There’s a lot going on in horticulture in the field of sustainable water management. But despite the many innovations of recent years and the increasing knowledge sharing in that area, there’s still room for improvement. In fact, in many countries water is still insufficiently high on the agenda and that needs to change.

Water is essential for horticulture. After all, plants cannot grow without water. During photosynthesis, water and CO2 combined with light and energy are converted into production and growth. As a grower, you want to have as much control as possible on this process in order to achieve the highest possible yield and quality. At the same time, the need to use water more efficiently is growing. Because water is not available to the same extent everywhere around the world and the sustainability aspect also plays a role. That brings challenges.

Lack of urgency
It is clear that these challenges are bigger in certain countries than in others. In the Netherlands, for example, there is a strong focus on the sustainable use of water and responsible application of fertilizers in horticulture, with an annual ‘WaterEvent’ organized by the sector itself, digital information platforms on water and a lot of water-related topics in trade magazines. The Dutch legislation for the recirculation of irrigation water is also very strict and future-oriented. Therefore, Dutch growers have already made substantial investments in purification installations and water treatment systems to not only provide the right amount of irrigation water and fertilizers to decrease the water-footprint by re-using as much as possible and avoid run-off in the environment. In many other countries, water is less high on the agenda and there is often a lack of urgency to invest in this area. While the need for these kinds of solutions will also increase in those countries in the next years. If not because of regulations, it will be driven by sustainable demands or saving resources and in the end, money.

Innovations to minimize the water footprint
For many years, Ridder and its partners have been working on innovative solutions to minimize the water footprint of nurseries and greenhouses. With a complete range of water management solutions, companies worldwide are helped in the field of fertigation, disinfection, and purification. Products for filling fertilizer tanks, dosing systems, UV disinfection and water treatment units. These solutions ensure, among other things, more efficient use of water and fertilizers and thus deliver significant cost savings. Also, they can help to reduce the environmental burden on our planet and reuse water in a smart way. With these innovative techniques, Ridder wants to contribute to meeting the global water challenges. But we also want to share knowledge all over the world. Webinars and meetings are being organized with dealers in many countries to clarify the urgency of sustainable water management. This knowledge transfer should lead to concrete steps being taken from the horticultural sector. Because ultimately the responsibility lies with the grower himself.

Talk to the experts
Are you looking for ways to make the growing process more efficient and a better and more responsible way to use resources like fertilizers and water? The water management experts of Ridder can help you pinpoint your specific problem and guide you through a solution for better water recirculation. They are happy to advise you. Talk to one of the experts and get, for example, advice on how to understand the variables to optimize crop growth, to decrease the risk of diseases, and how to make optimal use of resources. As well as this they can help you to keep track of rules and regulations and make your business future-proof in an ever-changing landscape. And above all, get the most out of your production per square meter, with the least amount of inputs.

Schedule your 1 on 1 with a water management expert from Ridder.