GO INV-DSS designs a computer tool to adjust doses of irrigation and fertiliser in greenhouses

The main objective of the GO INV-DSS Operational Group is to develop a computer tool, based on crop demand, to determine the irrigation and fertigation needs of fruits and vegetables in Mediterranean greenhouses. This new initiative will be presented at the 5th Datagri Forum, which will take place on Thursday 10 and Friday 11 November in El Ejido (Almería).

The name, INV-DSS is an abbreviation of ‘Decision Support System’. The tool will have a mobile app version and will be designed to be intuitive and easy to use by technicians and farmers so as to facilitate its use.

The INV-DSS tool will be made up of models and algorithms for calculating the irrigation and fertilisation dose in real time. The results will be compatible with the use of several monitoring techniques that measure the hydric and nutritional status of the soil and plant and that, in combination with the models, will allow a precise adjustment to the particular cultivation conditions of each farm.

This operational group is made up of COEXPHAL (Association of Producer Organisations of the province of Almería), the Cajamar Foundation (the technical coordinators of the project), and beneficiary members such as the University of Almería (UAL), Hispatec and the second-tier Andalusian cooperative UNICA Group.

Financing

The project focuses on Operation 16.1.2: Aid for operational groups of the European Innovation Association (AEI) of the Andalusian PDR. The total budget for the project amounts to €262,252.28 and is 90% financed by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) of the European Union, and 10% by the Junta de Andalucía, through the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development and managed by the General Directorate of European Funds.