ISHS Acta Horticulturae 664: IV International Symposium on Irrigation of Horticultural Crops
ECONOMICS OF FIVE IRRIGATION TECHNOLOGIES FOR CONTAINER-GROWN VIBURNUM ODORATISSIMUM |
| Authors: | J.J. Haydu, R.C. Beeson, J. Caron |
| Keywords: | capillary mat, cost benefit analysis, micro-irrigation, subirrigation |
| Abstract:
Two capillary mat irrigation systems were compared to micro-irrigation, a sub-irrigation tray, and an overhead system as an experimental control, to assess the economic costs and returns of each system used in the production of container-grown viburnum. The experiment was set up as a randomized split block with five irrigation systems as the main plot. Each irrigation system was replicated three times and randomized within each block. The economic analysis examined installation costs associated with setting up each system and all production-related expenses required to bring plants up to 92% marketability. Water use was monitored and cumulative consumption for each treatment was converted from total gallons per system to a dollar figure. For comparative purposes and simplification of analyses, expense data were converted from physical units to dollar units per container. Yields, revenues and profits were calculated for one-tenth hectare units and were totaled over six years to show a cumulative dollar impact. | |
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