Response of onion crop to bulb set size and planting date under mulching in dry Mediterranean environment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14720/aas.2021.117.3.818Keywords:
total bulb yield, bulb shape index, water use efficiency, irrigation water use efficiency, trend analysisAbstract
The present pot experiment under open field conditions was conducted to evaluate the response of onion crop to bulb set size and planting date using mulching. Two different sizes of onion sets at planting (large (6-10 g) and small (2-6 g)) and three different planting dates (February, March, and April) with two soil coverings (with and without straw mulching) were tested. Treatments were replicated three times. Onion was not exposed to any drought stress during the course of the experiment.
Results indicated that the larger bulb sets which were planted earlier under mulching, maximised the total bulb yield (Yield, 44.0 t ha-1), water use efficiency (WUE, 8.37 kg m-3), and irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE, 9.57 kg m-3). Moreover, findings revealed that onion crop appreciably respond to smaller bulb sets when they were planted earlier under mulching. Onion bulb responses were predicted to be linearly increased with the earliness in planting date, with an obvious better preference under mulching and heavier bulb sets. Hence, adopting early planting date with mulching is suggested for sustainable crop production and for enhancing water use efficiency in dry Mediterranean area.
References
Abedin, M. J., Rahim, M. A., Islam, K. S., Haider, M. A. (1999). Effect of planting date and bulb size on the yield and quality of onion seed. Bangladesh Journal of Seed Science and Technology, 3, 25-28.
Addai, I. K. (2014). Effects of cultivar and culb size on growth and bulb yield of onion (Allium cepa L.) in the northern region of Ghana. British Journal of Applied Science and Technology, 4(14), 2090-2099. https://doi.org/10.9734/BJAST/2014/8458
Addai, I. K., Anning, D. K. (2015). Response of onion (Allium cepa L.) to bulb size at planting and NPK 15:15:15 fertilizer application rate in the Guinea Savannah. Journal of Agronomy, 14(4), 304-309. https://doi.org/10.3923/ja.2015.304.309
Ansari, N., Teixeira da Silva, J., Yazdani, N. (2009). Effect of onion set size and cultivar on production of green bunch onion (Allium cepa). Middle Eastern and Russian Journal of Plant Science and Biotechnology. 3, 5-9.
Ashrafuzzaman, M., Nasrul Millat, M., Razi Ismail, M., Uddin, M. K., Shahidullah, S. M., Meon, S. (2009). Paclobutrazol and bulb size effect on onion seed production. International Journal of Agriculture and Biology, 11, 245–250.
Brewster, J. L. (2008). Onions and other vegetable alliums. 2nd Ed., CAB International, Wallingford, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.1079/9781845933999.0000
Ceccarelli, S., Grando, S., Baum, M. (2007). Participatory plant breeding in water-limited environments. Experimental Agriculture, 43, 411-435. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0014479707005327
FAO (2011). Climate change, water and food security. Rome: FAO.
Gimenez, C., Otto, R. F., Castilla, N. (2002). Productivity of leaf and root vegetable crops under direct cover. Scientia Horticulturae, 94, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0304-4238(01)00356-9
Giorgi, F., Lionello, P. (2008). Climate change projections for the Mediterranean region. Global and Planetary Change, 63(2-3), 90-104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2007.09.005
Gomez, K. A., Gomez, A. A. (1984). Statistical Procedures for Agricultural Research (2nd ed.). New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.
Hamma, I. L. (2013). Growth and yield of onion as influenced by planting dates and mulching types in Samaru, Zaria. International Journal of Advance Agricultural Research, 1, 22-26.
Igbadun, H. E., Ramalan, A. A., Oiganji, E. (2012). Effects of regulated irrigation deficit and mulch on yield, water use and crop water productivity of onion in Samaru, Nigeria. Agricultural Water Management, 109, 162-169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2012.03.006
Joffre, R., Rambal, S. (2001). Mediterranean Ecosystems. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. https://doi.org/10.1038/npg.els.0003196
Khaledian, M. R., Mailhol, J. C., Ruelle, P., Mubarak, I., Perret, S. (2010). The impacts of direct seeding into mulch on the energy balance of crop production system in the SE of France. Soil and Tillage Research, 106(2), 218-226. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2009.10.002
Khaledian, M. R., Mailhol, J. C., Ruelle, P., Mubarak, I., Maraux, F. (2011). Nitrogen balance and irrigation water productivity for corn, sorghum and durum wheat under direct seeding compared with conventional tillage in the Southeastern France. Irrigation Science, 29(2), 413-422. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00271-010-0250-4
Khokhar, K. M., Hussain, S. I., Mahmood, T., Hidayatullah, M. H.,
Bhatti, M. H. (2001). Effect of set size on bulb yield, maturity and bolting in local and exotic cultivars of onion during autumn season.
Sarhad Journal of Agriculture, 17, 355-358.
Khokhar, K. M. (2014). Flowering and seed development in onion-A Review. Open Access Library Journal, 1: e1049. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/oalib.1101049
Mohanty, B. K. (2002). Variability, heritability, interrelationship and path analysis in onion. Haryana Journal of Horticultural Sciences 31(1-2), 84-87.
Mubarak, I. (2020). Improving water productivity and yield of onion crop by combining early planting and straw mulch under different irrigation levels in dry Mediterranean region. Advances in Horticultural Science, 34(1), 49-60.
Mubarak, I., Hamdan, T. (2018a). Onion crop response to different irrigation and N-fertilizer levels in dry Mediterranean region. Advances in Horticultural Science, 32(4), 495-501.
Mubarak, I., Hamdan, T. (2018b). Onion crop response to regulated deficit irrigation under mulching in dry Mediterranean region. Journal Horticultural Research, 26(1), 87-94. https://doi.org/10.2478/johr-2018-0010
Mutetwa, M., Mtaita, T. (2014). Effects of mulching and fertilizer sources on growth and yield of onion. Journal of Global Innovation in Agricultural and Social Sciences, 3, 102-106. https://doi.org/10.17957/JGIASS/2.3.561
Onofri, A. (2007). Routine statistical analyses of field experiments by using an Excel extension. National Conference Italian Biometric Society. Proceeding 6th (Pisa). In: “La statistica nelle scienze della vita e dell’ambiente”; 20-22, 93-96.
Polade, S. D., Pierce, D. W., Cayan, D. R., Gershunov, A., Dettinger, M. D. (2014). The key role of dry days in changing regional climate and precipitation regimes. Scientific Reports, 4, 43-64. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep04364
Ragab, R., Prudhomme, C. (2002). Climate change and water resources management in arid and semi arid regions: prospective and challenges for the 21st century. Biosystems Engineering, 81, 3-34. https://doi.org/10.1006/bioe.2001.0013
Rohini, N., Paramaguru, P. (2016). Seasons’ influence on bulb, seed yield and quality of aggregatum onion. International Journal of Farm Sciences, 6(1), 174-183.
Singh, S. R., Sachan, B. P. (1999). Interaction of bulb size and spacing on seed yield and yield attributing trait of onion (Allim cepa L.) cv. Kalyanpur Round Red. Scientia Horticulturae, 6, 125–128.
Somot, S., Sevault, F., Deque, M., Crepon, M. (2008). 21st century climate change scenario for the Mediterranean using a coupled atmosphere-ocean regional climate model. Global Planet Change, 63(2-3), 112-126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2007.10.003
Turner, N.C. (2004). Sustainable production of crops and pastures under drought in a Mediterranean environment. Annals of Applied Biology, 144, 139-147. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-7348.2004.tb00327.x
Vavrina, C. S., Roka, F. M. (2000). Comparison of plastic mulch and bareground production and economics for short-day onions in a semitropical environment. HortTechnology, 10, 326-330. https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTTECH.10.2.326
Zinkernagela, J., Schmidta, N., Kahlen, K. (2015). Changing thermal growing season and climatic water balance affect irrigation and cultivation period of vegetables. Procedia Environmental Sciences, 29, 51-52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proenv.2015.07.153
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2021 Ibrahim Mubarak
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.