen (N) inputs and crop
withdrawals.
As part of that program, growers
along California's Central Coast from
southern Santa Clara County to Santa
Barbara County will be limited in the
amount of N they can use.
Free user accounts
The CropManage website,
cropmanage.ucanr.edu, can be accessed
from a smartphone, tablet or desktop
Mark Mason, farm manager for Nature's
Rewards in Salinas, California, began using
CropManage for iceberg lettuce in 2014.
He has since expanded the tool's use to
include Romaine lettuce, leaf lettuce,
escarole, endive and most recently celery.
Photo: Nature's Reward
The program also allows users to
customize their information by tying
in remote infield soil moisture and flow
meter sensors, for example. In addition,
it has an application programming
interface (API) that can connect with
other software, such as on-farm weather
stations or farm management and
recordkeeping programs, Cahn said.
CIMIS, a statewide network of
more than 145 automated weather
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July 2022

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