A decision support system for field vegetable crops: focus on fertilization.

摘要

TASgroenten is a decision support system, developed in the margin of a joint European-Flemish rural development programme in the Westhoek-Middenkust region of Flanders, that deals with all aspects of field vegetable growing, and is therefore subdivided into different modules: Farm and Parcel Registration, Fertilization Management, Crop Protection, Cropping Systems and Irrigation. Within the Fertilization Management Module, the user is offered an operating procedure to set up, out of the amount of fertilizer needed, a fertilizer application scheme that takes into account the limitations imposed by both agricultural and ecological considerations. It supports, through the need for soil sample analysis results on the one hand and a resulting fertilizer recommendation for the main nutritive elements on the other hand, the notion of reasoned fertilization. A stepwise selection of fertilizers -- both organic and chemical -- leads to the presentation of a nutrient balance on a parcel level. By trying outseveral simulations, the program should be considered as a practical tool for planning and optimizing the fertilization. This improved knowledge about fertilization management will support the vegetable grower's notion of reasoned fertilization and thereby contribute to a more sustainable production.