Abstract
Cultivation environment can be effective on the degree of limitations in crop evapotranspiration and yield, as a result of water shortage and salinity. The purpose of this study was to determine and compare the impact of different irrigation regimes (daily, weekly and every two weeks) combined with different water salinities (0.8, 2.5, 5.0 and, 7.0 dS m-1) on eggplant yield (Y) and evapotranspiration (ETc) in outdoor and greenhouse cultivation. Daily ETc values were measured by diurnal weighting of microlysimeters throughout the growing season (from May 19th to September 5th, 2012 and June 1st to September 22nd, 2013) placed in a plastic greenhouse and outdoor basins. Measurements showed apparent variations between different irrigation regimes×water salinity treatments, during the early growing season in both years. Both water deficit and salinity factors had significant effects on ETc, ECe, Y, fruit diameter and shoot dry weight in both environments. The applicability of Doorenbos-Kassam linear crop-water production function along with Maas-Hoffman salt tolerance model was investigated in the greenhouse and outdoor conditions. The Ky coefficient obtained for outdoor and greenhouse eggplants treatments were 0.97 and 1.03 in the first year and 0.91 and 0.93 in the second year, respectively. Higher sensitivity of greenhouse eggplants to salinity was later demonstrated for both years, obtaining higher values of b and lower values of ECethreshold in the greenhouse eggplants.
Highlights
One necessity for efficient irrigation, with minimum percolation, runoff losses and environmental pollution, is the knowledge of consumption use of crops or their evapotranspiration
Evapotranspiration measurements for outdoor and greenhouse conditions are shown in Figure 2, respectively
The results indicate that reductions in daily ETc values due to salinity were more significant in outdoor conditions than greenhouse ones during both years of experiment
Summary
One necessity for efficient irrigation, with minimum percolation, runoff losses and environmental pollution, is the knowledge of consumption use of crops or their evapotranspiration. Soil water shortage and salinity lowers the potential energy of water and bounds it by capillary and absorptive forces to the soil matrix. This may result in scanty plant growth, reduction of water uptake and therewith significant ETc and yield limitations. The studies for accurate estimations of water consumption to save water, gain importance (Oweis et al, 2000; Li et al, 2001; Fabeiro et al, 2001). More studies are still needed for deficit irrigation of vegetables (Chartzoulakis and Drosos, 1995; Mendezr, 1987, Mannini and Gallina, 1996)
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