Agriculture Economics

Irrigation management

The goal of irrigation management is to use water in the most profitable way at sustainable production levels. For production agriculture this generally means supplementing precipitation with irrigation. Irrigation management with regulated water deficit allows a better use of rain water and stimulates deepening of the root system, increasing the volume of the soil which is explored by the roots of the plants. The applied water depth in each irrigation is lower than the water quantity necessary for the crop, but its value must be enough not to significantly affect the development and productivity of the crop. It is crucial to product quality in vegetable crops. Transition in the certain region from dryland to irrigated agriculture, or from flood and low-efficiency sprinkler irrigation, to center pivot and drip irrigation systems. The content of some phytochemicals is related to fruit size and maturity stage, traits that are dramatically impacted by irrigation; however, the relationship between irrigation and phytochemical content is complex.