About half of the watermelon fields in our area are not equipped with supplemental irrigation. Watermelon production in these fields is therefore dependent exclusively on rainfall. In fields where supplemental irrigation is available, drip irrigation under black plastic mulch is the most commonly used system. Overhead irrigation through central pivot is also used in some[Read More…]
Irrigation
We recently received several calls reporting blossom end rot of tomatoes (Figure 1). Although blossom end rot is caused by deficient supply of calcium to the developing fruit. The occurrence of this physiological disorder often relates to inconsistent supply of water. As a general rule, vegetables require 1-1.5 acre-inches of water per week. Since there[Read More…]
I have recently received calls from growers who use surface water to irrigate produce crops. Their concern was that the results of their current water tests were very different from their last tests and that levels of indicator organisms appeared to have increased dramatically. Ponds and lakes that are used for irrigation can be very[Read More…]