| Popis: |
Tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) were grown on a fine sandy soil using drip irrigation and polyethylene mulch to evaluate the effects of irrigation scheduling on irrigation requirements and yields under typical Florida production conditions. Tensiometers were used to automatically schedule irrigations whenever the soil matric potential reached 10, 15, or 20 kPa (10, 15, or 20 cb). Total marketable yield was almost doubled, while yield of the highest-value extra-large fruit was tripled by irrigation. The four-year average yield with the 10 kPa (10 cb) treatment was largest. In the irrigated treatments, total marketable yield declined linearly as the soil matric tension increased to 20 kPa (20 cb). In addition, the reduction in yield with increasing water stress first occurred in the extra-large fruit category, which would have the greatest economic impact on producers. |
