In recent decades, Spanish irrigation has become a global benchmark for its efficiency and for being an activity with high standards of sustainability. The current context, with the unstoppable escalation of inflation, the growing demand for legislation related to the environment and the threat of climate change, makes it necessary to increase efforts.
By: Bárbara Aguayo Martínez, agribusiness journalist/ @BarbaraAguayoM3
The irrigated surface in Spain reached 3,831,181 hectares in 2020 and remained practically stable, with an increase of 0.06% compared to 2019 (3,828,747 ha) and 1.5% compared to 2018 (3,774, 286 ha), according to the latest data from Survey of crop areas and yields in Spain (ESYRCE)Of Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
fertigation system
Irrigation is synonymous with prosperity and an essential sector for the Spanish economy. Looking ahead, there are threats and opportunities. The unstable economic and geopolitical situation has meant that agri-food security has become a top-level concern all over the world. At the same time, trends like digitization and projects like PERTE herald a unique moment to lay the foundations for irrigation in the 21st century.
Techniques such as fertigation are here to stay, understood as an irrigation system that allows fertilizers to be incorporated through the irrigation water, keeping the availability of water and nutrients at an optimal level for maximum performance. The use of these systems saves producers time, resources and effort by performing two tasks simultaneously: fertilization and irrigation, enabling crops to be fertilized more efficiently while reducing potential greenhouse gas emissions.
What advantages does fertigation bring?
In this fertigation concept, as we know, liquid fertilizers are supplied to the plants through irrigation. This technique, if we compare it with other traditional fertilization methods, is much more efficient. The plants, through the liquid administration of nutrients, absorb it immediately, improving its availability and efficiency, with an optimal supply of nutrients to the root zone whose losses are minimal.
Advantages of fertigation:
- Savings.
- Reduces pollution of nature.
- It allows you to control the doses administered to the crops.
- Containment of soil erosion.
- Savings in water consumption.
- Stimulates rapid root growth.
- Formation of soil microbial biomass.
The fertigation It is the most appropriate way, if cultivation and planting allow it, to irrigate and fertilize in a sustainable and environmentally efficient way. This is a particularly useful technique in the case of localized irrigation, as traditional fertilization methods are less compatible with this type of irrigation.
Progress in R+D+i
Innovation plays a fundamental role in this technique, providing new solutions aligned with sustainability with the main objective of continuing to promote the digitization of agriculture and the use of irrigation systems that allow crops to be fed simultaneously with the application of irrigation water and fertilizers.
The technological evolution linked to the concept of fertigation is aimed at the design and construction of systems and materials which allow to obtain the maximum from the crops and guarantee the reliability and efficiency of the system.
Fertilizer purity and solubility are key factors in fertigation.
Thanks to the fertigation technology, from tanks with water, it allows to introduce soluble fertilizers into the irrigation system. It is usually done with injectors and a pressure controlled valve that allow pH levels and electrical conductivity to be measured.
Nutrient delivery will usually be via overhead mounted devices, but may also be overhead mounted in each sector or operating unit. In any case, and especially in the case of localized irrigation, a mesh filter should always be installed to retain any precipitates that could be produced.
Which nutrients to use in fertigation?
The fertilizers used in fertigation must be soluble and emulsifiable in water, avoiding the deposit of residues in the irrigation system, as well as its possible corrosion. Fertilizers obtained by recrystallization are preferable.
Another factor to keep in mind is the compatibility between fertilizers and the ions contained in the irrigation water to avoid incompatibility between elements.
Characteristics of fertilizers in fertigation:
- Purity close to 100% to avoid impurities and correct maintenance of the irrigation network.
- High solubility for easy handling of stock solutions.
- Rapid solubilisation of the product. This saves preparation time and energy.
- Minimal generation of dust in its handling, which facilitates the task and minimizes the harmful effects of suspended particles.
- Fertilizers free from moisture compaction.
Localized fertigation in the development of agriculture in Spain had a very high importance, standing out in those regions where the scarcity and poor quality of water available for irrigation limited economic development. In this sense, the communities of the Canary Islands, Murcia and Almería in Andalusia were the first to import localized irrigation techniques due to the need to improve the efficiency of available water resources and increase the productivity of irrigation water. Today they are the most advanced regions in the application of localized fertigation.
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