Water availability and management are critical factors impacting plant growth. Extremes in water application, whether too little or too much, may reduce plant quality and marketability, may increase crop susceptibility to disease and insect pests, and may result in pollution of water resources if too much water is consistently applied.
Proper water usage provides a variety of benefits to growers including: 1) quality plant growth, 2) reduced nutrient loss, 3) reduced incidence of disease, 4) reduced incidence of insect pests, 5) reduced fertilizer and pesticide applications, and 6) reduced levels of agrichemical runoff. All of these benefits combine to save you money by reducing production costs.
Water quantity and quality are becoming a concern throughout the US. Population growth in various regions has resulted in increased human demand for water. In turn, these demands compete with agricultural and industrial demands. Water conservation and sustainable management practices will become legally defined requirements for future prosperity as these sectors compete for this limited resource. It is critical that nurseries implement irrigation practices that conserve and recycle water to prepare for this eventuality.
This and associated pages describe various issues surrounding nursery irrigation: