Water uptake management for some vegetable crops grown in hydroponic conditions

الملخص EN

This investigation is an attempt to clarify the effect of agriculture systems, irrigation duration time, drippers discharge and their interactions in green house to improve water use efficiency of some vegetable plants (tomatoes and sweet pepper) in an experimental greenhouse unit located at El- Sheikh Zuwayid Research station, North Sinai, Egypt.

The study was conducted in split-split-plot design with four replicates.

The treatments include: main plots as two agriculture systems in slope basin: gullies and pillow systems, sub-main plots as three daily irrigation duration times, i.e.; 12 hours continuous, 8 hours continuous and 8 hours intermittent as 4 hours twice and by a constant rate of 10 minute / hour and sub sub-main plots as two dripper discharges, i.e.; 8 and 4 liter / hour.

The results were analyzed statistically.

From the experiments, the following results were obtained: There is a positive effect on number of fruits, plant yield weight for both early and total yields, water use efficiency and investment ratio by cultivating in pillow and by decreasing irrigation duration times and drippers discharge, while negative effect has been found with water consumptive use values for tomatoes and sweet pepper plants.

All parameters show highly significant differences among used treatments.

The applied managements improved water uptake and water use efficiency as well.

The results of applying 4 hours twice daily comparing to 12 hours continuous irrigation application (which is the already used rate in the site) show water saving amounts by about 26.5 and 29.3 % for tomatoes and sweet pepper plants, respectively.

It is suggested to cultivate in pillow filled by peat-moss under green house with twice daily-irrigation application by times of 4 hours with 4 liter / hr dripper discharge under the conditions of El-Sheikh ZUWAYID.