Implications of Water Stress and Organic Fertilization on Growth, Yield and Water Productivity of Cauliflower (Brassica oleracea Var. Botrytis, L.)

Abstract

Shortage of available water resources has become a critical problem facing vegetable production in Egypt. So, the aim of this study is to decrease the level of irrigation water: 85 and 70% of full irrigation requirements (FI), versus 100% FI in presence of four compost rates (0, 4.8, 9.6 and 14.4 m 3 ha -1 ). Results show that, deficit irrigation levels caused considerable reductions in many growth parameters and the total yield. But we can save 15% of the water used with an average total yield of 39.15 Mgha -1 and a yield shortage of 14.1% in both seasons. This is an acceptable level of decrease in view of the 36.3 Mgha -1 national average according to the 2017 Egypt's Agricultural Statistics. The application of compost at different rates increases the growth, quality and quantity of cauliflower at different water deficiency levels. The highest application rate of compost + 100% of FI recorded the highest values in the characteristics of vegetative growth, total yield and NPK content in curd. The treatment 85% of FI + 14.4 m 3 compost / ha came in the second rank recording significant differences with all other treatments in both seasons. The results also indicate that the water productivity in the case of 85% FI is significantly equal to the water productivity in case of 100% of FI in both seasons. It is; therefore, concluded that compost applications minimized the negative implications of deficient irrigation on cauliflower production.

Study of Varied Drip Irrigation and Fertigation Regimes on Curd Yield and Water Productivity of Cauliflower

“…Such an effect was responsible for significant improvement in curd diameter. These results were in conformity with the observations of Sohail et al [7] and Shams and Farag [8].…”

“…This could be attributed to availability of ample soil moisture with higher uptake of nutrients led to enhanced photosynthetic area, cell metabolism and cell enlargement resulted into better partitioning of dry matter produced and finally induced the increased curd depth. These results were in conformity with the observations of Shams and Farag, [8].…”

Determination of evapotranspiration and crop coefficient for cauliflower at Paranánorthwest region

“…When water is applied in quantity demanded by the crop, the yield tends to be maximum (if the other factors are adequately supplied), thus, the water use efficiency (LÓPEZ-URREA et al, 2009). Wrongly estimating the Kc, it can overestimate the value and increase the use of water, decreasing production efficiency and change post-harvest aspects of the product (HACHMANN et al, 2019;SHAMS;FARAG, 2019;WENNECK et al, 2021).…”

Effects of Irrigation Method and Water Flow Rate on Irrigation Performance, Soil Salinity, Yield, and Water Productivity of Cauliflower

“…With an average total yield of 39.15 Mg ha −1 and a yield shortage of 14.1% of cauliflower (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis, L.) crop, nearly 15% of the water used in Egypt can be saved using this irrigation method [34].…”