How do soil properties and their spatial variability contribute to determine yield and value of crops?

Soil is a complex and multivariate medium which plays a central role in determining yield and value of produce in irrigated lands, particularly through its control of the amount of plant-available water. The latter depends largely on several soil characteristics (e.g. soil texture, pore size distribution, organic matter content, degree of structural development) combined in the hydraulic properties which mainly determine soil hydrological behaviour. On the other hand, both yield and value of produce may affect the value of water used for irrigation. This is particularly true in areas of water scarcity, such as most agricultural areas in the Mediterranean region. Hence, soil properties and their spatial variability play a crucial role in determining yield and produce and therefore the value and price of irrigation water.This paper aims to show alternative procedures in the quantification of irrigation benefits for calculating the weight of climate/soil/subsoil/crop system in water price formation, focussing on a procedure to take it into account.