Irrigation Management in Christmas Tree Production

Knowing when and how much to irrigate can be a difficult decision.  Not irrigating enough or when needed can result in tree stress.  Too much irrigation can result in wasted water resources, increased root rot diseases, and loss of nutrients from the soil profile.  Dr. Younsuk Dong from Michigan State University will offer recommendations for improving irrigation water use efficiency; how uniform application of chemigation and irrigation scheduling would benefit for reducing the chance of run-off and leaching pesticide. Moreover, he will discuss the importance of a backflow preventer and RPZ valve for preventing contamination of our water sources with pesticides or chemicals.