Australis Plants is owned and operated by Greg O’Sullivan, and specializes in olive and other fruit trees, as well as the production of grafted native plants. In 2014 Greg participated in the Queensland Government funded Rural Water Use Irrigation Futures project (RWUE-IF) and had an Irrigation Drainage and Energy Management Plan (IDEMP) developed for Australis Plants with an action plan to improve the water use efficiency of the business. Australis Plants was also involved in the Queensland Government funded Energy Savers Plus Program Extension (ESPPE) project. In this project an energy audit was conducted and a number of recommendations were made on changes that could be made to improve energy efficiency and reduce electricity costs.
In this webinar you’ll learn about: plant water use, the link between nutrient and water management, how plant water use varies in different nursery environments, how water is held in growing media, how to schedule irrigation systems to match plant water use, how to measure plant water use, how to measure leachate volumes.
Bottom watering systems work on the principle that water will move upward through holes in the bottom of the pot and into the growing media by capillary action. This makes these systems very water efficient, but their advantages and disadvantages need to weighed carefully as they aren’t suitable for growing all crops.
This tool allows the user to develop a list of plants and their relative water use using both the NGIQ iPLANT Water Use Database and user experience.
Once an appropriate irrigation controller has been selected, the controller and system components need to be installed correctly to ensure reliable operation. Installation instructions will vary depending on whether two-wire or multi-core wire systems are being used. The following are some guidelines on points to be considered when installing control systems.
The best time to prepare for a drought is before the event. In this workshop presentation we’ll give you information on some of the things you should consider when managing droughts that are affecting your business. Kerry Battersby Nursery & Garden Industry Queensland (NGIQ) - Drought risk management - 00:01:45. Erik Schmidt Center for Agricultural Engineering (CAE) – Evaporation mitigation - 00:27:10. Ben Walsh - BioRemedy – Managing water quality in water storages - 01:08:40.
Water availability has not been a major concern to the nursery industry until recently. Increased urban pressure, recent drought conditions, and climate change concerns have shifted the community and grower focus more to water availability, use, and sustainability.
Choosing appropriate filtration equipment for an irrigation system can be a complex process. The selection of a filtration system should be a considered and measured purchase, utilising information collected and analysed on the irrigation system, the irrigation disinfestation system type and location, the topography, cropping systems and water quality.
The management of irrigation in production nurseries has a direct impact on plant growth and quality. Plants require different amounts of water depending on environmental conditions, plant type and plant size. Effective irrigation scheduling can achieve significant water and energy savings.
This webinar gives an insight into pump efficiency and setting up efficient pumping systems in production nurseries so you can ask appropriate questions and understand what an irrigation specialist is telling you.
Energy and maintenance costs in pumping systems can account for 50-95% of total lifetime costs, with capital costs being in the region of 5-15%. System changes in pumping requirements, normal wear and tear and build-up in pipes can lead to a decline in efficiency of a system over time. Taking a whole of system approach to improving the efficiency of pumping systems can reduce energy and maintenance costs, and more closely match system capacity to pumping requirements. The following is a systematic approach that can be used to identify issues and improve man existing pumping system.
A well designed and operated drip irrigation system can provide high water use efficiencies. However, growers may be reluctant to install these systems because of the potentially high maintenance costs caused by clogging.
Dripper blockages can be caused from biological, physical, or mineral (chemical) causes. Surface water sources generally carry more risk of biological or physical blockages, while ground water, with higher mineral content, poses greater risks of mineral clogging hazards.
Drainage systems in nurseries are required to carry highly variable water flows on a daily basis, but drainage maintenance can often be a forgotten activity, until a sudden storm event occurs. A regular maintenance programme need not be expensive, but can result in more effective collection of drainage water for recycling, and minimise infrastructure damage caused by uncontrolled water flows. If you hope to reap the economic and environmental benefits of your drainage system, regular maintenance is essential.
The iSPACE sprinkler selection tool allows the user to input details of their irrigation system and create a short list of sprinklers that meet their system’s requirements. It also allows a schematic diagram of the layout to be developed, and cost comparisons between two systems to be made.
Filtration is vitally important in the operation of all sprinkler and dripper systems, reducing chemical sediment and slime build-up in pipes and fittings, and preventing any larger particles clogging the system. Filtration provides the essential pre-treatment for almost all irrigation water disinfestation systems, by either ensuring the water quality required is provided, or by reducing the contaminates in the water and reducing disinfestation costs.
Fertigation is the application of dissolved fertilisers to nursery crops through an irrigation system. In fertigation systems the plants absorb most of their nutrients through the root system, but some absorption can also occur through their leaves.