Irrigation systems in protected floriculture

Irrigation Systems followed in protected floriculture. New types of irrigation being used in low, medium and hi- tech protected floriculture.

1. Irrigation Systems in Protected Floriculture Presented by Kartheka T. 2019531002

2. Irrigation Systems in Protected Floriculture Greenhouse crops are irrigated by means of applying water to the media surface through drip tubes or tapes, by hand using a hose, overhead sprinklers and booms or by applying water through the bottom of the container through sub-surface irrigation, or by using a combination of these.

3. Sprinklers and Drip syst. comparison Sprinklers Overhead sprinklers and hand watering have a tendency to "waste" water Also they wet the foliage, which increases the potential for diseases and injury. Drip Drip and sub- surface irrigation systems are the most efficient and provide greater control over the amount of water applied. Also, since the foliage does not become wet there is a reduced potential for diseases and injury.

4. Drip in Carnation and Chrysanthemum fields

5. Drip in Anthurium

6. Drip in Rose

7. Paired drip line in Rose

8. Irrigation Systems Surface Above foliage Hand watering Overhead Spray Sprinklers Misting/Fogger Below foliage Drip/ Trickle Drip tapes Perimeter watering Sub- surface Capillary Mat Ebb and Flow systems Flood floors Troughs Tide Floating beds Nutrient Film Technique

9. 1. Hand Watering The most traditional method of irrigation Labour intensive and takes time. Growers can afford hand watering only where a few selected pots or areas that have dried sooner than others. A water breaker should be used on the end of the hose, it breaks the force of the water, permitting a higher flow rate without washing the root substrate out of the bench or pot. It is not commercially follower but for potted ornamentals used occasionally.

10. 2. Overhead Sprinklers Used mainly for foliage wetting tolerant plants like Azalea, Portulacas and liners. A pipe is installed along the middle of a bed. Riser pipes are installed periodically to a height well above the final height of the crop. A total height of 0.6 m is sufficient for bedding plants flats and 1.8 m for fresh flowers. A nozzle is installed at the top of each riser. Nozzles vary from those that throw a 360° pattern continuously to types that rotate around a 360° circle.

11. Overhead sprinkler in Carnation and Chrysanthemum

12. Overhead Sprinkler in Orchids, Lillium

13. 3. Perimeter Watering Perimeter watering system can be used for crop production in benches or beds. It consists of a plastic pipe around the perimeter of a bench with nozzles that spray water over the substrate surface below the foliage. Either polythene or PVC pipe can be used. While PVC pipe has the advantage of being very stationery, polythene pipe tends to roll if it is not anchored firmly to the side of the bench. This causes nozzles to rise or fall from proper orientation to the substrate surface.

14. Nozzles are made of nylon or a hard plastic and are available to put out a spray are of 180°, 90° or 45°. Regardless of the types of nozzles used, they are staggered across the benches so that each nozzle projects out between two other nozzles on the opposite side. Perimeter watering systems with 180° nozzles require one water valve for benches up to 30.5 m in length.

15. 4. Boom Watering Boom watering can function either as open or a closed system, and is used often for the production of seedlings grown in plug trays. Plug trays are plastic trays that have width and length dimensions of approximately 30 × 61 cm, a depth of 13 to 38 mm, and contain about 100 to 800 cells. Each seedling grown in its own individual cell. Precision of watering is extremely important during the 2 to 8 week production time of plug seedlings.

16. A boom watering system generally consists of a water pipe boom that extends from one side of a greenhouse bay to the other. The pipe is fitted with nozzles that can spray either water or fertilizer solution down onto the crop. The boom is attached at its center point to a carriage that rides along rails, often suspended above the centre walk of the greenhouse bay. In this way, the boom can pass from one end of the bay to the other. The boom is propelled by an electric motor. The quantity of water delivered per unit area of plants is adjusted by the speed at which the boom travels.

17. Boom Watering

18. 5. Water Trays and Saucers It is usually used together with overhead sprayer or overhead sprinkler systems. In this system, water is applied to the surface and is collected under the container through trays and saucers. Water trays and saucers can greatly reduce runoff and leaching by containing the water draining from pots and holding the water which misses the pot during overhead watering. Each tray is square and meets the adjacent tray. In this way nearly all water is intercepted.

19. Each tray has a depression to accommodate the pot and is then angled upward from the pot toward the tray perimeter. The trays also have drain holes, which allow drainage of excess water and store certain quantity, which is subsequently absorbed by the substrate. They are inexpensive and reusable. Water which collects in them should be given adequate time to evaporate or be absorbed by the plant before further irrigation. Avoid tight plant spacing and poor ventilation to prevent disease problems when using this technique.

20. Water Tray and Saucers- Poinsettia

21. 6. Misting/ Fogger system In this application of water is in the form of very fine spray inorder to create humidity inside the chamber. Misters or foggers are held overhead in pipelines above plants. They are provided with anti-leak devices to prevent dropping of water after shutdown. They are widely used for humidity loving flowers like Orchids.

22. In Orchids…

23. Sub- surface Irrigation Sub- surface irrigation systems, also know as zero runoff, are an environmentally responsibly alternative that conserves water and fertilizers. They are being installed by greenhouse growers to improve product quality, achieve more uniform growth and increase production efficiency. In sub- surface irrigation systems, water and nutrient solution provided at the base of the container rises by capillary action through holes in the bottom and is absorbed by the growing media. These systems are adaptable to crops grown in pots or flats. All types of floriculture crops can be irrigated in this type.

24. Ebb and Flow benches & movable trays This system uses 4’ to 6’ wide watertight benches or movable trays to contain the nutrient solution. The benches, usually of plastic or fiberglass construction are installed perfectly to maintain a uniform depth of liquid. They can be installed as either fixed or movable. Channels in the bottom of the bench allow the water to distribute evenly and drain rapidly when the water supply is shut off. This allows the bench top to dry reducing algae growth and disease potential. It is an example for recirculating sub surface irrigation.

25. In operation nutrient solution is pumped from a holding tank to a level of ¾” to 1” depth in the bench and held there for 10 minutes or long enough for the media in the container to absorb the solution. A valve is then opened and the liquid is quickly drained by gravity back into the tank. A filter removes any solid matter. The holding tank, usually located in the floor below the benches should have a capacity for about ½ gallon/ sq ft of bench area. Water treatment with chlorine, ultra violet (UV) light or ozone is used by some growers to prevent diseases. Control of the nutrients and flow can be manual or with a controller.

26. Ebb and Flow Irrigation

27. Ebb and Flow benches

28. Capillary Mat System In a capillary mat system the pots are set on a mat that is kept constantly wet with a nutrient solution. Several styles of fabric mats are available from ¼” to ½” thick. The pots take up the solution through holes in the bottom through capillary action due to evapotranspiration. The mat is places on a level bench over a layer of plastic.

29. Water is supplied from drip tubes laid on top of the fabric. To keep algae under control, a layer of perforated film plastic is sometimes placed over the top of the mat. Algicides are also used. Containers holding nutrient solution and piping should be enclosed in black plastic or painted black to eliminate light and algae formation. Some growers turn the mat over when a new crop is started.

30. Trough system In this system, plastic or metal troughs are placed on existing benches or supported overhead from the greenhouse structure. The troughs are installed at a slight slope (3” to 6” per 100’) from one end to the other. Pots are spaced along the trough. Nutrient solution, supplied from spaghetti tubes, is pumped to the high end, flows past the base of the pots and is collected in a cross gutter at the low end.

31. The solution returns to a storage tank under the benches or below ground to be recycled. One advantage to this system over other ebb and flow systems is the air circulation that occurs between the troughs. Another is the ability to space the troughs for different size pots. Trough systems tend to be less expensive than bench systems and can be easily installed in existing greenhouses.

32. Trough System

33. Trough System

34. Viesser Dip stand

35. Flood Floor Flood floor are very similar to ebb and flow with few changes. No benches are required. Concrete floor –properly levelled, without any depressions with a slope of ¼” in10’. The floor is then flooded with water and nutrient solution. Floor heating system is provided to evaporate excess moisture to avoid algal growth on floor.

36. Flood Floor

37. Some products of irrigation companies PRESSURE COMPENSATING DRIPPER BY NETAFIM SELF ADJUSTING MULTIPERFORATED NEEDLE DRIP EMMITER

38. The ORIAZ Solar-Dripper redefines the limits of drip irrigation with 3 innovations. First, It synchronizes the watering flow to the plant needs by sensing light availability. Reduces the slow dripping limits by a factor of 1 000 compared to conventional drippers. The Solar-Dripper can have an average flow as low as 0.3 ml/hours. Finally, it resist clogging and permits particles and biofilm of more than 2 mm to flow through. Rainwater can be used without filtration. All types of commercial fertilizer, mycorrhizal inoculant or bio fertilizer can be used.