Conventional Furrow Research Articles

Performance Evaluation and Water Availability of Canal Irrigation Scheme in Punjab Pakistan

The supply of surface water by century-old infrastructure causes substantial water loss and triggers huge abstractions of groundwater, resulting in low irrigation efficiency. We evaluated the irrigation performance (application and conveyance efficiencies) and water availability (supply-demand) from the field to the Mungi Distributary canal level in Punjab, Pakistan. Between April–September 2019 and 2020, we monitored water delivery in the canal network, soil moisture content in cotton fields, and the canal and groundwater quality. The crops’ actual evapotranspiration was estimated using the AquaCrop model. We found conveyance efficiencies >90% for minor distributaries, 70–89% for watercourses, and ~75% for field ditches per kilometer. Field application efficiency was >90% for drip and ~35% for flood basin, whereas for raised-bed furrow, conventional furrow, and ridge-furrow irrigation methods, it varied between 44% and 83%. The deficits of canal water supply versus demand for cotton fields ranged from 45% to 73%, whereas the Mungi Distributary canal water showed a 68.6% and 19.8% shortfall in the April–September and October–March seasons of 2018/2019, respectively. The study suggests prioritizing improvements to field water application rather than canals with better water quality; additionally, surplus water from the Mungi canal in November and December could be stored for later use.

Determination of optimum irrigation scheduling for sorghum in Benna-Tsemay Woreda, Southern Ethiopia

Scarcity of water is the most severe constraint for sustainable development of agriculture in arid and semi-arid areas. Hence, novel irrigation water application systems need to be developed so that high crop yield and water productivity per unit of land can be increased. Thus, the field experiment was conducted with the objective of determining the effect of different soil moisture depletion levels on yield and water use efficiency of sorghum crop in Benna-Tsemay woreda at Enchete kebele, Southern Ethiopia. The experiment was conducted for two consecutive years (2019-2020). It was arranged in RCBD with three replications and treatment was rated for five levels of available soil moisture depletion (ASMD), where T1 = 60%, T2 = 80%, T3 = 100%, T4 = 120%, and T5 = 140% of ASMD. Analysis of variance has shown that yield and water use efficiency of sorghum crop was significantly (P < 0.05) affected by irrigation scheduling. As observed in this study, the most economically attractive and environmentally accepted for small scale farmers with tolerable cost of production and higher net benefit was obtained by application of T3 (100% ASMD) under conventional furrow irrigation system. Therefore, for this particular sorghum crop (teshale variety), it could be concluded that increased water saving and water productivity through irrigation at 100% ASMD under conventional furrow irrigation system can solve the problem of water shortage and would ensure the opportunity of further irrigation development in the study area and similar agro-ecology. Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. Tech. 11(2): 95-102, Dec 2021

Yield and quality response of turmeric (Curcuma longa) under drip irrigation and plastic mulch

Turmeric is an important spice crop and popularly cultivated for high economic return due its multifaceted use in culinary, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.Drip irrigation with mulching proved as excellent method for water conservation along with yield increase in may horticultural crops. Therefore, a study on crop water requirement for turmeric crop was conducted during 2017-2018 at IIT Kharagpur experimental field. The study mainly aimed to determine the optimum water requirement of turmeric crops and the economic feasibility of drip irrigation for turmeric cultivation with or without applying black plastic mulch. Reference evapotranspiration was estimated using the FAO-56 Penman-Monteith equation. The experiment consisted of eight treatments with three replication three irrigation factors (100% irrigation requirement through a drip (DI), 80% DI, 60% DI and conventional furrow irrigation (FI)) and two subfactors of black plastic mulch (PM) and no mulch (NM). The effect of different water and plastic treatments were studied for crop growth, yield, and quality response. The response of the crop to different treatments for the consecutive 2 years showed that 100% DI along with plastic mulch treatments resulted in better growth parameters (plant height, stem girth, functional leaves, corn weight, corn size, and corn yield). The maximum yield was recorded under treatment 80% DI along with PM (16.64 t/ha) with an 85% increase in yield as compared to furrow irrigation (8.99 t/ha). The crop growth response under 100% DI along PM gives statistically at par growth parameters and crop yield. The cost economics of turmeric crop under 80% DI along with PM showed highest gross income (Rs. 1,66,400) and benefit-cost ratio (2.88) followed by the 100% DI with a net profit of Rs. 1,00,347 and B.C. ratio of 2.73. Therefore, it may be concluded that drip irrigation at 80% water requirement wi th black polyethylene mulch can be the best suited moisture conserving technique for turmeric with better yield and economic return at sandy loam soil in West Bengal.

Dry sowing reduced durum wheat performance under irrigated conservation agriculture

• First long-term experiment on tillage and sowing irrigation effects in durum wheat. • Dry sowing on permanent beds reduced plant stands. • Low plant stands did not (always) result in low yields. • Tillage and sowing irrigation effects on yield small compared to weather. • Split N application increased grain N content compared to basal N application. Permanent raised beds (PB) are a conservation agriculture option for irrigated conditions that can improve soil quality, increase soil moisture conservation and stabilize yields compared to conventional furrow irrigation. In irrigated wheat ( Triticum sp.) production, wet sowing (i.e. applying irrigation before sowing) is most widely used. It allows pre-sowing weed control but reduces sowing time flexibility. Dry sowing, i.e. applying irrigation after sowing, reduces options for weed control but improves water use efficiency and sowing time flexibility. This study evaluated the performance of durum wheat ( Triticum durum L.) under conventionally tilled (CTB) and PB with wet and dry sowing in northwestern Mexico. In those four tillage-sowing irrigation environments (ENV), five nitrogen (N) fertilization treatments were tested. Plant stand, grain yield, and grain quality were measured for ten years and fertilizer-based N use efficiency indices were assessed in three years. Plant stand, wheat yield and quality were significantly affected by ENV. The lowest plant stand and yield were found in PB-Dry sowing. On average, only 54 plants m -2 emerged in PB-Dry whereas 159 plants m -2 emerged in CTB-Wet. Plant stand showed high yearly fluctuations, with plant stand in dry sowing favored by lower reference evapotranspiration, with CTB-Dry favored more by high minimum temperature and PB-Dry by high maximum temperature. Yield ranged between 4.20 and 7.94 t ha -1 . Yield in PB-Dry was on average 0.35 to 0.50 t ha -1 lower than in the remaining ENV, but positive interactions between year and dry sowing systems were associated with high minimum temperatures at germination and tillering. N fertilization management affected wheat quality, but not wheat yield, possibly due to high levels of soil mineral N available at sowing that were not measured in this study. Split application of N increased grain N content compared to basal N application. Research should address reduced plant stands with dry sowing in conservation agriculture to find management options that improve wheat emergence. Further efforts to optimize N fertilizer management in PB are required to improve grain quality components.

English

Water is a vital resource to sustain civilizations and pecuniary development and most importantly agriculture. Agriculture is the main contributor to the Ethiopian economy. The field experiment was conducted at Werer Agricultural Research center to evaluate the effects of drip and furrow irrigation under different irrigation levels on maize water use efficiency. The experiment was laid out in an RCBD split-plot arrangement where drip and furrow irrigations were assigned as the main plot and irrigation levels (100, 85, 70, and 55% of ETc) were assigned in the subplot arrangement with three blocks. The highest seasonal water requirement of maize was 701.7 mm at 100% ETc under conventional furrow irrigation which is considered as control while the lowest was 321.6 mm at 55% ETc under alternative furrow irrigation. The interaction effects of irrigation systems and irrigation levels have shown a highly significant (p<0.01) effect on water use efficiency. The highest (2.38 kg/m3) and the lowest (0.60kg/m3) water use efficiency were recorded from the plots treated with drip irrigation at 100% ETc and conventional furrow irrigation at 100% ETc treatments, respectively. In terms of water use efficiency and economic prominence, irrigating with a drip irrigation system with 100% ETc can be recommended for the production of maize in the study area. Key words: Agriculture, efficiency, irrigation, main plot, split plot.

Effect of alternate partial root-zone drying (PRD) on soil nitrogen availability to alfalfa

Available soil N is critical for N fertilizer management in crop production but the effects of alternate partial root-zone drying (PRD) on the dynamics of N and the impact of these effects on perennial crops such as alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) have not been evaluated. A field experiment was conducted to compare two irrigation modes (PRD and conventional furrow irrigation (CFI)) in combination with four irrigation levels (70% ETc (evapotranspiration), 85% ETc, 100% ETc, and 115% ETc). PRD improved the mineralization of organic matter to increase available N and the NO3−-N/NH4+-N ratio. Thus, it increased N uptake, water productivity and maintained seasonal forage yield. The combination of PRD and irrigation level (100% Etc) produced maximum NO3−-N stock. These results present an evaluation of how PRD influences soil N availability to N-fixing perennial crops.

A Review of Irrigation Water Management Research Achievements of JARC

Crop production in Ethiopia is largely dominated by rain-fed agriculture, which is suffered by climate change, due to occurrence of erratic rain falls. Therefore, it should be supplemented with irrigation; unless it is difficult to supply food for extremely growing country’s food demands. To alleviate such problems, Jimma irrigation research departments conducted a number of experiments to improve crop productivity as well as water use efficiency with minimum yield penalty at the expense of water saving at different climatic condition of southwestern Ethiopia. Therefore, the objective of this review is to analyze best research findings and technologies that were checked at different locations. Among promising results, deficit irrigation, inducing moisture stress at different growth stages of crops, supplemental irrigation, integrated use of mulching with deficit irrigation, mineral fertilization (Phosphorous and Nitrogen) vis irrigation, and irrigation scheduling are the major one. Accordingly, optimum yield of maize was reported when it was irrigated at alternate furrow method, is preferably good when irrigation amount is not less than 75% ETc, which saved about 50% of water over conventional furrows 100% ETc. Then the saved water used to irrigate additional piece of land. The other irrigation strategy is skipping irrigation in less sensitive stage of crops, the report comes from Haru ( Gimbi area) indicated that skipping irrigation during initial and late season had minimum impacts on maize yields, with 50% water saving as compared to all stage irrigated maize. In addition to reducing the amount of water significantly, the cover crop could play significant role in reducing soil evaporation. For instance, the experiment conducted at Haru showed that alternate furrow mulched with plastic mulch provided highest potato yield over non-mulched. Most of time, the fertilizer recommendation made for rain fed agriculture does not work for irrigated agriculture. The full irrigation (100% ETc) combined with 46 kg/ha phosphorous in soybean provided highest yield. However, increasing the amount of phosphorous fertilizer beyond this level did not increase the yield even if the field receives enough moisture. Finally, the future research direction should focus on water saving together with optimized fertilization through liquid water, and integrated with water harvesting in areas with limited water source either physical or economical. Keywords: Deficit Irrigation, Moisture Stress and Irrigation Scheduling DOI: 10.7176/JRDM/78-01 Publication date: August 31 st 2021

Response of Onion (Allium Cepa L,) to Different Irrigation Levels Under Conventional Furrow Irrigation With and Without Mulch at Melkassa , Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia

Water is a scarce resource in Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia and is a major limiting factor for crop production. Onion is one of the major economically important vegetable crops grown under irrigation in central rift valley. The field experiment was conducted at Melkasa agricultural research center during the dry season to identify conventional furrow irrigation and irrigation application level with and without mulch that maximizes productivity of onion per unit of water consumed and enhanced onion crop production. The experiment was carried out using RCB design having six treatments with three replications. The FAO’s recommended allowable Manageable depletion level of onion is 100%. In this study 75%, 100% recommended and 125% were tested. The analysis of variance for the result of the study indicated highly significant (P ≤ 0.05) differences for yield, yield components and WUE’s. The highest yield of 320.7 ton/ha was obtained from the 75%MAD with mulch which was not significantly (P ≤ 0.05) different to the 100%MAD irrigation level. In terms of irrigation and water use efficiency, 75%MAD irrigation level application gave the highest IWUE which was significantly different from all other treatment combinations. Yield and water use efficiency based comparison had shown that there was significant difference between the yield, CWUE, and IWUE obtained in the treatment. Therefore, it can be concluded that increased water saving and associated water productivity through the use of 75%MAD with Conventional furrow irrigation and mulch, can solve problem of water shortage which improve WUE without significant reduction of yield.75%MAD irrigation level water applied system and mulch appears to be a promising alternative for water conservation and labor saving with negligible trade-off in yield. Keywords: Furrow irrigation, MAD, Onion, Water productivity DOI: 10.7176/ALST/89-03 Publication date: August 31 st 2021

Effect of decision variables on yield and water productivity of onion under conventional furrow irrigation system in bako woreda, Ethiopia

Flow rate and furrow length are the main irrigation decision variables currently affecting yield and water productivity at farm level. Improper selection of these variables produces an over use of water and loss in crop production. The general objective was to investigate the effect of decision variables on yield and water productivity of onion under conventional furrow irrigation system, with specific objective to analyze the effect of flow rate, furrow length and their interaction on yield and water productivity of onion. The field experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design with factorial arrangement of three levels of flow rate (0.7, 0.98 and 1.3 L/S) and three levels of furrow length (25, 35 and 50 m) with three replications. Inflow out flow method was used to determine the infiltration characteristics of the soil and Irrigation depth was controlled by using 3-inch Parshall flume. The maximum non-erosive flow rate to the experimental site was fixed through design equation considering soil textural class and furrow bed slope. Effect of furrow length and flow rate on yield and water productivity of the onion were used for evaluation. Their analyses indicated that effect of furrow length and their interaction with flow rate on yield were not significant (p<0.05). However, the flow rate showed highly significant (p<0.01) effect on yield of onion. The ranges of mean yield gained from furrow length and flow rate were F1 (14.75 ton ha-1) to F3 (15.96 ton ha-1) and Q1 (13.59 ton ha-1) to Q3 (19.69 ton ha-1), respectively. The effect of furrow length on crop water use efficiency and field water use efficiency was not significant (p<0.05). However, the flow rate has showed highly significant (p<0.01) effect on crop water use efficiency and field water use efficiency. The range of mean crop water use efficiency and field water use efficiency from furrow length and flow rate were F1 (33.65 kg/ha/mm) to F3 (36.41 kg/ha/mm) and Q1 (30.99 kg/ha/mm) to Q3 (38.65kg/ha/mm) and F1 (2.06 kg/m3) to F3 (2.23 kg/m3) and Q1 (1.89 kg/m3) to Q3 (2.36 kg/m3), respectively. Therefore, it can be concluded that a furrow length of 50 m is suitable to use 1.3 L/S of flow rate for better onion yield and water productivity under similar soil type of study area.
 Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. Tech. 11(1): 92-100, June 2021

Partial Wetting of Root Zone to Enhance Furrow Irrigation Indices, Yield Responses and Economic Return Of Soybean الترطيب الجزئى لمنطقة الجذور لتحسين مؤشرات الرى بالخطوط واستجابة المحصول والعائد الاقتصادي لفول الصويا

This study was carried out in a private farm located in Gharbiya Governorate, the Nile Delta, Egypt. The study aimed to assess how far the alternative furrow application and deficit irrigation may improve irrigation indices and water productivity of Soybean. Two techniques of alternation were applied. The first is Standing Alternate furrow Irrigation (SAI), the second is Reciprocal Alternate furrow Irrigation (RAI). The two techniques were compared with Conventional furrow Irrigation (CI), at which, all furrows are conventionally irrigated per each irrigation (Control). Results revealed that irrigation requirements under both of (SAI) and (RAI) techniques s are significantly less than that with (CI). Surface runoff increased as the level of application increased. The significant difference was found only between (RAI) with the level of 50 % Etc. and the treatment of (CI) with the level of 100% Etc. The highest value of (Ea) was achieved with (RAI) and 75% ETc irrigation level while the lowest value was found with (CI) and 100% ETc irrigation level. The lowest values of actual ET were found (RAI) and 50% ETc irrigation level. Also, results indicated that produced yield of soybean varied significantly (P<0.05) and influenced by both irrigation techniques and application levels. Yield of soybean was depressed by about 12% under (SAI) with 50% ETc, compared with the treatment of (CI) and 100% ETc. It could be concluded that, the (RAI) and 75% ETc irrigation level is efficient management for soybean production without the risk of reduced grain yield under the experiment conditions.

Effects of Deficit Irrigation and Furrow Application Methods on Yield and Yield Components of Artemisia annua L. at Koka, Ethiopia

The study was conducted at Wondo genet Agricultural Research Center Koka Research Station, Ethiopia, 8°26’ N latitude, 39°02’ E longitude and 1602 m.a.s.l. for three consecutive years with the objectives to determine deficit irrigation levels and furrow irrigation water application techniques on yield and water productivity of Artemisia annua L. The experiment consists of three-level of deficit irrigation (100%, 75%, and 50% ETc), and three furrow irrigation water application techniques (alternate, fixed, and conventional furrow) were used in combination. The study revealed that the deficit levels and the furrow application techniques were statistically affected artemisia plant height, fresh leaf weight, fresh and dry biomass, essential yield, and water use efficiency during the whole years. The pooled mean result indicated that the maximum economic yields which are fresh leaf weight (7.11 t ha-1) and essential oil yield (16.06 kg ha-1) were obtained from the combined treatment of 100% ETc and conventional furrow application technique. However, the maximum water use efficiency (5.83 kg m-3) was recorded from a combined treatment of 50 % ETc and alternate furrow application technique. Based on the study for the maximum yield achievement in an area of no limited water resource 100 % ETc and conventional furrow application technique can be used. Whereas in an area where limited water resource is available the maximized water use efficiency can be obtained from 50% ETc and alternate furrow application technique at Koka and similar agro ecology.

Response of Maize (Zea mays L.) Yield under Drip and Furrow Irrigation at Different Irrigation Levels at werer, Middle awash, Ethiopia

Field experiment was conducted at Werer Agricultural Research center to evaluate the effects of drip and furrow irrigation under different irrigation levels on maize yield and water use efficiency. The experiment was laid out in split plot design where drip and furrow irrigations assigned as main plot and irrigation levels (100, 85, 70 and 55% of ETc) assigned in the sub plot arrangement with three blocks. The highest seasonal water requirement of maize was 701.7 mm at 100% ETc under conventional furrow irrigation which is considered as control while the lowest was 192.9 mm at 55% ETc under alternative furrow irrigation. The analysis of variance revealed that there was significant (p<0.05) difference in yield among treatments and the interaction effect of irrigation system and irrigation levels show highly significant (p<0.01) difference among treatments. The highest yield (16.7t/ha) was obtained from drip irrigation with 100% of ETc application and while the lowest (4.04 t/ha) was obtained from plots treated with alternative furrow irrigation 55% ETc treatment.

Maize Yield and Water Use Efficiency Under Different Irrigation Levels and Furrow Irrigation Methods in Semiarid, Tropical Region

Water scarcity is the major limiting factor of agricultural production and productivity in the central rift valley of Ethiopia. Best use of limited water is necessary through water conservation practices. Field experiments were conducted during the dry cropping seasons of 2016 and 2017 on clay loam soil at experimental farm of Melkassa Agricultural Research Centre to evaluate the impact of irrigated furrow methods and deficit irrigation applications on maize (Zea mays) yield and water use efficiency. The study involved three furrow irrigation methods (conventional, fixed, and alternate furrow irrigation) and three irrigation application levels (100%ETc, 75%ETc, and 50%ETc). Furrow irrigation system as main plot and irrigation levels as sub-plot were arranged in split plot design with three randomized complete blocks each year. Greatest yield was obtained under conventional furrow irrigation supplied with 100%ETc of water. Water use efficiency under the same treatment was lesser and shows no significant difference with fixed furrow irrigation and 50%ETc application. Greatest water use efficiency of maize was obtained from alternate furrow irrigation under 75%ETc application and showed no significant difference with 100%ETc application. However, grain yield reduction under 75%ETc applications was very much higher than 100%ETc application. Water saved as a result of 100ETc and 75%ETc applications were 50% and 62.5%, respectively. Therefore, scheduling irrigation time for maize in the central rift valley of Ethiopia and similar semiarid environments could be 100%ETc or 75%ETc application using alternate furrow irrigation. The 75%ETc application has an advantage over 100%ETc applications in saving more water and hence could be applied when water availability is severely limited.

Response of Onion (&amp;lt;i&amp;gt;Allium Cepa&amp;lt;/i&amp;gt; L,) to Different Irrigation Levels under Conventional Furrow Irrigation with and without Mulch at Melkassa, Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia

Water is a scarce resource in Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia and is a major limiting factor for crop production. Onion is one of the major economically important vegetable crops grown under irrigation in central rift valley. The field experiment was conducted at Melkasa agricultural research center during the dry season to identify conventional furrow irrigation and irrigation application level with and without mulch that maximizes productivity of onion per unit of water consumed and enhanced onion crop production. The experiment was carried out using RCB design having six treatments with three replications. The FAO’s recommended allowable Manageable depletion level of onion is 100%. In this study 75%, 100% recommended and 125% were tested. The analysis of variance for the result of the study indicated highly significant (P ≤ 0.05) differences for yield, yield components and WUE’s. The highest yield of 320.7 ton/ha was obtained from the 75% MAD with mulch which was not significantly (P≤0.05) different to the 100% MAD irrigation level. In terms of irrigation and water use efficiency, 75% MAD irrigation level application gave the highest IWUE which was significantly different from all other treatment combinations. Yield and water use efficiency based comparison had shown that there was significant difference between the yield, CWUE, and IWUE obtained in the treatment. Therefore, it can be concluded that increased water saving and associated water productivity through the use of 75% MAD with Conventional furrow irrigation and mulch, can solve problem of water shortage which improve WUE without significant reduction of yield. 75% MAD irrigation level water applied system and mulch appears to be a promising alternative for water conservation and labor saving with negligible trade-off in yield.

Effect of Furrow Irrigation Techniques and Deficit Irrigation Levels on Yield and Water Productivity of Onion (&amp;lt;i&amp;gt;Allium cepa l.&amp;lt;/i&amp;gt;) at Werer, Middle Awash Valley, Ethiopia

Deficit irrigation is one of the techniques used to enhance water productivity without significant yield loss in semiarid areas. A field experiment was conducted at Werer, Middle Awash Valley during the dry season of the 2017/18, 2018/19 and 2019/20 for three consecutive years to investigate the effects of deficit irrigation levels and furrow irrigation methods on onion yield and water productivity. Split plot design with three replications, in which the irrigation methods (Conventional, Fixed and Alternate Furrow) were assigned to the main plot and the three deficit levels (100% ETc, 75% ETc and 50% ETc), were in the sub-plot. Results indicate that marketable onion bulb yield and water productivity were highly affected by the interaction effect of furrow irrigation methods and irrigation levels (p<0.05). The highest bulb yield (17580.43 kg ha^-) and water productivity (11.79 kg/m³) were obtained from conventional furrow irrigation method with100% ETc and alternate furrow irrigation with 50% ETc respectively. Considering water saved and maximum yield, Onion irrigated by AFI 100% ETC resulted in 15% yield reduction with up to 50% irrigation water saving as compared to CFI 100% ETc. The present study suggests that, under water limiting conditions, adopting alternate furrow irrigation with 100% ETc can be an alternative to increase water productivity without significant yield reduction.

Effect of Deficit Irrigation under Different Furrow Irrigation Techniques on Cauliflower Yield and Water Productivity in Mardan, Pakistan

| In the dry region of the world, water scarcity is one of the emerging problems which is a severe constraint on food production. The available limited resources of water should be used economically and efficiently to sustain and improve agriculture productions. Based on actual crop requirements, irrigation techniques need improvement to get maximum yield with reduced irrigation. A field experiment was performed at Mardan region, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, during 2018-19 with the objectives to evaluate the effect of different furrow irrigation techniques and deficit irrigation on cauliflower yield and water use efficiency (WUE). Three furrow irrigation techniques; alternate furrow irrigation (AFI), fixed furrow irrigation (FFI), and conventional furrow irrigation (CFI) techniques with three levels of irrigation; full irrigation, 80% of full irrigation (DI20), and 60% of full irrigation (DI40) were carried out in randomized complete block design (CRBD) with three replications. Crop water requirement was calculated using CropWat software. Total four irrigations were applied during the growing period of cauliflower. Data on plant parameters were collected periodically and analyzed with statistical software (Statistix 10). The study indicated significant differences in yield and WUE. The highest yield 36.12 tons/ha was observed under CFI with 100% water application. Among the three furrow irrigation systems, AFI gave the highest WUE, while minimum WUE was associated with CFI. It can be concluded from this research study that AFI with full irrigation is the best method as compared to other furrow irrigation techniques to enhance WUE and to save water without a significant reduction in the yield of cauliflower.

Yield and Water Use Efficiency of Potato under Alternate Furrows and Deficit Irrigation

The benefits of water-saving techniques such as alternate furrow and deficit irrigations need to be explored to ensure food security for the ever-increasing population within the context of declining availability of irrigation water. In this regard, field experiments were conducted for 2 consecutive dry seasons in the semiarid region of southwestern Ethiopia and investigated the influence of alternate furrow irrigation method with different irrigation levels on the yield, yield components, water use efficiency, and profitability of potato production. The experiment comprised of 3 irrigation methods: (i) conventional furrow irrigation (CFI), (ii) alternate furrow irrigation (AFI), and (iii) fixed furrow irrigation (FFI) combined factorially with 3 irrigation regimes: (i) 100%, (ii) 75%, and (iii) 50% of the potato water requirement (ETC). The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design replicated thrice. Results revealed that seasonal irrigation water applied in alternate furrows was nearly half (170 mm) of the amount supplied in every furrow (331 mm). Despite the half reduction in the total amount of water, tuber (35.68 t ha−1) and total biomass (44.37 t ha−1) yields of potato in AFI did not significantly differ from CFI (34.84 and 45.35 t ha−1, respectively). Thus, AFI improved WUE by 49% compared to CFI. Irrigating potato using 75% of ETC produced tuber yield of 35.01 t ha−1, which was equivalent with 100% of ETC (35.18 t ha−1). Irrigating alternate furrows using 25% less ETC provided the highest net return of US$74.72 for every unit investment on labor for irrigating potato. In conclusion, irrigating alternate furrows using up to 25% less ETC saved water, provided comparable yield, and enhanced WUE and economic benefit. Therefore, farmers and experts are recommended to make change to AFI with 25% deficit irrigation in the study area and other regions with limited water for potato production to improve economic, environmental, and social performance of their irrigated systems.

Regulated Deficit Irrigation and Onion (Allium cepa L.) Yield Response on Water Productivity

Irrigation is the only solution to improve crop production and productivity thereby contributing towards food security, self-sufficiency and export market. The efficient use of water by irrigation system is becoming increasingly important in arid and semi-arid regions with limited water resources. The Experiment was conducted in Debre Zeit Agricultural Research Center with the Regulated Deficit Irrigation and Onion (Allium cepa L.) Yield Response on Water Productivity in Ethiopia during 2017/2018 cropping season. The objective of the experiment was identify the pin point of water stress threshold value of onion under deficit irrigation and investigate the effect of alternate, fixed and conventional furrow irrigation methods on crop yield and water productivity under deficit irrigation. The experimental treatments had three furrow irrigation methods, (alternate furrow irrigation (AFI), fixed furrow irrigation (FFI) and conventional furrow irrigation (CFI)) and two deficit irrigation levels of application, viz., 85 % ETc, and70 % ETc and a control irrigation of 100%ETc. The design of the experimental plot was split plot in RCBD arrangement and replicated three times. The three furrow irrigation methods were arranged as main plots and the deficit levels as sub plots a total of nine (9) treatment combinations. All collected data, were statistically analyzed using SAS 9.1 statistical software. The experimental study result showed that bulb diameter, unmarketable bulb yield and total bulb yield of onion were highly significance difference (p&lt;0.001) both in furrow irrigation methods and irrigation levels. Likewise diameter of onion also gave highest on CFI and 100%ETc irrigation water application level which is 6.69cm and 6.94cm respectively. According to the results obtained, the highest total yield was recorded for the treatment of 100%ETc irrigation water application and AFI of the furrow irrigation method 38947kgha -1 and 35920kgha -1 respectively however, the lowest total bulb yield of 30253kg ha -1 and 29135kg ha -1 were recorded when FFI system was applied and in 70%ETc of water applied. Bulb height of onion was highly significance difference (p&lt;0.001) only on deficit irrigation levels. On the other hand, marketable bulb yield, irrigation water use efficiency and crop water use efficiency were significance difference (P ≤ 0.05) by the interaction of furrow irrigation methods and deficit irrigation levels. The highest average marketable bulb yield of onion was obtained 42219kgha -1 on CFI with the combination of 100%ETc irrigation level in addition to this IWUE and CWUE both are recorded highest result on 70%ETc and AFI furrow irrigation method. Generally, among all irrigation treatments 70%ETc deficit irrigation level applied under AFI method was efficient in conserving significant irrigation water. Therefore, it could be concluded that, AFI can save a substantial amount of water and labor without highly reduction of onion yield and the lowest CWUE and IWUE was gave FFI followed by CFI. Keywords: Alternate furrow irrigation, Conventional furrow irrigation, Deficit irrigation, fixed furrow irrigation, Onion DOI: 10.7176/JRDM/71-02 Publication date: November 30 th 2020

Verification of the Efficiency of Alternate Furrow Irrigation on Amount of Water Productivity and Yield of Onion at Sekota Woreda

Efficient water use becomes an important issue in recent years because of the lack of available water resources in some areas is increasing and a serious problem. Globally and more particularly in developing Countries, changing water availability and quality is a complex problem, and management options are not easy. Therefore Partial rootzone drying is a practice of using irrigation to alternately wet and dry (at least) two spatially prescribed parts of the plant root system to simultaneously maintain plant water status at maximum water potential and control vegetative growth for seasonal plant development. The experiment was conducted on the 2017/2018 irrigation season at the irrigation scheme of Sekota woreda. Three irrigation methods alternating furrow irrigation (AFI), conventional furrow irrigation (CFI), and fixed furrow irrigation were verified on separate plots. The design of the experiment was RCBD with four farmers as replications. Each irrigation method was used a 75% amount of irrigation water for five days irrigation interval for verified irrigated onion. The results show that total irrigation water applied in the AFI and FFI treatment was roughly half (3038 m3) that applied to the CFI treatment (6078 m3). There was a significant reduction in irrigation water used with the AFI but a non-significant reduction on the onion yield production. The AFI water productivity was astatically significantly different from FFI and CFI. The water productivity obtained 4.05 kg m-3 with AFI and 3.16 kg m-3 with FFI which was nearly double the 2.15 kg m-3 with CFI. Alternate furrow irrigation (AFI) is gaining interest as a means of saving water while minimizing loss in crop production. In the AFI system, the total water used was half of the CFI system. Rather than using 6076 m3/ha of water for 1 hectare in the CFI system, it is possible to double the irrigated area to 2 hectares in the AFI system. The onion needs a high amount of irrigation water during the development stage, but in the FFI system, as half of the root stays dry throughout the growth period, continuous stress significantly reduces fresh bulb yield.

Subsurface drip irrigation reduces cadmium accumulation of pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) plants in upland soil

Given that Cd pollution in dry land has aroused wide public concern, numerous remediation technologies has been utilized, yet there are limited cost-effective techniques that do not affect the original planting patterns. Fortunately, irrigation management can meet these requirements, while the effects of irrigation practices on Cd uptake by crops in slightly Cd-polluted upland soil remain elusive. Here, we aimed to investigate how the irrigation methods altered the Cd availability in soil, Cd accumulation in plants, microorganism population in soil, root morphology, and enzyme activities in soil and plants. We examined three irrigation treatments - surface drip irrigation (DI), subsurface drip irrigation (SDI), alternate-rows irrigation (ARI), and the control conventional furrow irrigation (CFI). The results showed that SDI remarkably reduced Cd content in roots, shoots and fruits, increased yield, and improved root growth and activity in soil of 20–40 cm compared to other treatments, though the Cd concentration in rhizosphere was not decreased significantly. The microbial population and enzyme activities in rhizosphere and enzyme activities in leaves and roots in SDI and ARI were basically higher than DI and CFI. Therefore, SDI has the prominent potential to reduce Cd uptake by crops in upland soil polluted with low Cd.