Response of tomato to varying levels of fertigation
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Date
2002
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Department of Agronomy, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara
Abstract
A field experiment was conducted during 2000-2001 at the Agricultural
Research Station, Mannuthy, Thrissur to find out growth and yield as well as water
use and nutrient relations of tomato, as influenced by different levels of fertigation
i.e. continuous nutrition through drip irrigation. The experiment consisted of
combinations of three levels of irrigation (0.3,0.6 and 0.9 PE) through drip system
and three levels of fertilizer (100, 50 and 150% recommended dose) supplied
through drip irrigation. The fertilizer nutrients were supplied in progressive
increments for sixty days and the fertigated treatments were mulched using black
HDPE sheet. A control treatment, which received 20 mm surface irrigation through
furrow method once in three days along with normal soil application of fertilizer
without mulch cover was also included to compare with fertigation treatments. The
experiment was laid out at randomised block design with three replications. The
tomato CV Shakthi was tried in the experiment.
The results revealed that the growth parameters viz., plant height, Leaf
Area Index (LAI) and ~eaf Area Duration (LAD) were higher in the fertigated
treatments than in the control crop. The respective values were 50.48 cm, 5.60 and
113.4 in case offertigated crops and 48.52 cm, 5.46 and 110.9 for the control crop,
when observed at final growth stage. The control crop had a significant rooting
pattern with higher vertical length (26.8 cm), lateral length (15 cm) and root dry
weight of (8.2 g) than the fertigated treatments which had the respective values of
18.65 cm, 11.00 cm and 3.9 g. The ferigated crop produced maximum fruit set of
56.5 per cent and 36 numbers of fruits plant" with mean yield of 31.51 t ha-I. The
respective values for the control crop were 42.6 per cent, 22 and 19.31 t ha" only.
The treatment which received 150 per cent fertilizer dose with 0.6 PE
irrigation gave a maximum yield of37.3 t ha-I which was 93 per cent more than the
control crop. This level of production was comparable with that of the crop
receiving 100 or 150 per cent recommended dose of fertilizers with irrigation at 0.9
PE through drip. The TSS content was not influenced by different treatments, but
higher acidic fruits were produced by the control crop. The fertigated crops in
general contained more nutrients in their biomass compared to control crop. The
highest NPK content in plant was recorded at 60 DAP and at the stage these
nutrient contents were 4.9,0.285 and 3.13 per cent in case offertigated crops and
the respective values in control crop were 4.0, 0.245 and 3.07 per cent. The fruit
cracking and bacterial wilt incidence were not affected by various treatments. But
72 per cent of control crop suffered by leaf curl virus disease but only 40 per cent,
in case of fertigated plants. The mean soil temperature upto 30 cm depth increased
"<-;-
under mulched conditions over control treatment during morning (7.;3<) 1ST) and
'L.C;;-
evening (2.:Mt 1ST) by 3.3°C and 2.6°C respectively. While control crop received
700 mm of water, the crop irrigated through the drip at 0.9, 0.6, 0.3 PE received
506, 358 and 210 mm of water. Field water use efficiency was the highest in the
treatment which received 100% fertilizer with 0.3 PE irrigation (14.62 kg fruit per
m-3 of water). As the irrigation levels reduced and fertilizer application increased
FWUE was increased. The moisture content of the soil was more at 15 cm depth
both at 15 and 30 cm radial distances, in all irrigation levels. The economic
analysis indicated that the crop under recommended dose of fertilizer with 0.9 PE
irrigation gave a maximum BC ratio of 1.92 followed by the crop raised under 150
per cent fertilizer dose with 0.6 PE irrigation (1.91). The saving of water through
respective treatments, when compared to control enabled 0.38 and 0.95 ha to be
additionally brought under irrigated tomato, if respective treatments were
employed.
The investigation led to the conclusion that fertigation is a sound
technology and produceshigh yields in tomato. If water is not a limiting factor,
adopt irrigation at 0.9 PE using 100 per cent recommended dose of fertilizer and if
water availability is - constrained, adopt irrigation at 0.6 PE using 150 per cent
recommended dose of fertilizer to reap rich harvest.
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Citation
171936