The Effect of Deficit Irrigation and Regulated Deficit Irrigation on Yield and Water Productivity of the Watermelon

آب و خاک

Volume 38, Issue 5 - Serial Number 97, November and December 2024, Pages 590-575   

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: 10.22067/jsw.2024.89774.1436

Authors

N. Bahremand¹; H. Aroiee^{* 1}; A. Aien²

¹, Department of Horticultural Science and Landscape Architecture, Faculty of Agriculture, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran

²Research Department of Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences, Research and Education Center of Agriculture and Natural Resources in the South of Kerman Province, Jiroft, Iran

Abstract

Introduction
Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is a widely recognized product with high demand, nutritional value, and export potential worldwide. Since the ultimate goal of agricultural production systems is to maximize plant yield, providing sufficient water to the plant is one of the most critical factors influencing yield. Therefore, investigating the effects of water limitation is an essential and undeniable necessity. On the other hand, deficit irrigation has been introduced as an approach to increase water productivity. Therefore, it is essential to consider the effects of this water-saving method on plant production, which highlights the need for further research. Deficit irrigation involves supplying only a portion of the plant's water requirements, while regulated deficit irrigation is a specific type of deficit irrigation that can be applied in various ways, such as irrigation based on growth stages, or allocating water to stages that are more sensitive to drought. It is important to recognize that plant response to water deficit depends on several factors, including climatic conditions, plant type, the intensity and method of deficit irrigation application, soil condition, and management practices.
 
Materials and Methods
In order to determine the effect of deficit irrigation and regulated deficit irrigation on yield and water productivity of the watermelon, an experiment in the form of randomized complete blocks with 8 treatments including three irrigation levels of 100, 70 and 50 % of the plant's water requirement (evapotranspiration estimated by the FAO-Penman-Monteith method) and 5 regulated deficit irrigation levels including 50% of the water requirement in the stages of seedling, vine, flowering, fruit expansion and fruit maturity were carried out with three replications under black plastic mulch, during 2020-2022, in the Research and Education Center of Agriculture and Natural Resources in the south of Kerman province. Irrigation as the main plot at three levels of 100, 70 and 50% of water requirement and mulching at three levels of crushed date palm leaf, black plastic and no mulch, as the sub-plot, were considered. Crimson B 34 watermelon seeds produced by Seminis company, were planted on January 2021, in plots with the size of 13.5 × 7 m, on furrows and ridges planting system (the width of furrows and ridges were 0.5 and 4 meters, respectively). After planting, bow-shaped wires were put on the planting rows and a transparent plastic was placed as a tunnel on them. In the first year, the total depth of the irrigations in aforesaid treatments were respectively 444, 321, 237, 413, 389, 435, 345 and 425, and in the second year 427, 303, 223, 395, 373, 416, 331 and 405 mm.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the highest and lowest yield were observed in full irrigation and irrigation 50 % (60.1 and 16.3 t ha^-1 respectively). Among the regulated deficit irrigation treatments, irrigation 50% at the seedling stage was the closest to full irrigation, and the irrigation 50 % at the fruit expansion stage had the lowest yield. The highest water productivity belonged to the irrigation 50 % in the seedling and vine stages (15.9 and 1.15 kg m^-3 respectively). Irrigation 50% at fruit maturity stage despite half irrigation, improved Qualitative characteristics such as soluble solids, vitamin C, dry matter, lycopene and fruit taste.
 
Conclusion
Applying deficit irrigation led to a significant decrease in watermelon yield compared to full irrigation (control). Water productivity remained nearly constant, and there was no significant improvement in the quality of the edible part. However, treatments involving regulated deficit irrigation, such as irrigation during the seedling stage, showed similar yield to full irrigation, while the 50% irrigation during the vine stage resulted in higher water productivity. Additionally, 50% irrigation during the fruit maturity stage produced superior fruit quality compared to the control. Overall, regulated deficit irrigation yielded better results than deficit irrigation due to less yield reduction, increased water productivity, and improved fruit quality, especially under water-restricted conditions. Finally, it is recommended that milder intensities of deficit irrigation that seem to have more favorable results in this plant should be investigated in the next studies.

Keywords

Growth stages; Lycopene; Vitamin C; Water requirement

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