Developing innovative tools to manage risks associated with improving resource efficiency and fruit quality and reducing waste in substrate soft fruit production

更有效地利用包括水、化肥和杀虫剂在内的投入品，对英国所有农业企业未来的成功至关重要。尽管过度灌溉和高化肥投入可能导致营养生长过度、疾病易感性增加、适销性低、感官质量差和货架期短，但由于缺乏信息、适当的管理工具和作物监测系统，许多种植者不愿减少水(和化肥)投入。East Mling Research已经制定了科学的施肥策略，提高了资源利用效率，增加了适销对路的产量和水果质量，并减少了生产过程中的浪费。扩大这种精确施肥方法的规模，以便在许多公顷的高价值基质草莓上安全实施，需要在农场测量数据的细节上进行逐步改变。该项目财团(BerryGardens Growers Ltd、East Mling Research、Delta-T Devices Ltd、伊甸园灌溉咨询有限公司和技术研究中心有限公司)将开发在许多公顷高价值软果生产中实施、监测和管理精确施肥所需的新技术。将开发用于评估植物健康、量化作物质量和预测适销对路产量的成像工具，并针对暴露在不同程度生物和非生物胁迫下的商业草莓品种的生产力进行常规但密集的科学测量，并进行验证。对英国园艺业的好处将是提高资源利用效率，减少农药使用，改善产量预测，延长货架期，减少商店中的浪费，并为消费者提供更好的水果质量。

More efficient use of inputs including water, fertilisers and pesticides is vital to the future success of all UK agri-businesses. Although over-irrigation and high fertiliser inputs can lead to excessive vegetative growth, increased disease susceptibility, lower marketable yields, poor organoleptic quality and a short shelf-life, many growers are reluctant to reduce water (and fertiliser) inputs due to the lack of information, suitable management tools and crop monitoring systems. Scientifically-derived fertigation strategies have been developed at East Malling Research that improve resource use efficiency, increase marketable yields and fruit quality and reduce waste during production. Scaling-up this precision fertigation approach so that it can be implemented safely across many hectares of high-value substrate strawberries requires a step change in the detail of on-farm measurement data. The project consortium (BerryGardens Growers Ltd, East Malling Research, Delta-T Devices Ltd, Eden Irrigation Consultancy Ltd and the Technology Research Centre Ltd) will develop new technologies needed to implement, monitor and manage precision fertigation across many hectares of high value soft fruit production. Imaging tools to assess plant health, quantify crop quality and predict marketable yields will be developed and validated against conventional but intensive scientific measures of productivity in commercial strawberry varieties exposed to differing degrees of biotic and abiotic stresses. The benefits to the UK horticulture industry will be improved resource use efficiency, reduced pesticide use, improved yield predictions, extended shelf-life and reduced wastage in store and better fruit quality for consumers.