Abstract
An irrigation system for monitoring and controlling soil moisture tension in the root zones of potted plants using computer and solid-state tensiometer technologies was evaluated in a commercial greenhouse on 'V-14 Glory' poinsettias over a 10 week period. Replicated benches with separate drip circuits controlled by the computer maintained the soil moisture tension of the potted poinsettia plants between 1 kPa and 5 kPa. The amount of water used by each bench and the amount leached was compared to benches with separate drip circuits that were manually operated by the grower according to standard commercial practice. There was a 65% savings in the total amount of water used for the computer-controlled system and an average weekly reduction of 98.6% in leachate. The differences were significant and there was no measurable reduction in plant quality, even though soil analyses showed slightly elevated EC levels.
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