Evaluation of Alternate, Fixed and Convectional Furrow Irrigation Under Different Water Application Level on Cabbage Growth Parameters and Yield Component in Eastern Oromia

Abstract

Available fresh water resources are subjected to an ever-increasing pressure due to extensive agricultural water demand for irrigated lands. A long-term perspective in shortage of fresh water resources, especially in arid and semi-arid area, highlights an urgent solution for innovative irrigation strategies and agricultural water management. Experiment was conducted at Kombolcha ATEVT Collage, farm site in eastern Ethiopia. The aim of this study was to compare and evaluate alternate with convectional furrow irrigation under deficit water application on growth and yield response of cabbage crop. Field experiment was designed as a two factor factorial experiment in RCBD, replicated three times. The two factors were 3 irrigation methods (IMs); (AFI, FFI and CFI) and 3 deficit or water application levels (ALs) (100%, 75%, 50% ETc of full crop water requirement. Hence study focuses on the effect alternate furrow irrigation on agronomic (growth parameters) and yield response of cabbage crop. Plant height was highly significantly (P<0.01), influenced by both IMs and (ALs) at all growth (initial, development, mid-season and late stage. Number of outer leaf per plant of at development was significantly (p<0.05) influenced by IMs, while ALs shows highly significant effect at (p<0.01). At mid stage both IMs and ALs shows highly significant (p<0.01) affected by number of outer leaf per plant. Similarly leaf area index at all stages was highly significantly (p<0.01) affected by both IMs and ALs. In case of yield related parameter, the result cabbage irrigated under AFI and FFI with 100% and 75% ETc shows less impact on agronomic and yield parameters when compared to CFI with same water ALs. Thus, under limited water resources where water is precious, alternate furrow irrigation is a viable option to increase water productivity, at acceptable yield reduction. Therefore, the study recommended that farmers should observe equally serving deficit alternate furrow irrigation methods as better option in limited water environment.

Keywords: Alternate and fixed furrow irrigation, Application levels, Cabbage, Growth, Yield parameters