Effect of drip irrigation and nutrient management on mango (Mangifera indica) in Alfisols of semi-arid tropics.
Sujatha S., Rao J. V., Reddy N. N.
Author Affiliation: Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture (ICAR), Santhoshnagar, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh 500 059, India.
Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences 76 : 618-622
Abstract : Field experiments were conducted in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India, from 2001 to 2003, to determine the effects of drip irrigation and nutrient management on the growth, yield and quality of mango cv. Kesar sown on Alfisols in an orchard established in 1993 at a high density of 6×5 m. The treatments consisted different irrigation levels, i.e. no irrigation, drip at 0.25, 0.5 and 0.75 Ep, and nutrition levels, i.e. no nutrition, 75 kg farmyard manure/tree, recommended NPK (100 g each of N, P2O5 and K2O/tree/year of age), 100% NPK + 75 kg farmyard manure/tree, and 50% NPK + 37.5 kg farmyard manure/tree. Drip irrigation at 0.75 Ep registered higher fruit weight during first year and number of fruits in second year than no irrigation. Application of organic and inorganic forms of nutrients individually or in combination increased the fruit number and weight significantly compared to the control. All irrigation levels produced comparable fruit yield in the first year, but drip irrigation at 0.75 Ep gave significantly higher fruit yield (44.9 kg/tree) than no irrigation (18.4 kg/tree) in the second year. Conjunctive use of recommended NPK + 75 kg farmyard manure/tree recorded maximum fruit yield of 26.9 kg/tree in 2001-02 and 55.2 kg/tree in 2002-03. Drip at 0.25 Ep resulted in maximum water use efficiency in both years.