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Technological and agronomic assessment of a Variable Rate Irrigation system integrated with soil sensor technologies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 June 2017

M. Martello ,
A. Berti ,
G. Lusiani ,
A. Lorigiola  and
F. Morari
M. Martello*
Affiliation:
Council for Agricultural Research and Economics Research – Center for Policies and Bioeconomy – Viale dell’Università, 14–35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
A. Berti
Affiliation:
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and the Environment, University of Padova – Viale dell’Università, 16–35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
G. Lusiani
Affiliation:
Agenzia Veneta per i Pagamenti in Agricoltura via Niccolò Tommaseo 67/C – 35131 Padova (PD), Italy
A. Lorigiola
Affiliation:
Agenzia Veneta per i Pagamenti in Agricoltura via Niccolò Tommaseo 67/C – 35131 Padova (PD), Italy
F. Morari
Affiliation:
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and the Environment, University of Padova – Viale dell’Università, 16–35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy
*
†Email: marco.martello@crea.gov.it
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Abstract

The main goal of this study was assessing the technological and agronomic performances of a centre pivot Variable Rate Irrigation (VRI) system. The study was conducted in 2015 on a 16-ha field cultivated with maize. Irrigation was scheduled in three Management Zones according to data provided by a real-time monitoring system based on an array of soil moisture sensors. First results demonstrated the potential benefits of the VRI system on irrigation performance however a multiyear comparison is requested for evaluating the response to climate variability. VRI resulted in yields comparable to the business-as-usual regime but through a noticeable reduction in irrigation volumes.

Keywords

IrrigationWater Use EfficiencyRemote sensingVariable Rate IrrigationCentre Pivot
Type
Precision Irrigation
Information
Advances in Animal Biosciences , Volume 8 , Special Issue 2: Papers presented at the 11th European Conference on Precision Agriculture (ECPA 2017), John McIntyre Centre, Edinburgh, UK, July 16–20 2017 , July 2017 , pp. 564 - 568
Copyright
© The Animal Consortium 2017 

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