EFFECT OF DEFICIT IRRIGATION AND MULCH PRACTICES ON YIELD AND YIELD RESPONSE FACTOR OF TOMATO AT KANO RIVER IRRIGATION PROJECT (KRIP), KANO-NIGERIA
Publication Date : 10/09/2019
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In this research, the effects of deficit irrigation and mulching practices in relation to crop yield and yield response factor (Ky) of tomato (UC 82B variety) examined at Kano River Irrigation Project (KRIP), Kadawa Kano. The experiments comprised of four levels of water application depths (40, 60, 80, and 100% of weekly reference evapotranspiration) and four levels of mulching; No-Mulch (NM), rice-straw-mulch (RSM), wood-shaving-mulch (WSM) and white-polyethylene-mulch (WPM). The total mean yields ranged from 6.98 to 23.67 t/ha with an annual averages of 11.48, 18.48, 11.98 and13.33 t/ha for NM, RSM, WSM and WPM treatments respectively. It was observed that both RSM and WPM treatments has low Ky values of 0.57 and -0.13 respectively except WSM (1.1) as compared with NM treatment of Ky value of 0.85; this implies that the proportional decrease in yield under the NM condition was much higher than under RSM and WPM condition. The statistical analysis shows that the effect of various levels of irrigation and mulching practices on yield were found to be highly significant (**) at 5% level of significance with high mean value of 15.84t/ha and 18.48t/ha obtained at I80 and RSM respectively. This means that both deficit irrigation and mulching practices has significant effect on the yield of tomato in the study area. However, it was statistically concluded that the best level of irrigating tomato at the experimental site is at I80 (15.84 t/ha) and this correspond to mulching practice of RSM (18.48t/ha) and therefore, tomato producers should adopt water application at I80 and use of RSM as a way of suitable deficit irrigation and water conservation respectively.
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