Pumpkin Growth, Flowering, and Fruiting Response to Nitrogen and Potassium Sprinkler Fertigation in Sandy Soil
| Autor: | Ronald E. Brown, John M. Swiader, Stanley K. Sipp |
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| Rok vydání: | 1994 |
| Předmět: | |
| Zdroj: | Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science. 119:414-419 |
| ISSN: | 2327-9788 0003-1062 |
| DOI: | 10.21273/jashs.119.3.414 |
| Popis: | Additional index words. Cucurbita moschata, chemigation, nutrition, anthesis Abstract. Field studies were conducted in 1987 and 1988 to determine the effect of various sprinkler-applied N-K fertigation treatments and 196N-280K (kg·ha -1 ) dry-blend application on pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata Poir.) flower development, fruit set, vine growth, and marketable yield response in a Plainfield sand. The number of male and female flowers that reached anthesis by 72 days after seeding (DAS) was highest with either 112N-112K or 112N-224K fertigation. Fertigation using either 56N-112K or 168N-224K delayed the start of flowering and reduced the total number of male and female flowers produced by 72 DAS. Fruit set decreased at the low N-K fertigation rate (56N-112K), but otherwise was unaffected by N-K fertility regime. Vine dry weight and stem elongation increased as the N fertigation rate increased, with relatively little effect from fertigated K. There was no field indication of excessive vegetative growth in any of the fertigation treatments. Highest yields of early set marketable fruit (pumpkins that set before 65 DAS), and total marketable yields were obtained with fertigation of 112N, in combination with either 112 or 224 kg·ha -1 fertigated K. Usable green and cull fruit production increased with increasing N-K fertigation rate. Dry-blend application of 196N- 280K decreased early and total yields significantly. The results showed that sprinkler-applied 112N-112K split into five fertigations during the growing season (supplemented with a preplant dry-blend application of 28N-56K) produced high yields without compromising early fruit maturity. Illinois leads the United States in the production of processing pumpkins, with the commercial acreage (≈4000 ha) evenly distrib- uted between irrigated production on sandy soils, used for the early crop, and dryland culture on heavy-textured soils, used for the main-season and late crops. On sandy soils, it is becoming com- mon practice to apply most of the N and K fertilizer in several increments during the growing season with the irrigation water, using overhead center-pivot sprinkler systems, in addition to a small amount of granular, or dry-blend, fertilizer applied before planting. Commonly referred to as fertigation or chemigation, applica- tion of fertilizer with irrigation water has several inherent advan |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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