Irrigation Water Requirements of Green Pea

Abstract

Peas occupy an important place among vegetable crops in the submountainous region of India. Being a cool weather-loving crop, it occupies a place of prominence among winter vegetables in kandi area, because the kandi area is cooler as compared to other pea-growing regions of Punjab. But, due to various physiographic constraints, existing legal constraints and the present method of utilization, the utilizable water for irrigation is very limited. In the present day context, improvements in irrigation practices are needed to increase crop production and to sustain the productivity level. Therefore, drip irrigation is a most efficient method of irrigation, which optimizes the use of irrigation water by providing it uniformly and directly to the roots of the plants. Drip irrigation can be helpful in kandi area where water is scarce and very expensive to pump and the fields have uneven topography. Irrigation with drip may be more efficient in kandi area due to precise application of water because evaporation is reduced, runoff is reduced or eliminated, deep percolation is reduced, and irrigation uniformity is improved so it is no longer necessary to “over water” parts of a field to adequately irrigate the more difficult parts. The major drawback of the drip irrigation system is its high initial investment; however, cost can be recovered in a short span if proper water and nutrient management and design principles are followed. Among the various components of the drip irrigation system, the cost of the lateral is a major factor, which influence the total system cost. Any effort made to reduce the length of lateral per unit area will result in reduction of system cost. Many scientists reported that drip irrigation in vegetable crops is very economical by reducing the cost and water use by 50%, when these crops were planted in paired row patterns [1, 3]. With drip irrigation, precise application of nutrients is possible. Fertilizer costs and nitrate losses can be reduced and nutrient applications can be better timed to needs of a crop. The response of pea to the combined effect of drip with different levels of irrigation in conjunction with different nitrogen levels and their economic feasibility are not well known. The information on seasonal water requirement of pea crop under drip irrigation is not available.