Integrated Greenhouse Systems for Mild Climates


Book Description

Crop production in greenhouses is a growing industry, especially in mild climates, and is very important for the population as a source of income and clean, fresh food. Greenhouses create optimal climate conditions for crop growth and protect crops from outside pests. At the same time greenhouse production increases water use efficiency and makes integrated production and protection (IPP) possible. This book provides technical instructions for practice (what to do and what not to do) and gives answers to the question: How to produce more clean crops and better quality with less water, less land and less pesticide. Suitable greenhouse constructions and their design, adapted to local climates in subtropical, tropical and arid regions and infrastructure conditions are presented. The necessary climate control measures - light transmittance, ventilation, cooling, heating, and CO2 enrichment - and physical measures for pest control, as well as methods for using solar energy to desalinate salty water are described. The results of theoretical research are transferred into methods for practical use, so that readers are equipped to solve their problems in practice as well as to get stimulation for further research and development.




Guidelines for Predicting Crop Water Requirements


Book Description

Calculation of crop evapotranspiration; Selection of crop coeficient; Calculation of field irrigation requirements.




Water Requirements for Irrigation and the Environment


Book Description

Irrigated agriculture produces about 40% of all food and fibre on about 16% of all cropped land. As such, irrigated agriculture is a productive user of resources; both in terms of yield per cropped area and in yield per volume of water consumed. Many irrigation projects, however, use (divert or withdraw) much more water than consumed by the crop. The non-consumed fraction of the water may cause a variety of undesirable effects ranging from water-logging and salinity within the irrigated area to downstram water pollution. This book discusses all components of the water balance of an irrigated area; evapotranspiration (Ch.2), effective precipitation (Ch.3) and capillary rise from the groundwater table (Ch.4). Chapter 5 then combines all components into a water management strategy that balances actual evapotranspiration (and thus crop yield) with the groundwater balance of the irrigated area (for a substainable environment). Chapter 6 presents CRIWAR 3.0, a simulation program that combines all water balance components into a single simulation procedure. The chapter describes the use of the CRIWAR software for developing water requirement tables and other useful information based on the selected water management strategy. This version greatly expands upon the capabilities of previously published programs.




Crop Water Requirement


Book Description




Agrometeorology


Book Description

Agrometeorology is a comparatively young science. The beginnings of agrometeorological work came in the 20's of this century, when agrometeorology was a working branch of climatology. In the years following 1950 it then developed widely to an independent science. In this process, agrome teorology has not only gained a vast knowledge of the influence of meteorological conditions on plants and livestock in agriculture and damage prevention, but additionally evolved new advisory methods which are of great practical use in agriculture. Up to the present time there has been practically no specific training for an agrometeorologist. Agrometeoro logists are drawn, according to their training, from the ranks of general meteorology or from agriculture and its related biological disciplines. They must, therefore, them selves gather the knowledge for their agrometeorological work and combine for themselves the complex of agrome teorology from biological and meteorological information. This is usuaIIy far from easy, as the relevant literature is scattered among the most widely differing journals, partly in little-known foreign languages, and is thus very difficult of access. Comprehensive writings are to be found only in very few partial fields of agrometeorology. The subject of training problems has thus been treated as of utmost importance at the meetings ofthe Commission for Agrometeorology (CAgM) of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), especially as agrometeorology has won such great significance and useful ness not only in the so-called underdeveloped countries in advancing a more productive agriculture, but also in coun tries whose agricultural standard is already high.




Sustainable Water Resources Management


Book Description

Sustainable Water Resources Management presents the most current thinking on the environmental, social, and political dimensions of sustainably managing the water supply at local, regional, or basin levels.




Fundamentals of Irrigation and On-farm Water Management: Volume 1


Book Description

Agriculture is one of the few industries that has been creating resources conti- ously from nature. Sustainability of this industry is a crucial issue at now-a-days. Agricultural technologies are important to feed the growing world population. Agricultural engineering has been applying scienti?c principles for the optimal use of natural resources in agricultural production for the bene?t of humankind. The role of agricultural engineering is increasing in the coming days at the forthcoming challenges of producing more food with less water coupled with climate uncertainty. I am happy to know that a book entitled "Fundamentals of Irrigation and On-farm Water Management", written by Engr. Dr. M. H. Ali, is going to be p- lished by Springer. The book is designed to cover the major ?elds of agricultural and environmental engineering such as weather, plant, soil, water, and basics of on-farm water management. The book will be quite useful for the students of agricultural engineering. Students of other related branches of engineering s- ences, and engineers working in the ?eld and at research institutes will also be beni?ted. The book may serve as a text book for the students and as a practical hand-book for the practitioners and researchers in the ?eld of irrigation and on-farm water management. Utilization of the recent literature in the area and citation of relevant journals / reports have added a special value to this book. Considering the topics covered, engineers, scientists, practitioners, and educators will ?nd this book as a valuable resource.










Crop Water Requirements


Book Description

This publication is intended to provide guidance in determining crop water requirements and their application in planning, design and operation of irrigation projects; Part I.1 presents suggested methods to derive crop water requirements. The use of four well-known methods for determining such requirements is defined to obtain reference crop evapotranspiration (ETo), which denotes the level of evapotranspiration for different set of climatic data. To derive the evapotranspiration for a specific crop, relationships between crop evapotranspiration (ETcrop) and reference crop evapotranspiration (ETo) are given in Part I.2 for different crops, stages of growth, length of growing season and prevailing climatic conditions. The effect of local conditions on crop water requirements is given in Part I.3; this includes local variation in climate, advection, soil water availability and agronomic and irrigation methods and practices. Calculation procedures are presented together with examples. A detailed discussion on selection and calibration of the presented methodologies together with the data sources is given in Appendix II. A computer programme on applying the different methods is given in Appendix III. Part II discusses the application of crop water requirements data in irrigation project planning, design and operation. Part II. 1 deals with deriving the field water balance, which in turn forms the basis for predicting seasonal and peak irrigation supplies for general planning purposes. Attention is given to irrigation efficiency and water requirements for cultural practices and leaching of salts. In Part II. 2 methods are presented to arrived at field and scheme supply schedules with emphasis towards the field water balance and field irrigation management. Criteria are given for operating the canal system using different methods of water delivery, and for subsequent design parameters of the system. Suggestions are made in Part II. 3 on refinement of field and project supply schedules once the project is in operation. The presented guidelines are based on measured data and experience obtained covering a wide range of conditions. Local practical, technical, social and economic considerations will, however, affect the planning criteria selected. Therefore caution and a critical attitude should still be taken when applying the presented methodology.