Fruit yield and root system distribution of 'Tommy Atkins' mango under different irrigation regimes

Abstract

A B S T R A C TThis study aimed to evaluate the fruit yield and the distribution of 'Tommy Atkins' mango root system under different irrigation regimes in the semiarid region of Bahia. The experimental design was completely randomized with five treatments and three replicates: 1 -Irrigation supplying 100% of ETc in phases I, II and III; 2 -Regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) supplying 50% of ETc in phase I (beginning of flowering to early fruit growth); 3 -RDI supplying 50% ETc in phase II (start of expansion until the beginning of physiological maturity); 4 -RDI supplying 50% ETc in phase III (physiological mature fruits); 5 -No irrigation during all three phases. The regulated deficit irrigation supplying 50% of the ETc during phase I and II provided larger root length density of 'Tommy Atkins' mango. Regardless of management strategy, the roots were developed in all evaluated soil volume and the highest density is concentrated from 0.50 to 1.50 m distance from the trunk and in 0.20 to 0.90 m depth in the soil, that suggests this region to be the best place for fertilizer application as well for soil water sensor placement. The application of RDI during fruit set does not influence either root distribution or production. Root system and crop production is significantly reduced under no irrigation conditions. Produtividade e distribuição do sistema radicular da mangueira 'Tommy Atkins' sob diferentes regimes de irrigação R E S U M O Objetivou-se, com este trabalho, avaliar o rendimento de frutos e a distribuição do sistema radicular da mangueira 'Tommy Atkins' em diferentes regimes de irrigação no semiárido baiano. O delineamento experimental foi inteiramente casualizado com cinco tratamentos e três repetições: 1 -Irrigação suprindo 100% da ETc; 2 -Irrigação com déficit regulado (RDI) com 50% da ETc na fase I; 3 -RDI com 50% ETc na fase II; 4 -RDI com 50% ETc na fase III; 5 -Sem irrigação, nas fases: I (início da floração ao início da expansão dos frutos), II (início da expansão até início da maturação fisiológica) e na fase III (maturação fisiológica dos frutos). A irrigação com déficit hídrico controlado a 50% da ETc nas fases de pegamento e expansão dos frutos proporciona maior densidade de comprimento de raízes da mangueira 'Tommy Atkins' . Maior densidade de raízes independente da irrigação concentra de 0.50-1.50 m de distância a partir do tronco e 0.20-0.90 m de profundidade no solo, o que sugere ser o local mais adequado para aplicação de fertilizantes e posicionamento de sensor de umidade do solo. A aplicação da RDI durante a fase de maturação dos frutos não influencia na distribuição do sistema radicular ou produção. O sistema radicular e a produtividade são significativamente reduzidos quando em condição não irrigada.

Nutrient Contents in ‘Tommy Atkins’ Mango Leaves at Flowering and Fruiting Stages

“…The chemical characteristics of the Fluvic Neosol on the experiment site are listed in Tables 1 and 2 and were determined according to DEFELIPO & RIBEIRO (1997). Values are shown for four layers of 0.25 m, in a profile of 1 m of soil, where there is larger concentration of mango root system (SANTOS et al, 2014b). The physic-hydric soil characteristics are given in Table 3, determined according to EMBRAPA (1997) and the curve adjusted to the data pairs, water content in soil and tension in Figure 3.…”

'Tommy Atkins' mango yield and photosynthesis under water deficit in semiarid region of Bahia

“…Regulated deficit irrigation has been purposed in several crops, such as mango (Spreer et al, 2007;Silva et al, 2009;Cotrim et al, 2011Santos et al, 2014), pear (Marsal et al, 2008), grapevine (McCarthy, 2000;Ferreyra et al, 2002), peach (Gelly et al, 2004), loquat (Cuervas et al, 2007), melon (Fabeiro et al, 2002), olive (Iniesta et al, 2009), tomato (Savić et al, 2008), garlic (Cortés et al, 2003), onion (Olalla et al, 2004), beet (Fabeiro et al, 2003), bean and watermelon (González et al, 2009). These studies show water and energy saving, fruit quality improvement and yield increase.…”

Deficit Irrigation in Consecutive Cycles on Yield and Water Use Efficiency in ‘Tommy Atkins’ Mango Trees

“…In order to manage the irrigation at the orchard during the experiment, the daily irrigation run time was determined as Cotrim et al (2011), Santos et al ( , 2014aSantos et al ( , 2014b and . If it happened to rain, the amount of rain was subtracted from the ETc so as to find the irrigation run time.…”