ISHS Acta Horticulturae 458: International Symposium on Water Quality & Quantity-Greenhouse
GREENHOUSE MELON RESPONSE TO PLASTIC MULCH |
| Authors: | N. Castilla, A. Gallego, G. Cruz-Romero |
| Abstract:
The use of plastic mulch in drip irrigated greenhouse melons (cv Categoria) increased the total and commercial yields when the crop was slightly deficit irrigated (applied water reaching 75% ETc-crop evapotranspiration-), relative to the conventional bare soil growing conditions. In well-watered melons (applied water reaching 100% ETc), mulching did not induce differences in yield with respect to bare - soil grown melons. Deficit irrigation, in the period from planting to the beginning of flowering, did not affect the earlines of the crop, because the water stored in the soil profile before planting avoided the appearance of relevant water stress in the deficit irrigated melons. The highest water use efficiency (WUE) was obtained in the mulched melons averaging 19.0 kg marketable fruit per cubic metre of drip-applied water. | |
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