Determining Water Stress and Varying Irrigation Regimes on Spinach (Spinacea oleracea L.) Growth Performance

Abstract

Water is essential for the crops’ growth. Scarcity in water will lead to water stress. It is vital to manage irrigation in crops to avoid water stress. Leafy vegetables, such as spinach (Spinacea oleracea L.), require higher water demand than other vegetables. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the growth of spinach grown under various irrigation regimes and to determine at which irrigation set is the most suitable one to avoid water stress. Three irrigation treatments were applied, (T0) common practice (control), (T1) water matric potential = 30centibars, and (T2) water matric potential = 60centibars, measured for 60 days. The treatments were arranged in Complete Randomized Design (CRD) with four replications. There were significant differences to the irrigation treatments for plant height, number of root length including the biomass of spinach. T0 was found to be the right rate of water irrigation levels for spinach growth that was watering spinach twice a day until soil was wet. Spinach also can tolerate to mild water stress which was at 30centibars but water set at 60centibars will cause water stress. The highest spinach yield was achieved with adequate water supply, while yield was lower at lower water irrigation levels.