scholarly journals Rowcovers Improve Seedless Watermelon Yields in an Intensive Vegetable Production System

1991 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Marr ◽  
Wm. J. Lamont ◽  
Max Allison
Keyword(s):  
Drip Irrigation ◽  
Production System ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Transplant Survival ◽  
Row Covers ◽  
Economic Justification ◽  
Seedless Watermelon ◽  
Additional Income

Using an intensive vegetable production system of grain-strip windbreaks, plastic-mulch-covered planting be& installed with drip irrigation tubing, and fertigation through the drip system, >67,000 lb/acre (75,000 kg·ha-1) of seedless watermelons were produced. A floating row cover increased the yield by 14,000 lb/acre (16,380 kg·ha-1) by increasing earliness. The row cover also improved initial transplant survival. Earliness and the additional income generated from improved production should provide economic justification to growers considering floating row covers.

Drip irrigation affects N2O emission differently depending on soil moisture status in an intensive vegetable production system

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiuchun Xu ◽  
Di Wu ◽  
Wei Zhang ◽  
Bang Ni ◽  
Xuan Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Drip Irrigation ◽  
Production System ◽  
Nitrate Content ◽  
Site Preference ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Flood Irrigation ◽  
Tomato Production ◽  
Production Region ◽  
Soil Moisture Status

<p>Plastic-shed vegetable production system is becoming the main type of vegetable production in China, while excessive irrigation and fertilization input lead to significant N loss by leaching, runoff, and gaseous N. The current study established a field experiment to investigate the effects of drip irrigation and optimized fertilization on vegetable yield, water and fertilizer efficiencies and N<sub>2</sub>O emission in a typical intensive plastic-shed tomato production region of China. The treatments include CK (no fertilization, flood irrigation), FFP (farmers’ conventional fertilization, flood irrigation), OPT1 (80% of FFP fertilization, flood irrigation), OPT2 (80% of FFP fertilization, drip irrigation). N<sub>2</sub>O isotopocule deltas, including δ<sup>15</sup>N<sup>bulk</sup>, δ<sup>18</sup>O and SP (the <sup>15</sup>N site preference in N<sub>2</sub>O), have been used to investigate microbial pathways of N<sub>2</sub>O production under different treatments. Our results showed: i) optimized fertilization and drip irrigation significantly improved the fertilizer and water use efficiency without reducing tomato yield, ii) compared with flood irrigation, drip irrigation decreased soil WFPS and soil ammonium content, but increased soil nitrate content. When soil moisture was higher than 60%WFPS, drip irrigation led to a decrease of N<sub>2</sub>O emission with lower N<sub>2</sub>O SP signature observed than that of food irrigation, suggesting a reduction of denitrification derived N<sub>2</sub>O. In contrast, drip irrigation significantly increased N<sub>2</sub>O emission and N<sub>2</sub>O SP value when soil moisture status was lower than 55% WFPS, which may be due to the enhanced nitrification or fungal denitrification derived N<sub>2</sub>O.</p>

scholarly journals Converting from Seepage Irrigation to Plasticulture for Vegetable Production: A Case Study

EDIS ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles E. Barrett ◽  
Lincoln Zotarelli ◽  
Lucas G. Paranhos ◽  
Mark W. Warren
Keyword(s):  
Drip Irrigation ◽  
Irrigation Management ◽  
Production Method ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Extension Agents ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Seepage Irrigation ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Tail Water

This article is intended to provide information to producers and Extension agents that are interested in using drip irrigation for vegetable production. Cabbage production in Florida is dominated by the use of seepage or sub-irrigation. This system has traditionally been used because it is inexpensive to maintain and simple to use. Seepage irrigation works by damming tail water ditches, pumping water into open furrows, and effectively raising the water table to a depth accessible to the crop root system (For more information see EDIS Publication #HS1217). This type of irrigation practice is almost completely unique to Florida and is possible due to the persistence of a shallow, impermeable layer in the soil profile. This system can require vast quantities of water to be pumped from the aquifer in low-rainfall years. Plasticulture, or the use of drip irrigation and plastic mulch, has been proposed as an alternative production method for cabbage production in Florida. An on-farm demonstration was set up to provide a platform for collaboration between researchers, growers, and Extension professionals. The demonstration was located on Greene’s Farms in Bunnell, FL. The goal of the demonstration was to grow high-density cabbage populations using plasticulture side by side with seepage on a commercial farm. Fertilizer and irrigation management was closely matched between systems. The plasticulture system was designed to provide a small-scale installation of this technology for learning and commercial adaptation purposes. This small-scale system has great potential for encouraging adoption of this type of system with low risk to the grower. This article illustrates an innovative approach for converting from seepage irrigation to plasticulture and points out some options and challenges for growers considering a plasticulture system. 

scholarly journals Production System and Cultivar Effects on the Development of Skin Separation or “Silvering” in Bell Pepper Fruit

2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian A. Wyenandt ◽  
Wesley L. Kline ◽  
Daniel L. Ward ◽  
Nancy L. Brill
Keyword(s):  
Drip Irrigation ◽  
Production System ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Bell Pepper ◽  
Crown Rot ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Marketable Yield ◽  
Pepper Fruit ◽  
Bell Peppers ◽  
Black Plastic

From 2006 to 2008, four different production systems and five bell pepper cultivars (Capsicum annuum) with either no resistance (Alliance and Camelot), tolerance (Revolution), or resistance (Paladin and Aristotle) to the crown rot phase of phytophthora blight (Phytophthora capsici) were evaluated for the development of skin separation or “silvering” in fruit at a research facility and four commercial vegetable farms in southern New Jersey. Cultivar, production system, and year, each had a significant effect on the total percentage of fruit with skin separation and marketable yield. The percentage of bell pepper fruit with skin separation was higher in both phytophthora-resistant cultivars compared with the phytophthora-susceptible cultivars across all four production systems. Marketable yield was highest when bell peppers were grown in double rows on raised beds with black plastic mulch and drip irrigation compared with bell peppers grown on single rows on raised beds with black plastic mulch and drip irrigation and bell peppers grown on single rows on raised, bare ground beds with buried drip irrigation. Marketable yields were lowest when bell peppers were grown in single rows on high, ridged beds with overhead irrigation. Results of this study suggest that the development of skin separation or “silvering” in fruit is more closely associated with genotype than type of production system.

scholarly journals EFFECT OF ORGANIC AND SYNTHETIC MULCHES ON YIELD OF BASIL UNDER DRIP IRRIGATION

HortScience ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 27 (6) ◽  
pp. 587c-587 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.C. Palada ◽  
S.M.A. Crossman ◽  
C.D. Collingwood
Keyword(s):  
Soil Temperature ◽  
Water Use ◽  
Drip Irrigation ◽  
Virgin Islands ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Surface Soil Temperature ◽  
Black Plastic ◽  
Reduced Water

Small-scale herb growers in the U.S. Virgin Islands traditionally water their crops with sprinkler cans and garden hoses. This method is inefficient and consumes large amounts of water, a scarce resource in the islands. Introduction of drip irrigation has reduced water use in vegetable production. Integrating this system with mulches may further cut water use, making herb production more profitable. Basil (Ocimum basilicum) was grown in plots with organic (compost or straw) and synthetic (black plastic or weed barrier) mulches. A no mulch control plot was also included. All plots were drip irrigated to maintain soil moisture at -30 kPa. Total plant fresh weight and leaf fresh and dry weights were highest in the compost mulch treatment. Fresh and dry basil yields in black plastic mulched plots were almost identical with those in compost mulch, but did not differ from other treatments. Black plastic mulch reduced water use 46% compared with 27% for compost or straw mulch. All mulch treatments resulted in increased water use efficiency. Organic mulches reduced surface soil temperature, while synthetic mulches increased soil temperature 2-5°C.

scholarly journals What Are the Components of a Plasticulture Vegetable System?

1996 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 150-154 ◽  
Author(s):  
William James Lamont
Keyword(s):  
Pest Management ◽  
Drip Irrigation ◽  
Production System ◽  
Commercial Production ◽  
Vegetable Crops ◽  
Plastic Films ◽  
Stand Establishment ◽  
Row Covers ◽  
Plastic Components ◽  
Subsequent Introduction

Plasticulture, simply defined, is a system of growing crops wherein a significant benefit is derived from using products derived from plastic polymers. The discovery and development of the polythylene polymer in the late 1930s, and its subsequent introduction in the early 1950s in the form of plastic films, mulches, and drip-irrigation tubing and tape, revolutionized the commercial production of selected vegetable crops and gave rise to plasticulture. The later discovery of other polymers, such as polyvinyl chloride, polyproplene, and polyesters, and their use in pipes, fertigation equipment, filters, fittings and connectors, and row covers further extended the use of plastic components in this production system. The plasticulture system consists of plastic and nonplastic components: plastic mulches, drip irrigation, fertigation/chemigation, fumigation and solarization, windbreaks, stand establishment technology, season-extending technology, pest management, cropping strategies, and marketing.

scholarly journals Production System for Horticultural Crops Grown in the Penn State High Tunnel

2003 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 358-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
William J. Lamont ◽  
Michael D. Orzolek ◽  
E. Jay Holcomb ◽  
Kathy Demchak ◽  
Eric Burkhart ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drip Irrigation ◽  
Production System ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
High Tunnel ◽  
Horticultural Crops ◽  
High Tunnels ◽  
Penn State ◽  
Black Plastic

At the Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) High Tunnel Research and Education Facility, a system of production of high-value horticultural crops in high tunnels has been developed that uses plastic mulch and drip irrigation. The Penn State system involves small-scale, plastic-application equipment that prepares and applies plastic mulch and drip-irrigation tape to individual raised beds. It differs from the production system developed by researchers at the University of New Hampshire in which drip-irrigation tape is manually applied to the soil surface and then the entire soil surface in the high tunnel is covered with a black plastic sheet. An overview of the production system used in the Penn State high tunnels is presented in this report.

Swine Effluent for Tomato in a Plasticulture Production System

HortScience ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 524a-524 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kent Cushman ◽  
Thomas Horgan
Keyword(s):  
Production System ◽  
Irrigation System ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Water Source ◽  
Nutrient Concentrations ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Tomato Production ◽  
Swine Effluent ◽  
Soluble Fertilizer ◽  
Source Number

Tomato was grown in Fall 1997 with swine effluent or commercial soluble fertilizer in a plasticulture production system. Four cultivars, `Mountain Delight', `Celebrity', `Equinox', and `Sunbeam', were transplanted to raised beds with plastic mulch and drip irrigation. Preplant fertilizer was not applied. Effluent from the Wiley L. Bean Swine Demonstration Unit's secondary lagoon was filtered through in-line screen filters and applied directly to the plants through the irrigation system. Toward the end of each application, sodium hypochlorite was injected in the line to achieve a free chlorine concentration of ≈1%. Clogging of filters or drip emitters did not occur. Control plants received 100 ppm N from soluble fertilizer injected in irrigation lines supplied by a municipal water source. Number and weight of tomatoes from plants receiving swine effluent were equal to that of plants receiving soluble fertilizer. No differences in fruit quality were evident between treatments. Plant dry weight was also equal for three out of four cultivars. No differences in soil characteristics were detected between treatments after the study. Chemical analysis of the effluent showed a pH of 7.8 and nutrient concentrations of ≈110 ppm NH4-N, 57 ppm P2O5, 150 ppm K2O, and trace amounts of Cu and Zn. Though no differences in yield were detected in this study, the effluent's high pH and high NH4-N content need to be managed more closely for commercial tomato production.

Effect of Irrigation Methods and Mulching on Growth and Seed Yield of Semialata

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
SK SRIVASTAVA ◽  
PAWAN JEET
Keyword(s):  
Seed Yield ◽  
Drip Irrigation ◽  
Growth Parameters ◽  
Block Design ◽  
Water Requirement ◽  
Furrow Irrigation ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Randomized Block Design ◽  
Daily Water ◽  
Black Plastic

A study was conducted to assess the effect of drip irrigation and plastic mulch on growth and seed yield of Semialata. Two types of plastic mulch (green and silver/black) were tested at three levels of irrigation (120%, 100% and 80%) by drip irrigation and one level (100%) by furrow irrigation. The daily water requirement of Semialata was estimated by the equation ETcrop= ETox crop factor. ETcrop is crop water requirement mm/day. ETo (reference evapotranspiration, mm/day) was calculated by FAO calculator which uses temperature and humidity data. In this experiments there were twelve treatments were considered. The treatments were replicated thrice. The experiment was laid in randomized block design. It was observed that drip irrigation with or without plastic mulch is yielding better results in terms of growth parameters and seed yield as compared to furrow irrigation without plastic mulch. It was also observed that maximum suppression (67.58%) of weeds resulted with drip irrigation and silver/black plastic mulch at 80% level of irrigation.

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