Effect of Drip Fertigation with Nitrogen on Yield and Nutritive Value of Melon Cultivated on a Very Light Soil

Abstract

Most species of Cucurbitaceae respond favorably to irrigation, especially when combined with fertilizers. The effect of drip irrigation combined with nitrogen fertigation in melon grown on a very light soil in Central Poland, during 2013–2015, was evaluated. The field experimental design was a split-plot with four replications. Two factors were studied: (1) irrigation treatments applied in two combinations—drip irrigation + broadcast nitrogen fertilization (control), and drip irrigation + fertigation with nitrogen; (2) two cultivars—Melba and Seledyn. The total marketable yield of fruits, weight of a single fruit, and the concentration of dry matter, total sugars, monosaccharides, ascorbic acid, total carotenoids, and polyphenols were evaluated. Tested factors presented a significant effect both on the yield and nutritive value characteristics. Drip irrigation combined with nitrogen fertigation, comparing to the control, notably improved yields and nutritional value of fruits. Seledyn produced better yields than Melba. This study shows that on very light soil, with low water and nutrient retention capacity, melon should be drip-irrigated and nitrogen-fertigated to obtain the best cultivation results.

Nutritional Composition and Health Benefits of Various Botanical Types of Melon (Cucumis melo L.)

“…However, getting naturally sweet cultivars will make these fruits more acceptable to consumers, especially when the sweetness is complemented with nutrition and other organoleptic qualities. One of the recent reports also mentioned that among cultivated verities, irrigation and fertilizer influence both yield and the nutritional quality in terms of total sugar, polyphenols, carotenoids, and ascorbic acid content [17]. In addition, there was a difference in the quality of fruits and yield between grafted and non-grafted verities of muskmelon, as observed in one of the recent studies from the United States [28].…”

Crop Yield and Soil Quality Are Partners in a Sustainable Agricultural System

“…However, water soil availability is limited in light soils with low water-holding capacity and nutrient retention. In order to identify the best water and fertility conditions for melon production, Rolbiecki et al [10] examined the effect of drip irrigation plus nitrogen fertigation on the yield and the nutritional characteristics of fruits of two species of Cucurbitaceae compared to the effects of drip irrigation plus broadcast nitrogen fertilization. The method of drip irrigation-nitrogen fertigation proved to be the most suitable practice for the cultivation of Cucurbitaceae in very light soil in Poland.…”

Improving nitrogen contribution in maize post-tasseling using optimum management under mulch drip irrigation in the semiarid region of Northeast China

“…Exogenous N supply significantly affects crop yield and its components (Fois et al, 2009;Rolbiecki et al, 2021), and regulating N fertilizer delivery can further increase those effects (Overman and Scholtz, 1999). In maize, the effective number of panicles is unaffected by the N application method (Zheng et al, 2016), and thus, maize yield is determined by kernel number per ear and 1000-kernel weight.…”