Interval as basis for pepper irrigation scheduling

Abstract

Pepper requirement for water, i.e., water consumption for evapotranspiration has been assessed in a field trial in which sprinkling irrigation was applied at 80% of field water capacity (FWC). Evapotranspiration was determined by balancing the consumptions of water from soil reserve, rainfall and irrigation. Soil moisture was measured by the thermogravimetric method by drying 10 cm samples to the depth of 60 cm in at 105-110°C at 7-day intervals. Water consumption for pepper evapotranspiration in the period from transplanting to the last harvest was 571-667 mm (Table 3). Monthly evapotranspirations were 45-51 mm in the last 10 days of May, 128-145 mm in June, 161-181 mm in July and August and 74-114 mm in September, the actual rates varying with year. Average daily evapotranspiration rates were 3.2 mm in the last 10 days of May, 4.8 mm in June, 5.5 mm in July and August and 3-2 mm in September. A maximum daily rate, determined on the basis of a difference between two measurements, was 8 mm. Irrigation interval was determined on the basis of average daily water consumption, water-physical soil properties (water capacity) and irrigation rate. It was concluded that under the local conditions, irrigation interval has to be modified in order to take into account the amounts and distribution of rainfall. Potential evapotranspiration of peppers was assessed in a varietal trial, which included 14 pepper varieties. Their yields varied from 25.89 to 39.35 t-ha-1 (Table 2). When grown under the conditions of soil moisture above 80% FWC the varieties exhibited high variability in yield performance.

Poljskim ogledom navodnjavanjem orošavanjem prema vlažnosti zemljišta pri tehničkom minimumu 80% PVK utvrđene su potrebe povrtarske paprike za vodom za mesece i period vegetacije u celini. Obračunata je prosečna dnevna evapotranspiracija, na osnovu koje je utvrđen turnus u modificiranom obliku kao osnova zalivnog režima paprike u našim pedoklimatskim uslovima.