{"id":8443,"date":"2026-08-19T08:54:49","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T06:54:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hernandorena.com\/?p=8443"},"modified":"2026-08-19T08:56:32","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T06:56:32","slug":"viveros-hernandorena-launches-a-research-project-with-cide-to-optimize-water-management-in-carob-cultivation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hernandorena.com\/en\/viveros-hernandorena-launches-a-research-project-with-cide-to-optimize-water-management-in-carob-cultivation\/","title":{"rendered":"Viveros Hernandorena launches a research project with CIDE to optimize water management in carob cultivation"},"content":{"rendered":"
The company strengthens its commitment to applied research to advance toward a more technical, efficient, and professional cultivation model<\/div>\n
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Viveros Hernandorena has launched, together with the Desertification Research Center (CIDE, CSIC\u2013UV\u2013GVA), a research project fully funded by the company to study how deficit irrigation, water stress, and salinity affect carob trees. The goal is to transfer rigorous knowledge to the sector and accelerate the modernization of a crop that is gaining agronomic and economic relevance.<\/p>\n

This initiative is part of the Carob Tree Project, the program through which Viveros Hernandorena has been working since 2011 to professionalize carob cultivation by improving plant material, modernizing agronomic management, and generating technical knowledge.<\/p>\n

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For more than a decade, the company has focused its efforts on addressing the main challenges of the crop: first, stabilizing the production of grafted plants \u2014now with a 60\u201365% success rate\u2014 and later evaluating, across its 3 hectares of experimental farms, different plant types, planting dates, pruning strategies, irrigation, nutrition, and pest control.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThese trials have allowed us to move toward a more intensive and professional cultivation model, but they have also highlighted the need to deepen our understanding of water management in order to achieve fully profitable yields,\u201d explains Fernando Hernandorena Ribas, the company\u2019s manager.<\/p>\n

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Currently, the experimental farms reach yields of around 10 tons per hectare, but the goal is to reach 15 t\/ha \u2014an increase that requires precise knowledge of how the carob tree responds to deficit irrigation, water stress, and salinity.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter more than a decade of progress in grafted plant production and crop management, we are now taking a decisive step by promoting specific scientific research on the water needs of the carob tree and its behavior under stress conditions,\u201d adds Fernando Hernandorena.<\/p>\n

A Research Project Led by CIDE<\/strong><\/p>\n

The project is led by Juan Miguel Ram\u00edrez Cuesta, CSIC researcher at CIDE, and includes the participation of Diego Intrigliolo Molina, the current director of the center. Both lead this study with the aim of defining water\u2011management strategies and varietal selection criteria that maximize production and water\u2011use efficiency. The research also involves the University of Bari (Italy), with the participation of professors Camposeo and Maldera, expanding both the geographic scope and the international relevance of the results.<\/p>\n

According to Intrigliolo, the scientific interest is clear: \u201cAlthough the carob tree is a drought\u2011tolerant crop, when grown intensively it has specific water requirements \u2014an aspect that has not been studied in depth until now.\u201d<\/p>\n

The long\u2011term study is structured around three main lines: determining the water needs of carob trees in professional cultivation through production functions that identify the agronomic and economic optimum; evaluating the crop\u2019s response to deficit irrigation to design sustainable intensification strategies; and studying salinity tolerance in varieties and rootstocks, a key factor in areas where the limitation is not only water quantity but also water quality.<\/p>\n

First Results<\/strong><\/p>\n

The project began in March and combines an initial phase of controlled\u2011environment trials with a second phase of validation under commercial field conditions. In this first stage, the CIDE team has established experimental plantations to evaluate the physiological response of different varieties and rootstocks under various irrigation regimes and salinity levels. \u201cWe are still at the beginning, but we can already clearly see that not all varieties and rootstocks behave the same under water restriction,\u201d Intrigliolo explains. This information will help guide growers toward the most suitable plant material depending on water availability in each area.<\/p>\n

In parallel, CIDE and Viveros Hernandorena are preparing the next stage of the study, which will take place in the company\u2019s adult orchards, where the trees already have sufficient development to evaluate the crop\u2019s response under real conditions.<\/p>\n

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Impact on the Sector<\/strong><\/p>\n

All this knowledge will enable Viveros Hernandorena to offer technical recommendations based on scientific evidence \u2014a shift that represents a paradigm change in the nursery sector. \u201cIn addition to providing high\u2011quality plants, we want to transfer knowledge to growers,\u201d emphasizes Fernando Hernandorena.<\/p>\n

This research project, led and fully funded by Viveros Hernandorena, reinforces the company\u2019s commitment to generating and transferring technical knowledge that supports the professionalization of carob cultivation.<\/p>\n

With this line of work, Viveros Hernandorena continues advancing toward its goal of consolidating a modern, efficient, and profitable cultivation model, positioning the carob tree as a solid and sustainable alternative for Mediterranean regions.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The company strengthens its commitment to applied research to advance toward a more technical, efficient, and professional cultivation model Viveros Hernandorena has launched, together with the Desertification Research Center (CIDE, CSIC\u2013UV\u2013GVA), a research project fully funded by the company to study how deficit irrigation, water stress, and salinity affect carob trees. The goal is to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":6029,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[424,464,463],"class_list":["post-8443","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","tag-carob-tree","tag-carubo","tag-cide","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t