ESTIMATION OF CONSUMPTIVE USE OF POTATO CROP PIANTED UNDER DRIP IRRIGATION SYSTEM BY USING SWRT TECHNOLOGY

Abstract

A field experiment was carried out in the field of the College of Agriculture / University of Wasit, located on longitude 45o 50o 33.5o East and latitude 32o 29o 49.8o North, in Spring season of the agricultural season 2019, in order to estimate the water consumption of potato crop using SWRT technology and under the drip irrigation system. The experiment was designed according to Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD)with three replications and four treatments that include of the SWRT treatment (the use of plastic films under the plant root area in an engineering style), and the treatment of vegetal fertilizer (using Petmos), organic fertilizer (sheep manure), and the control treatment . Potato tubers (Solanum tuberosum L.) var. Burin was planted for spring season on 10/2/2019 at the soil depth of 5-10 cm.The highest reference water consumption for the potato crop during the season was calculated by Najeeb Kharufa, which was 663.03 mm. The highest actual water consumption for the potato crop during the season for the control treatment was 410.1 mm. The results showed increase in the values of the crop coefficient (Kc) in the stages of tubers formation and tubers filling stage as compared to the vegetative and ripening stages, ranged from 1.37-1.92 for the two stages of tubers formation and tubers filling. The SWRT treatment gave the highest water use efficiency during the season, was 3.46 kg m-3 .