IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/agiwat/v187y2017icp47-56.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Financial assessment of adopting irrigation technology for plant-based regulated deficit irrigation scheduling in super high-density olive orchards

Author

Listed:
  • Egea, Gregorio
  • Fernández, José E.
  • Alcon, Francisco

Abstract

Hedgerow orchards with high plant densities, or super high-density (SHD) orchards, are considered to be amongst the most profitable management systems for most fruit-tree species. Regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) strategies are recommended for SHD olive orchards, especially when scheduled from automatic and continuous measurements of plant water stress. There is a lack of information, however, on the profitability of this approach. In this work we analysed the financial feasibility of using three different systems for monitoring water stress in an ‘Arbequina’ SHD olive orchard under a RDI strategy recommended for the experimental area (SW Spain). The systems were based on sap flow (SF), trunk diameter variation (TDV) and leaf turgor pressure (TP) related measurements. We first compared their equivalent annual cost (EAC), resulting the TP based technology as that with the greatest potential to be adopted by farmers. We then used Discounted Cash Flow Analysis (DCFA) to compare the financial feasibility of an RDI treatment scheduled from TP related measurements and providing 45% of the crop water needs (45RDITP) with both a similar treatment but scheduled with the crop coefficient approach (45RDICC) and a fully irrigated (FI) treatment. Our results from two irrigation seasons demonstrated that the 45RDI strategy guarantees the profitability of SHD olive orchards in the long-term, with both 45RDICC and 45RDITP showing positive Net Present Value and Internal Rate of Return above the interest on capital. All the financial indicators suggested higher financial performance of 45RDITP as compared to 45RDICC, but differences were not significant, likely because of the high variability among replicates. The financial impact of Common Agricultural Policy payments as well as varying olive oil and irrigation water prices on the irrigation treatments was discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Egea, Gregorio & Fernández, José E. & Alcon, Francisco, 2017. "Financial assessment of adopting irrigation technology for plant-based regulated deficit irrigation scheduling in super high-density olive orchards," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 187(C), pages 47-56.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:187:y:2017:i:c:p:47-56
    DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2017.03.008
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377417300884
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.agwat.2017.03.008?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Egea, Gregorio & González-Real, María M. & Baille, Alain & Nortes, Pedro A. & Sánchez-Bel, Paloma & Domingo, Rafael, 2009. "The effects of contrasted deficit irrigation strategies on the fruit growth and kernel quality of mature almond trees," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 96(11), pages 1605-1614, November.
    2. Moriana, Alfonso & Perez-Lopez, David & Gomez-Rico, Aurora & Salvador, Maria de los Desamparados & Olmedilla, Nicolas & Ribas, Francisco & Fregapane, Giuseppe, 2007. "Irrigation scheduling for traditional, low-density olive orchards: Water relations and influence on oil characteristics," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 171-179, January.
    3. María Borrego-Marín & Carlos Gutiérrez-Martín & Julio Berbel, 2016. "Estimation of Cost Recovery Ratio for Water Services Based on the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting for Water," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 30(2), pages 767-783, January.
    4. Fernández, J.E. & Rodriguez-Dominguez, C.M. & Perez-Martin, A. & Zimmermann, U. & Rüger, S. & Martín-Palomo, M.J. & Torres-Ruiz, J.M. & Cuevas, M.V. & Sann, C. & Ehrenberger, W. & Diaz-Espejo, A., 2011. "Online-monitoring of tree water stress in a hedgerow olive orchard using the leaf patch clamp pressure probe," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 100(1), pages 25-35.
    5. Padilla-Díaz, C.M. & Rodriguez-Dominguez, C.M. & Hernandez-Santana, V. & Perez-Martin, A. & Fernández, J.E., 2016. "Scheduling regulated deficit irrigation in a hedgerow olive orchard from leaf turgor pressure related measurements," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 164(P1), pages 28-37.
    6. María M. Borrego-Marín & Carlos Gutiérrez-Martín & Julio Berbel, 2016. "Estimation of Cost Recovery Ratio for Water Services Based on the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting for Water," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 30(2), pages 767-783, January.
    7. Rousseaux, M. Cecilia & Figuerola, Patricia I. & Correa-Tedesco, Guillermo & Searles, Peter S., 2009. "Seasonal variations in sap flow and soil evaporation in an olive (Olea europaea L.) grove under two irrigation regimes in an arid region of Argentina," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 96(6), pages 1037-1044, June.
    8. Skaggs, R. K., 2001. "Predicting drip irrigation use and adoption in a desert region," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 51(2), pages 125-142, October.
    9. Ramos, Alice F. & Santos, Francisco L., 2010. "Yield and olive oil characteristics of a low-density orchard (cv. Cordovil) subjected to different irrigation regimes," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 97(2), pages 363-373, February.
    10. Geerts, Sam & Raes, Dirk, 2009. "Deficit irrigation as an on-farm strategy to maximize crop water productivity in dry areas," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 96(9), pages 1275-1284, September.
    11. Alcon, Francisco & Tapsuwan, Sorada & Martínez-Paz, José M. & Brouwer, Roy & de Miguel, María D., 2014. "Forecasting deficit irrigation adoption using a mixed stakeholder assessment methodology," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 183-193.
    12. Laribi, A.I. & Palou, L. & Intrigliolo, D.S. & Nortes, P.A. & Rojas-Argudo, C. & Taberner, V. & Bartual, J. & Pérez-Gago, M.B., 2013. "Effect of sustained and regulated deficit irrigation on fruit quality of pomegranate cv. ‘Mollar de Elche’ at harvest and during cold storage," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 61-70.
    13. Cuevas, M.V. & Torres-Ruiz, J.M. & Álvarez, R. & Jiménez, M.D. & Cuerva, J. & Fernández, J.E., 2010. "Assessment of trunk diameter variation derived indices as water stress indicators in mature olive trees," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 97(9), pages 1293-1302, September.
    14. Maestre-Valero, J.F. & Martin-Gorriz, B. & Alarcón, J.J. & Nicolas, E. & Martinez-Alvarez, V., 2016. "Economic feasibility of implementing regulated deficit irrigation with reclaimed water in a grapefruit orchard," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 178(C), pages 119-125.
    15. Pérez-Pérez, J.G. & García, J. & Robles, J.M. & Botía, P., 2010. "Economic analysis of navel orange cv. 'Lane late' grown on two different drought-tolerant rootstocks under deficit irrigation in South-eastern Spain," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 97(1), pages 157-164, January.
    16. Moriana, A. & Girón, I.F. & Martín-Palomo, M.J. & Conejero, W. & Ortuño, M.F. & Torrecillas, A. & Moreno, F., 2010. "New approach for olive trees irrigation scheduling using trunk diameter sensors," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 97(11), pages 1822-1828, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Padilla-Díaz, C.M. & Rodriguez-Dominguez, C.M. & Hernandez-Santana, V. & Perez-Martin, A. & Fernandes, R.D.M. & Montero, A. & García, J.M. & Fernández, J.E., 2018. "Water status, gas exchange and crop performance in a super high density olive orchard under deficit irrigation scheduled from leaf turgor measurements," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 202(C), pages 241-252.
    2. Cabezas, J.M. & Ruiz-Ramos, M. & Soriano, M.A. & Santos, C. & Gabaldón-Leal, C. & Lorite, I.J., 2021. "Impact of climate change on economic components of Mediterranean olive orchards," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 248(C).
    3. Conceição, Nuno & Tezza, Luca & Häusler, Melanie & Lourenço, Sónia & Pacheco, Carlos A. & Ferreira, M. Isabel, 2017. "Three years of monitoring evapotranspiration components and crop and stress coefficients in a deficit irrigated intensive olive orchard," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 191(C), pages 138-152.
    4. Zuo, Qiting & Wu, Qingsong & Yu, Lei & Li, Yongping & Fan, Yurui, 2021. "Optimization of uncertain agricultural management considering the framework of water, energy and food," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 253(C).
    5. Chen, Yu & Zhang, Jian-Hua & Chen, Mo-Xian & Zhu, Fu-Yuan & Song, Tao, 2023. "Optimizing water conservation and utilization with a regulated deficit irrigation strategy in woody crops: A review," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 289(C).
    6. Fernández, J.E. & Alcon, F. & Diaz-Espejo, A. & Hernandez-Santana, V. & Cuevas, M.V., 2020. "Water use indicators and economic analysis for on-farm irrigation decision: A case study of a super high density olive tree orchard," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 237(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. García-Tejero, I.F. & Hernández, A. & Padilla-Díaz, C.M. & Diaz-Espejo, A. & Fernández, J.E, 2017. "Assessing plant water status in a hedgerow olive orchard from thermography at plant level," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 188(C), pages 50-60.
    2. Alcaras, L. Martín Agüero & Rousseaux, M. Cecilia & Searles, Peter S., 2016. "Responses of several soil and plant indicators to post-harvest regulated deficit irrigation in olive trees and their potential for irrigation scheduling," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 171(C), pages 10-20.
    3. Padilla-Díaz, C.M. & Rodriguez-Dominguez, C.M. & Hernandez-Santana, V. & Perez-Martin, A. & Fernández, J.E., 2016. "Scheduling regulated deficit irrigation in a hedgerow olive orchard from leaf turgor pressure related measurements," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 164(P1), pages 28-37.
    4. Chehab, Hechmi & Tekaya, Mariem & Mechri, Beligh & Jemai, Abdelmajid & Guiaa, Mohamed & Mahjoub, Zoubeir & Boujnah, Dalenda & Laamari, Salwa & Chihaoui, Badreddine & Zakhama, Houda & Hammami, Mohamed , 2017. "Effect of the Super Absorbent Polymer Stockosorb® on leaf turgor pressure, tree performance and oil quality of olive trees cv. Chemlali grown under field conditions in an arid region of Tunisia," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 192(C), pages 221-231.
    5. Fernández, J.E. & Alcon, F. & Diaz-Espejo, A. & Hernandez-Santana, V. & Cuevas, M.V., 2020. "Water use indicators and economic analysis for on-farm irrigation decision: A case study of a super high density olive tree orchard," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 237(C).
    6. Fernandes, R.D.M. & Egea, G. & Hernandez-Santana, V. & Diaz-Espejo, A. & Fernández, J.E. & Perez-Martin, A. & Cuevas, M.V., 2021. "Response of vegetative and fruit growth to the soil volume wetted by irrigation in a super-high-density olive orchard," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 258(C).
    7. Fernández, J.E., 2014. "Plant-based sensing to monitor water stress: Applicability to commercial orchards," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 99-109.
    8. Alcon, Francisco & Tapsuwan, Sorada & Martínez-Paz, José M. & Brouwer, Roy & de Miguel, María D., 2014. "Forecasting deficit irrigation adoption using a mixed stakeholder assessment methodology," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 183-193.
    9. Abdelfatah, Ashraf & Aranda, Xavier & Savé, Robert & de Herralde, Felicidad & Biel, Carmen, 2013. "Evaluation of the response of maximum daily shrinkage in young cherry trees submitted to water stress cycles in a greenhouse," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 150-158.
    10. Padilla-Díaz, C.M. & Rodriguez-Dominguez, C.M. & Hernandez-Santana, V. & Perez-Martin, A. & Fernandes, R.D.M. & Montero, A. & García, J.M. & Fernández, J.E., 2018. "Water status, gas exchange and crop performance in a super high density olive orchard under deficit irrigation scheduled from leaf turgor measurements," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 202(C), pages 241-252.
    11. Pérez-López, D. & Pérez-Rodríguez, J.M. & Moreno, M.M. & Prieto, M.H. & Ramírez-Santa-Pau, M. & Gijón, M.C. & Guerrero, J. & Moriana, A., 2013. "Influence of different cultivars–locations on maximum daily shrinkage indicators: Limits to the reference baseline approach," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 31-39.
    12. Silber, A. & Naor, A. & Israeli, Y. & Assouline, S., 2013. "Combined effect of irrigation regime and fruit load on the patterns of trunk-diameter variation of ‘Hass’ avocado at different phenological periods," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 87-94.
    13. Aureliano C. Malheiro & Mafalda Pires & Nuno Conceição & Ana M. Claro & Lia-Tânia Dinis & José Moutinho-Pereira, 2020. "Linking Sap Flow and Trunk Diameter Measurements to Assess Water Dynamics of Touriga-Nacional Grapevines Trained in Cordon and Guyot Systems," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-15, August.
    14. Vita Serman, Facundo & Orgaz, Francisco & Starobinsky, Gabriela & Capraro, Flavio & Fereres, Elias, 2021. "Water productivity and net profit of high-density olive orchards in San Juan, Argentina," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 252(C).
    15. Maestre-Valero, J.F. & Martin-Gorriz, B. & Nicolas, E. & Martinez-Mate, M.A. & Martinez-Alvarez, V., 2018. "Deficit irrigation with reclaimed water in a citrus orchard. Energy and greenhouse-gas emissions analysis," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 93-102.
    16. Morales-Sillero, A. & García, J.M. & Torres-Ruiz, J.M. & Montero, A. & Sánchez-Ortiz, A. & Fernández, J.E., 2013. "Is the productive performance of olive trees under localized irrigation affected by leaving some roots in drying soil?," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 79-92.
    17. Ahumada-Orellana, Luis E. & Ortega-Farías, Samuel & Searles, Peter S., 2018. "Olive oil quality response to irrigation cut-off strategies in a super-high density orchard," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 202(C), pages 81-88.
    18. Martín-Palomo, M.J. & Corell, M. & Andreu, L. & López-Moreno, Y.E. & Galindo, A. & Moriana, A., 2021. "Identification of water stress conditions in olive trees through frequencies of trunk growth rate," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 247(C).
    19. Ramos, Tiago B. & Darouich, Hanaa & Oliveira, Ana R. & Farzamian, Mohammad & Monteiro, Tomás & Castanheira, Nádia & Paz, Ana & Gonçalves, Maria C. & Pereira, Luís S., 2023. "Water use and soil water balance of Mediterranean tree crops assessed with the SIMDualKc model in orchards of southern Portugal," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 279(C).
    20. Martínez-Nicolás, J.J. & Galindo, A. & Griñán, I. & Rodríguez, P. & Cruz, Z.N. & Martínez-Font, R. & Carbonell-Barrachina, A.A. & Nouri, H. & Melgarejo, P., 2019. "Irrigation water saving during pomegranate flowering and fruit set period do not affect Wonderful and Mollar de Elche cultivars yield and fruit composition," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 226(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:187:y:2017:i:c:p:47-56. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/agwat .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.