Author(s)

Kamal H. Amer^1*, Abdellateif A. Samak¹, Jerry L. Hatfield²

¹Department of Agricultural Engineering, Menofia University, Menofia, Egypt.
²USDA-ARS National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment, Ames, IA, USA.

Potato growth, yield, and quality under improved irrigation methods and non-uniformity of their irrigation applications are important to enhance water management in arid regions. A field experiment was conducted in 2014 spring and fall growing seasons using potato (Solanum tuberosum) grown in northern Egypt at Shibin El Kom, Menofia, Egypt to evaluate potato response to furrow or trickle irrigation. A Randomized Split-Plot Design with irrigation method randomly distributed and non-uniformity of irrigation applications evaluated along either irrigation furrow or trickle lateral as dependent variables measured at the 3^rd, 13^th, 23^rd, 33^rd, 43^rd and 53^rd m along the 55 m irrigation line. Traditional (TF) and partial (PF) furrows as well as trickle point (TP) and line (TL) sources were used as irrigation methods. Each treatment was repeated three times. For a 33^rd m treatment, seasonal optimum water use by potato was 328, 234, 269 and 292 mm over 118 days in spring and 200, 164, 178 and 186 mm over 122 days in fall under TF, PF, TP and TL irrigation methods, respectively. Potato tuber yield and quality were significantly affected by growing season (S), irrigation method (I) and non-uniformity of irrigation application (U). Tuber yield, total soluble solid (TSS) and leaf area index (LAI) were significantly affected by I and U, and their interaction I * U; harvest index (HI) was not affected by I but U. Except for TSS by S * I and HI by U * I and S * I, results showed no significant differences. Moreover, tuber weight, number and marketable yield were significantly affected by S, I, U and I * U interaction, except medium tuber size and culls by S. A given 33^rd treatment under partial furrow and trickle irrigation, relative to that of traditional furrow, enhanced tuber yield and improved quality in both growing seasons. In non-un- iform irrigation application over two growing seasons, potato crop response was developed under varied irrigation methods. Tuber yields were significantly affected in a linear relationship (r² ≥ 0.75) by either water deficit or excessive water under irrigation methods.

Potato Yield and Quality, Furrow Irrigation, Trickle Irrigation, Scheduling, Crop Coefficient

Amer, K. , Samak, A. and Hatfield, J. (2016) Effect of Irrigation Method and Non-Uniformity of Irrigation on Potato Performance and Quality. Journal of Water Resource and Protection, 8, 277-292. doi: 10.4236/jwarp.2016.83024.