by Lissette Ramirez, Product Manager
Happy New Year! Welcome to the first issue of Senninger’s Insights from the Field.
Every quarter, we’ll be sharing trends and ideas from around the world relating to irrigation and other relevant agricultural practices. You may discover some interesting techniques that you were not aware of and might be applicable in your operation.
When we began 2020, no one knew that it would be a transformative year. As the way we interact, travel and do business changed, the following remained constant: producers of food and fiber are essential to the world economy and society.
Without the dedication and perseverance to keep the food supply chain up and running, the world would have faced global shortages. Even though we cannot control pandemics, climate or market supply/demand cycle, we can control how we respond when faced with a challenge.
A global pandemic wasn’t the only challenge farmers dealt with in 2020.
Late spring frosts affected apple producers in the European Union and the United States. Western Europe experienced a prolonged warming trend that started an early bloom and bud break on their apple orchards. These early spring flushes are always susceptible to frost events and can drastically reduce the yield for the season. North America also experienced frost events that extended well beyond petal drop and harmed production on over 70% of the acres in the Northeast US.
Frost damage occurs and is affected by air movement, humidity, the number of hours below the critical temperature, tree health, soil moisture, moisture on the bud surface, and a farmer’s chosen frost control method. There are several frost control methods such as heaters, wind machines, helicopters, sprinklers, surface irrigation, foam insulation, foggers, and combinations of the above. Sprinkler irrigation is generally the least expensive and most effective method in a variety of regions.
In the past, when protecting crops from frost damage with overhead sprinkler systems, orchard growers relied on impact sprinklers to secure their crops. However, impact sprinklers require a high water volume and pressure to operate and don’t offer instantaneous application over their wetted area. That’s why farmers are switching to Senninger Xcel-Wobbler sprinklers. This sprinkler uses less pressure (~15 psi/1 bar) than traditional impact sprinklers, which reduces pumping costs. Even though it uses less pressure, the Xcel-Wobbler sprinkler’s droplet size and distribution pattern offer full coverage of the tender foliage and bloom, producing thorough ice coverage.
A great example of frost protection over apples in Western Europe can be reviewed on our website.
Despite the uncertainty and challenges of 2020, the new year creates opportunities to grow and support farmers with better application products and methods. Senninger will continue to do our part and provide the industry with the latest irrigation technology.
Sources: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO): Frost Protection. Fundamentals, practice, and economics. Chapter 7
