Abstract
•A spreadsheet model was developed to select vegetables planting dates.•The model takes heat units and water consumption into account.•The model is equipped with vegetables database and worldwide meteorological database of 12,215 stations.•The developed model’s efficiency found to be about 80% and 71% for two case studies compared to published data.•The developed model is freely available for public.
Vegetables planting dates affect yield and water consumption. This study aimed to develop a mathematical model to select the best date/duration to start sowing vegetables to maximize yield and minimize water use which increases the water use efficiency. The model was developed in an easy graphical interface that allows simple selection of the region and crop from dropdown lists, then to display the possible ranges with two degrees of suitability; one based of heat units, and the other avoids heat shocks additionally. The model is packed with a worldwide climatic database for 12,215 climatic stations, in addition to a set of 123 crops with different growing conditions. The model was verified to some published data in Maryland/USA and in Delta of Egypt using an efficiency indicator that considers all the results to reality matching states; like full matching, underestimation, and overestimation. The model’s average overall efficiency was 80% and 71% for the two case studies. The model is available for public, and sharing the results of testing is highly appreciated.