Enhancing eggplant productivity through irrigation scheduling regime and foliar spray with chitosan concentrates

Abstract EN

Two Field trials were carried out at Abo-Gensho village, hway District, Fayoum Governorate, Egypt, during two successive summer seasons of the 2017 and 2018 to study the effect of irrigation scheduling treatments andfoliar spray with chitosan concentrates on growth parameters, yield and its components and some water relations of eggplants cv.

black beauty.

Three irrigation scheduling treatments based on coefficients of cumulative pan evaporation (CPE), i.

e.

I₁: 1.1, I₂: 0.9 and I₃: 0.7 CPE with three chitosan concentrates, i.

e.

C₁: 0 (without addition, control), C₂: 40 and C₃: 80 mg l^-1 with three replications in a strip plot design.

Results indicated that the highest plant growth and eggplant fruits yield in both seasons were detected from a combination of irrigation at 1.1 CPE and spraying by 80 mg l^-1 as chitosan concentrate.

Further, it resulted in highest values for seasonal consumptive use (ET_C) as well as water use efficiency (WUE).

On other hand, it could be recommended the combination of irrigation at 0.9 CPE and applying 80 mg l^-1 as chitosan concentrate in Egypt for enhanced eggplant fruits yield especially under deficit irrigation water conditions.