Productivity of saffron production with intelligent irrigation system
Mohsen Pouyan said: Saffron is considered to be a valuable herb in the Khorasan region and is one of the most important export commodities of the country.
He added: “In recent years, droughts and low crop cultivation with high water requirements have led to an ever-increasing growth of safflower as a plant with low water requirements, especially in the provinces of Khorasan Razavi and southern Iran.
Ebrahimi, a faculty member of the Research Center for Medicinal Plants, Jahad University of South Khorasan, said: Despite the relatively low water requirement of saffron, applying moisture stress directly leads to reduced dry matter yields, and especially the economic performance of saffron.
Ebrahimi said: Lack of soil moisture is one of the most important factors in reducing the yield of saffron, and the growths of this plant are also strongly influenced by moisture and soil factors, although the plant saffron is resistant to dehydration but should not be under drought stress.
He said: “Therefore, the use of precise irrigation systems in saffron cultivation, in addition to saving water consumption, will also have a significant effect on increasing the yield of this valuable plant.
A member of the faculty of Khorasan Southeast Jahad Research Institute of Medicinal Herbs Research. According to the importance of the management of the value chain of agricultural products, the Institute of Information Technology, Jihad University, in collaboration with the Institute of Medicinal Plants of the University of Jihad and the Medicinal Herbs Research Institute of the Jihad University of Southern Khorasan in Iran They started installing and launching the first saffron irrigation system in southern Khorasan in Iran.
Ebrahimi said: “This pilot-based irrigation system, based on the research of the Medicinal Herbs of the Jihad University of Southern Khorasan, is able to process data on soil moisture and adapt it to meteorological data, when the farm needs saffron irrigation , Will automatically proceed to irrigation.
“Using this intelligent system, in addition to raising the irrigation efficiency and preventing plant exposure from drought stress, provides accurate information on the volatility and soil temperature, ambient radiation, wind speed, and ambient temperature.
A member of the faculty at the Khorasan University of Medical Sciences Herbarium Research Center said that the ability to access information and remote control of the system using radio waves and sending orders through computers, tablets, smartphones and SMS is one of the unique features of this system. In addition, saffron farms can be monitored and managed at a distance of a kilometer.
According to the Public Relations Department of Jihad University, Ebrahimi concluded: “Given the efforts made by the Ministry of Jihad-e-Agriculture in recent years to implement new irrigation systems in agricultural fields, including saffron farms, the integration of modern irrigation systems with this modern system Irrigation in saffron can play a key role in reducing water losses, increasing production efficiency, increasing saffron cultivation, improving saffron income and increasing the value of this strategic product in South Khorasan.
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