**5. Conclusion and recommendations**

In the field, water regimes differently influence crop production and the value of water footprint for both heritage and modern crop cultivars, depending on the crop water use characteristics and field management. Pumpkin squash, Kamokamo, has a low water footprint, since it genetically uses water more sparingly, compared to all the other crop cultivars studied. In spite of this, the yield response to irrigation is highest in modern potato, while Kamokamo is comparable to Moe Moe and Buttercup squash and dark orange oca. It can be concluded that pumpkin squash requires only a small amount of water, in order to produce total fruit yield compared to potatoes and oca. Potatoes, except Tutaekuri, are more responsive to irrigation compared to pumpkin squash and oca. The yields and water footprint of heritage potato is greatly affected by cultivars used and water regimes, unlike the case of oca. It can be concluded that there are water footprint differences between cultivars of different crops and within crops in New Zealand. Knowledge of these water footprint differences can assist growers to manage their crops and water resources sparingly. It is therefore recommended that growers should be properly selecting crops and crop varieties according to their water availability, market price, properly schedule irrigation and nitrogen application as well as pests and disease control in order to reduce water footprint of growing their crops at field level.

It is recommended that farmers should strive to reduce water footprint either by avoidance of using two much of other inputs or by replacement of inefficient technologies by very efficient technologies as detailed below:

