Water management is one of the most critical pillars of sustainability, efficiency and profitability in the citrus sector, especially in water-stressed regions such as the Mediterranean basin.

For a citrus company like Evyan, water management goes far beyond simply watering: it is a comprehensive strategy of efficiency, technology and environmental responsibility.

Here is a summary of water management in the context of a citrus company:

Water Management Strategy in Citrus

Efficient water management is divided into three key areas: the implementation of irrigation technology, continuous monitoring, and the adoption of sustainable practices.

1. Field Efficiency: Irrigation Systems

The main objective is to deliver the exact amount of water the tree needs, at the precise moment, minimizing losses.

• Drip irrigation: This is the most common and efficient system. By applying water directly to the root zone of the tree, it drastically reduces losses due to evaporation and runoff, unlike sprinkler irrigation.
  • Self-compensating drippers: These are essential to ensure that all trees in a plot, regardless of its topography, receive the same volume of water.
• Fertigation: This is the application of fertilizers dissolved in irrigation water. This technique improves the efficiency of nutrient absorption, as they are delivered directly to the roots, reducing fertilizer waste and the risk of groundwater contamination.
• Micro-sprinkler or Subsurface Irrigation: Complementary options, where subsurface (buried) irrigation is the most efficient by eliminating almost all surface evaporation.

2. Digitization and Monitoring (Precision Irrigation)

Irrigation control is no longer manual; it is based on data to optimize every drop.

• Soil Moisture Sensors: The most critical tool. Capacitive probes or sensors are installed at different depths to measure the amount of water available to the plant. This allows irrigation only when necessary, avoiding both water deficits (water stress) and over-irrigation (which can cause root asphyxiation or nutrient leaching).
• Measuring Plant Water Stress: Tools (such as porometers) or sensors are used to measure the tree’s direct response (stomatal conductance) to water, adjusting irrigation to the actual physiological needs, especially in critical stages such as flowering and fruit set.
• Evapotranspiration (ETc) models: Use of climate data (temperature, radiation, wind) to calculate the amount of water that the plant and soil have lost, allowing irrigation to be programmed to replace that loss accurately.
• Automation: Systems that automatically manage irrigation times and volumes based on sensor readings, reducing human error.

3. Sustainability and Water Responsibility

High-quality water management implies responsibility towards the watershed and the community:

• Water Footprint Assessment: Measure and reduce total freshwater consumption per kilogram of citrus fruit produced.
• AWS (Alliance for Water Stewardship) Certification: This is the most advanced international standard for sustainable water management. Achieving AWS certification (Core, Gold, or Platinum levels) demonstrates that the company:
  • It has good water governance (it collaborates with other users in the basin).
  • Achieve a sustainable water balance (do not deplete the sources).
  • It maintains good water quality (minimizes contamination by nutrients or pesticides).
• Reuse and Recycling: Implement systems for the treatment and reuse of water in warehouses (e.g., water used in washing) to reduce resource extraction.

Water management not only saves a scarce resource, but also improves fruit quality (avoiding water stress that can reduce fruit size) and profitability (saving energy and fertilizer costs).