Sun et al. (2026) Alternative to Groundwater Drip Irrigation for Tomatoes in Cold and Arid Regions of North China by Rainwater Harvesting from Greenhouse Film

⚠️ Warning: This summary was generated from the abstract only, as the full text was not available.

Identification

• Journal: Agronomy
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-01-05
• Authors: Mengmeng Sun, Jizong Zhang, Jiayi Qin, Huibin Li, Lifeng Zhang
• DOI: 10.3390/agronomy16010132

Research Groups

Not explicitly stated in the provided text, but the study was conducted in northwestern Hebei Province, China.

Short Summary

This study developed and evaluated an innovative rainwater harvesting and irrigation strategy for greenhouse tomato production in cold and arid North China, demonstrating its effectiveness in achieving high groundwater substitution rates and stable yields by mitigating drought and waterlogging risks.

Objective

• To simulate, analyze, design, and test a water-saving and high-yield project for rainwater-irrigated greenhouses, focusing on the water supply and production effects on tomatoes under different water supply scenarios, with the goal of replacing groundwater and ensuring stable yields in cold and arid regions.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Northwestern Hebei Province, China; specifically, a 480 m² greenhouse.
• Temporal Scale: Simulations from 1992 to 2023; field testing in 2024 and 2025.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Continuous simulation and Python modeling.
• Data sources: Natural rainfall conditions and actual rainfall scenarios.

Main Results

• Water supply satisfaction rate, water demand satisfaction rate, and water inventory volume of tomato fields increased with rainwater tank size, while the drought yield reduction rate decreased.
• For a 480 m² greenhouse with a 14.4 m³ rainwater tank:
  • Rainwater collected: 127.7 m³ in 2024 and 120.5 m³ in 2025.
  • Rainwater tank capacity was exceeded 8.3 times in 2024 and 8.0 times in 2025.
  • Groundwater replacement rate reached 93.8% in 2024 and 95.0% in 2025.
  • Average yield of small-fruited tomato ‘Beisi’ was 50,076.6 kg·hm⁻² in 2024 and 48,110.2 kg·hm⁻² in 2025, achieving 96.1% and 92.3% of the expected yield, respectively.
• The "greenhouse film–rainwater harvesting–groundwater replenishment" model successfully achieved a high groundwater substitution rate for greenhouse tomato production while ensuring stable yields by mitigating drought and waterlogging risks.

Contributions

• Development of an innovative "greenhouse film–rainwater harvesting–groundwater replenishment" irrigation model.
• Provides a replicable technical framework for sustainable agricultural water resource management in semi-arid areas.
• Offers critical theoretical and practical support for addressing water scarcity and ensuring food security under global climate change.

Funding

Not provided in the text.

Citation

@article{Sun2026Alternative,
  author = {Sun, Mengmeng and Zhang, Jizong and Qin, Jiayi and Li, Huibin and Zhang, Lifeng},
  title = {Alternative to Groundwater Drip Irrigation for Tomatoes in Cold and Arid Regions of North China by Rainwater Harvesting from Greenhouse Film},
  journal = {Agronomy},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.3390/agronomy16010132},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy16010132}
}