Water is the main constraint on agricultural output in arid- and semi-arid agroecologies, especia... more Water is the main constraint on agricultural output in arid- and semi-arid agroecologies, especially in winter. Hydrogels reduce percolation and evaporation losses in the soil root zone and provide a more continuous stream of moisture to the crop, enhancing water retention. Therefore, the impact of recently developed cross-linked hydrogels (SPG 1118 and Pusa Jal Nidhi) on the performance of red cabbage (Brassica oleracea L.) was studied during 2020–21 and 2021–22 using a spilt-plot design with three replications under drip fertigation. The study results revealed that application of full irrigation (100% ETc) exhibited significantly higher head yield of ~16% compared to limited irrigation (75% ETc). Content of NPK in leaf and head were significantly higher under full irrigation (1.31–1.38%of N in head and 2.49–2.62% of N in leaf) compared to limited irrigation. Among modified application of hydrogels, seedling root dipping with hydrogel SPG 1118 exhibited ~12% higher head yield over ...
An experiment was conducted at the research farm of ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, ... more An experiment was conducted at the research farm of ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhiduring 2019–20 and 2020–21 to study the productivity and economic viability of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)–mungbean (Vigna radiata (L.) R. Wilczek)–maize (Zea mays L.) fertigated with 0, 60, 80, 100% recommended dosesof NPK and irrigated at 0.6 and 0.8 crop evapotranspiration (ETc) through subsurface (SSDI) and surface drip irrigation (SDI). The results were compared with the conventional practice of surface irrigation and soil application of 100% recommended doses of NPK. Grain yields of wheat, mungbean, maize and system wheat equivalent yield (SWEY) improved by 22.9, 7.2, 21.9 and 19.4%, respectively with increase in NPK fertigation doses from 60 to 100% and by 15.6, 9.2, 4.9 and 9.7% with the increase in irrigation frequency from 0.6 to 0.8 ETc. However, SDI and SSDI had equal system productivity (12.48 and 12.85 Mg/ha). The SWEY at 0.8ETc fertigated either with NPK80 or NPK...
A study was carried out to evaluate the geo-spatial variability of soil health parameters in Biwa... more A study was carried out to evaluate the geo-spatial variability of soil health parameters in Biwan watershed located in the Mewat district of Haryana in 2012-13. The main objective of this study was to determine spatial variability of selected soil health parameters that influence crop growth and yield. Soil samples (100) with GPS co-ordinates were collected on random basis from Tapkan, Biwan, Shonkh, Palla and Palladi villages of Biwan watershed during pre-monsoon period (May 2012). Soil health parameters such as pH2, electrical conductivity (EC2), organic carbon, available NPK and micronutrient (Zn, Fe, Cu and Mn) were analyzed from each sample by the standard methods. The spatial variability maps for different soil health parameters were prepared through GIS software (ArcGIS 9.0). Results indicated that the pH2 (6.0-8.59) and EC2 (<1.0 dS/m) were normal in about 80% of soil samples in watershed area. Comparatively, higher soil salinity was observed in Palladi village. Organi...
Reference evapotranspiration (ET0) is used to determine crop water requirements under different c... more Reference evapotranspiration (ET0) is used to determine crop water requirements under different climatic conditions. In this study, soft computing tools viz. artificial neural network (ANN) and k-nearest neighbors (KNN) models were evaluated for forecasting daily ET0 by comparing their performance with the Penman-Monteith model (PM) using climatic data from 1990 to 2020 of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) farm observatory, New Delhi, India. The performance of these models was assessed using statistical performance indices viz., mean absolute error (MAE), mean squared error (MSE), correlation coefficient (r), mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), and index of agreement (d). Results revealed that the ANN model with sigmoid activation function and L-BFGS (Limited memory-Broyden-Fletcher-Goldfarb-Shanno) learning algorithm was selected as the best performing model amongst 36 ANN models. Amongst 4 KNN models developed and tested, the K4 KNN model was observed to be the ...
AquaCrop (v4. 0) model has been commonly used to simulate the crop yield under irrigated environm... more AquaCrop (v4. 0) model has been commonly used to simulate the crop yield under irrigated environments, but this model has not yet been calibrated and validated for simulating the yield of pearlmillet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.) under in-situ water conservation. Thus, a three year (2011−13) field experiment was conducted at ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi with six in-situ water conservation treatments,viz. trench-cum-bund (TCB: 20 cm depth of trench, 20 cm height of bund), bund (30 cm height), ridge-and-furrow (R&F: 15 cm height), skip-row (SR: 3:1) planting, basin-tillage (BT: 45 cm × 45 cm) and control (no-water conservation). Calibration of AquaCrop (v 4. 0) model for pearlmillet grain yield and total soil moisture content was done using experimental data of 2011 and validated separately for 2012 (deficit rainfall year) and 2013 (excess rainfall year) data. For the year (2012), absolute prediction errors of grain yield were 1.7, 8.7, 14.1, 14.9, 3.3 ...
A field study was conducted during 2008 and 2009 to investigate the yield response of onion (Alli... more A field study was conducted during 2008 and 2009 to investigate the yield response of onion (Allium cepa L.) to different irrigation intervals and fertigation strategies under drip irrigation. Two irrigation intervals and four fertigation strategies were evaluated. The plant height, bulb diameter and bulb weight were observed to be highest under the combination of two day irrigation interval with fertigation during second half of irrigation duration (I1F3). The highest yield (34.50 t/ha) was also recorded in the same treatment. The crop water use efficiency (CWUE) and irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE) were highest in the I1F3 treatment. Field data revealed that the I1F3 was found to be the best among all the treatments.
An experiment was conducted during the year 2008 and 2009 to study nutrient distribution (phospho... more An experiment was conducted during the year 2008 and 2009 to study nutrient distribution (phosphorus, P; potassium, K and sulphur, S) under different fertigation strategies and to quantify the leaching of nutrients in onion crop. The study involved field experiment, laboratory analysis and modelling of P, K and S leaching and scenario generation for different types of soil and emitter discharge rates. Field data were used to calibrate and validate HYDRUS-2D model for solute transport. From the model performance parameters, HYDRUS-2D model was found to be good for predicting the P, K and S distribution in soil. The validated model was used for the simulations which were carried out on different soil types as well as with different fertigation and irrigation strategies. The results revealed that leaching of these nutrients was negligible in fine textured silty clay loam soil, whereas highest leaching occurred in coarse textured sandy loam soil. While considering discharge rate, more l...
Field experiments were conducted during winter season (October to February) of 2008–09 and 2009–1... more Field experiments were conducted during winter season (October to February) of 2008–09 and 2009–10 to investigate the growth and yield response of lettuce to different irrigation intervals, nitrogen application rates and different crop geometries under trickle irrigation. The plan of experiment included three crop geometries [45 × 30 (G1); 30 × 30 (G2) and 17.5 × 30 (G3) (Row × plant spacing in cm)], two irrigation schedules [2 days (I1) and 4 days (I2) interval] and two levels of nitrogen application [60 kg ha−1 (N1) and 100 kg ha−1 (N2)]. For both the experiments there were three replications. The coefficient of variation of the emitter discharge used in trickle irrigation system was 0.059 and 0.091 in 2008–09 and 2009–10, respectively. The results revealed that lettuce raised with 17.5 cm × 30 cm crop spacing, along with two day irrigation interval and 100 kg N ha−1 application gave the maximum plant height (18.5 and 17.3 cm), leaf area index (2.37 and 2.27) and marketable yield ...
A study was undertaken to evaluate the temporal variability in climatic parameters and potential ... more A study was undertaken to evaluate the temporal variability in climatic parameters and potential evapotranspiration (PET) of reference crop. Time series data (1981-2011) of mean daily minimum and maximum temperature, mean daily temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and sunshine hours were analysed using Mann-Kendall test and Sen’s slope estimator to establish the trend. The CROPWAT model was used to estimate the PET. Minimum temperature, mean daily temperature, relative humidity and wind showed increasing trend, whereas sunshine hour and ETo had decreasing trend. Results revealed that mean daily minimum and mean daily temperature increased by 0.02°C/year and 0.01°C/year, respectively. Mean daily maximum temperature remained constant over the period as indicated by the Sen’s slope. Mean daily relative humidity and wind speed increased by 0.11% per year and 0.57 km/year during 1981–2011. Mean daily sunshine hours and reference evapotranspiration decreased by 0.06 hour/year and 0.01 mm/year, respectively during 1981–2011.
Proper drip fertigation management requires the knowledge of fertigation rate, nutrient distribut... more Proper drip fertigation management requires the knowledge of fertigation rate, nutrient distribution in soil and nutrient uptake by the cro p to ensure maximum crop productivity. An experiment was carried out on sweet pepper in a nat urally ventilated greenhouse under low head drip irrigation system to investigate the crop response to NH 4 + -N, NO 3 - N and K distribution in soil. The fertigation schedule was with three levels of nitro gen (N) as urea, three levels of potassium (K) as muriate of potash (MOP) and ready mixed dry liquid fertilizer (DLF) of NPK (20-20-20) including without N and K as a control. The fertilizer was app lied weekly in 32 spilt equal doses through drip irrigation while the irrigation was scheduled at 2 week interval. The investigation of nutrient distribution in soil profile showed that an extreme ly high ammonium and potassium concentration was found to be closer to the dripping point. One notab le result was the accumulation of nitrate at the boundary o...
Drip fertigation is an effective way to apply water soluble fertilizer in a split doses to meet w... more Drip fertigation is an effective way to apply water soluble fertilizer in a split doses to meet water and nutrient demands of sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.). The application rates of N and K through urea and muriate of potash (MOP) were evaluated for sweet pepper under naturally ventilated greenhouse during two consecutive seasons of 2010-11 and 2011-12. Eleven N and K fertilizer combinations, including nine combinations of urea and MOP, one commercially available ready mix dry liquid (water soluble) fertilizer with a ratio of 20:20:20 and a control, were applied through low head drip irrigation system weekly in 32 equal split doses. Uniform P (through surface) was applied in all the treatments. The two years average maximum yield of 62.2 t ha-1 was achieved at the fertilizer rate of 400 kg N ha-1 and 360 kg K ha-1. This yield was significantly higher than the average yield of 56.1 t ha-1 recorded from the normal recommended dose of 320 kg N ha-1 and 360 kg K ha-1 and was at par with 400 kg N ha-1 and 450 kg K ha-1 (59.4 t ha-1). The average yield obtain from the fertilizer rate of 400 kg N ha-1 and 360 kg K ha-1 was 11, 26 and 104% higher than the fertilizer application of normal dose, ready mix dry liquid fertilizer and the control, respectively. These results were obtained after enhancing the rate of application of N fertilizer by 25% while keeping the normal dose of application of K fertilizer.
A study was undertaken to establish the annual trend in climatic variables of the Betwa basin loc... more A study was undertaken to establish the annual trend in climatic variables of the Betwa basin located in Central India. District wise daily data (1971–2007) of rainfall, maximum and minimum temperature, relative humidity and wind speed were analysed using Mann-Kendall test and Sen’s slope estimator. The annual rainfall in majority of the districts showed non-significant decreasing trend. Maximum temperature exhibited significant increasing trend in nine out of 14 districts, whereas minimum temperature exhibited significant increasing trend in only four districts. Relative humidity has increased significantly in Bhopal and Jhansi districts, whereas wind speed has significantly decreased in Bhopal, Jhansi, Tikamgarh and Vidisha districts. Decrease in the rainfall varied from 0.674 to 6.46 mm/year which was insignificant. The increase in mean daily maximum and minimum temperature varied from 0.014–0.022°C/year and 0.015–0.024°C/year, respectively. Significant increase in rela...
A field experiment was carried during the rainy seasons of 2011 and 2012 in split-plot design at ... more A field experiment was carried during the rainy seasons of 2011 and 2012 in split-plot design at New Delhi, to study the impact of conservation practices and fertilizer levels on yield of sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Monech] under rainfed conditions. Sorghum variety ‘CSH 14’ hybrid was planted using 2 types of tillage (minimum and conventional) and 2 methods of planting (ridges and furrows, and flat bed). For each type of tillage and method of planting three levels of fertilizer were applied. No significant effects of the treatments and interaction was observed at 5% level of significance on the leaves/plant, plant height, stem girth, panicle weight, harvest index and benefit: cost ratio. However, it affected the panicle length, panicle girth, 1,000-seed weight, total cost of production, gross returns and net returns significantly. The plant-moisture content was affected by sowing method and tillage type regardless of fertilizer levels. The highest average grain yield (2.03 tonnes/...
Drip fertigation is an effective way to apply water soluble fertilizer in a split doses to meet w... more Drip fertigation is an effective way to apply water soluble fertilizer in a split doses to meet water and nutrient demands of sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.). The application rates of N and K through urea and muriate of potash (MOP) were evaluated for sweet pepper under naturally ventilated greenhouse during two consecutive seasons of 2010–11 and 2011–12. Eleven N and K fertilizer combinations, including nine combinations of urea and MOP, one commercially available ready mix dry liquid (water soluble) fertilizer with a ratio of 20:20:20 and a control, were applied through low head drip irrigation system weekly in 32 equal split doses. Uniform P (through surface) was applied in all the treatments. The two years average maximum yield of 62.2 t ha−1 was achieved at the fertilizer rate of 400 kg N ha−1 and 360 kg K ha−1. This yield was significantly higher than the average yield of 56.1 t ha−1 recorded from the normal recommended dose of 320 kg N ha−1 and 360 kg K ha−1and was at par with 400 kg N ha−1 and 450 kg K ha−1 (59.4 t ha−1). The average yield obtain from the fertilizer rate of 400 kg N ha−1and 360 kg K ha−1 was 11, 26 and 104% higher than the fertilizer application of normal dose, ready mix dry liquid fertilizer and the control, respectively. These results were obtained after enhancing the rate of application of N fertilizer by 25% while keeping the normal dose of application of K fertilizer.
A water budget confers the relationship between input, output and changes in the amount of water ... more A water budget confers the relationship between input, output and changes in the amount of water at an individual farm level to the watershed level depending upon point of interest. Basic components of water budgets are precipitation, evapotranspiration, change in soil moisture storage, deep percolation and runoff. However, non-availability of water balance parameter is the main problem for achieving the more crop per drop. Therefore, the current study was undertaken at ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi farm (Mid-block, MB) during rabi 2016-17 to study the water budget of different major rabi crops (wheat, mustard, chickpea) under surface irrigation. Water budget components like soil moisture were measured by gravimetric method periodically, and daily crop-evapotranspiration (ETc) and stage-wise effective rainfall (Pe) for the test crops were estimated using FAO-CROPWAT- 8.0 model. Irrigation scheduling was done on the basis of soil moisture depletion method and...
Knowledge about variability in crop evapotranspiration (ETc) is essential for realistic assessmen... more Knowledge about variability in crop evapotranspiration (ETc) is essential for realistic assessment of crop water footprint. In this study, administrative districts falling under the Gomati basin were divided into 21 Agricultural Production Units (APUs) on the basis of homogeneity of soil and agro-ecology. Blue and green components of ETc of 15 major crops grown in each APU were assessed using CROPWAT model. Ordinary kriging and ordinary co-kriging were evaluated for mapping spatial variability of ETc. Prediction error was lowest for ordinary cokriging. Etc variability maps for kharif and rabi crops were developed using ordinary co-kriging. In case of kharif crops, the maximum Etc was observed in the central region while that for rabi crops it was in the lower region of the Gomati basin. Variability in green crop water use was high. Green water use by paddy was 425.0 mm, 420.4 mm and 410.4 mm in the lower, upper and middle regions, respectively. The green water use of winter crops va...
Geomorphological parameters of any river basin provide information about their hydrological behav... more Geomorphological parameters of any river basin provide information about their hydrological behaviour. Geomorphology of river basins can be used to derive geometrical similarity among basins and relate the flood characteristics to stream network parameters. A study was conducted to extract the geomorphological parameters of the Betwa basin which is located in the central India. The geomorphological parameters were extracted from SRTM 90 m DEM using Arc GIS 9.3 and Watershed Morphology Estimation Tool (WMET) Software. The delineation of the basin boundary and the stream network was done using SWAT tool in Arc GIS 9.3. The stream order of the basin ranged from first to fourth. Drainage density and relief of the basin were 0.046 km"1 and 1.016, respectively. The hypsometric curve of the basin indicated that the basin was in equilibrium stage. The value of hypsometric integral of delineated 51 sub-basins also indicated that the basin has reached the equilibrium stage. This informat...
Water is the main constraint on agricultural output in arid- and semi-arid agroecologies, especia... more Water is the main constraint on agricultural output in arid- and semi-arid agroecologies, especially in winter. Hydrogels reduce percolation and evaporation losses in the soil root zone and provide a more continuous stream of moisture to the crop, enhancing water retention. Therefore, the impact of recently developed cross-linked hydrogels (SPG 1118 and Pusa Jal Nidhi) on the performance of red cabbage (Brassica oleracea L.) was studied during 2020–21 and 2021–22 using a spilt-plot design with three replications under drip fertigation. The study results revealed that application of full irrigation (100% ETc) exhibited significantly higher head yield of ~16% compared to limited irrigation (75% ETc). Content of NPK in leaf and head were significantly higher under full irrigation (1.31–1.38%of N in head and 2.49–2.62% of N in leaf) compared to limited irrigation. Among modified application of hydrogels, seedling root dipping with hydrogel SPG 1118 exhibited ~12% higher head yield over ...
An experiment was conducted at the research farm of ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, ... more An experiment was conducted at the research farm of ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhiduring 2019–20 and 2020–21 to study the productivity and economic viability of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)–mungbean (Vigna radiata (L.) R. Wilczek)–maize (Zea mays L.) fertigated with 0, 60, 80, 100% recommended dosesof NPK and irrigated at 0.6 and 0.8 crop evapotranspiration (ETc) through subsurface (SSDI) and surface drip irrigation (SDI). The results were compared with the conventional practice of surface irrigation and soil application of 100% recommended doses of NPK. Grain yields of wheat, mungbean, maize and system wheat equivalent yield (SWEY) improved by 22.9, 7.2, 21.9 and 19.4%, respectively with increase in NPK fertigation doses from 60 to 100% and by 15.6, 9.2, 4.9 and 9.7% with the increase in irrigation frequency from 0.6 to 0.8 ETc. However, SDI and SSDI had equal system productivity (12.48 and 12.85 Mg/ha). The SWEY at 0.8ETc fertigated either with NPK80 or NPK...
A study was carried out to evaluate the geo-spatial variability of soil health parameters in Biwa... more A study was carried out to evaluate the geo-spatial variability of soil health parameters in Biwan watershed located in the Mewat district of Haryana in 2012-13. The main objective of this study was to determine spatial variability of selected soil health parameters that influence crop growth and yield. Soil samples (100) with GPS co-ordinates were collected on random basis from Tapkan, Biwan, Shonkh, Palla and Palladi villages of Biwan watershed during pre-monsoon period (May 2012). Soil health parameters such as pH2, electrical conductivity (EC2), organic carbon, available NPK and micronutrient (Zn, Fe, Cu and Mn) were analyzed from each sample by the standard methods. The spatial variability maps for different soil health parameters were prepared through GIS software (ArcGIS 9.0). Results indicated that the pH2 (6.0-8.59) and EC2 (<1.0 dS/m) were normal in about 80% of soil samples in watershed area. Comparatively, higher soil salinity was observed in Palladi village. Organi...
Reference evapotranspiration (ET0) is used to determine crop water requirements under different c... more Reference evapotranspiration (ET0) is used to determine crop water requirements under different climatic conditions. In this study, soft computing tools viz. artificial neural network (ANN) and k-nearest neighbors (KNN) models were evaluated for forecasting daily ET0 by comparing their performance with the Penman-Monteith model (PM) using climatic data from 1990 to 2020 of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) farm observatory, New Delhi, India. The performance of these models was assessed using statistical performance indices viz., mean absolute error (MAE), mean squared error (MSE), correlation coefficient (r), mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), and index of agreement (d). Results revealed that the ANN model with sigmoid activation function and L-BFGS (Limited memory-Broyden-Fletcher-Goldfarb-Shanno) learning algorithm was selected as the best performing model amongst 36 ANN models. Amongst 4 KNN models developed and tested, the K4 KNN model was observed to be the ...
AquaCrop (v4. 0) model has been commonly used to simulate the crop yield under irrigated environm... more AquaCrop (v4. 0) model has been commonly used to simulate the crop yield under irrigated environments, but this model has not yet been calibrated and validated for simulating the yield of pearlmillet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.) under in-situ water conservation. Thus, a three year (2011−13) field experiment was conducted at ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi with six in-situ water conservation treatments,viz. trench-cum-bund (TCB: 20 cm depth of trench, 20 cm height of bund), bund (30 cm height), ridge-and-furrow (R&F: 15 cm height), skip-row (SR: 3:1) planting, basin-tillage (BT: 45 cm × 45 cm) and control (no-water conservation). Calibration of AquaCrop (v 4. 0) model for pearlmillet grain yield and total soil moisture content was done using experimental data of 2011 and validated separately for 2012 (deficit rainfall year) and 2013 (excess rainfall year) data. For the year (2012), absolute prediction errors of grain yield were 1.7, 8.7, 14.1, 14.9, 3.3 ...
A field study was conducted during 2008 and 2009 to investigate the yield response of onion (Alli... more A field study was conducted during 2008 and 2009 to investigate the yield response of onion (Allium cepa L.) to different irrigation intervals and fertigation strategies under drip irrigation. Two irrigation intervals and four fertigation strategies were evaluated. The plant height, bulb diameter and bulb weight were observed to be highest under the combination of two day irrigation interval with fertigation during second half of irrigation duration (I1F3). The highest yield (34.50 t/ha) was also recorded in the same treatment. The crop water use efficiency (CWUE) and irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE) were highest in the I1F3 treatment. Field data revealed that the I1F3 was found to be the best among all the treatments.
An experiment was conducted during the year 2008 and 2009 to study nutrient distribution (phospho... more An experiment was conducted during the year 2008 and 2009 to study nutrient distribution (phosphorus, P; potassium, K and sulphur, S) under different fertigation strategies and to quantify the leaching of nutrients in onion crop. The study involved field experiment, laboratory analysis and modelling of P, K and S leaching and scenario generation for different types of soil and emitter discharge rates. Field data were used to calibrate and validate HYDRUS-2D model for solute transport. From the model performance parameters, HYDRUS-2D model was found to be good for predicting the P, K and S distribution in soil. The validated model was used for the simulations which were carried out on different soil types as well as with different fertigation and irrigation strategies. The results revealed that leaching of these nutrients was negligible in fine textured silty clay loam soil, whereas highest leaching occurred in coarse textured sandy loam soil. While considering discharge rate, more l...
Field experiments were conducted during winter season (October to February) of 2008–09 and 2009–1... more Field experiments were conducted during winter season (October to February) of 2008–09 and 2009–10 to investigate the growth and yield response of lettuce to different irrigation intervals, nitrogen application rates and different crop geometries under trickle irrigation. The plan of experiment included three crop geometries [45 × 30 (G1); 30 × 30 (G2) and 17.5 × 30 (G3) (Row × plant spacing in cm)], two irrigation schedules [2 days (I1) and 4 days (I2) interval] and two levels of nitrogen application [60 kg ha−1 (N1) and 100 kg ha−1 (N2)]. For both the experiments there were three replications. The coefficient of variation of the emitter discharge used in trickle irrigation system was 0.059 and 0.091 in 2008–09 and 2009–10, respectively. The results revealed that lettuce raised with 17.5 cm × 30 cm crop spacing, along with two day irrigation interval and 100 kg N ha−1 application gave the maximum plant height (18.5 and 17.3 cm), leaf area index (2.37 and 2.27) and marketable yield ...
A study was undertaken to evaluate the temporal variability in climatic parameters and potential ... more A study was undertaken to evaluate the temporal variability in climatic parameters and potential evapotranspiration (PET) of reference crop. Time series data (1981-2011) of mean daily minimum and maximum temperature, mean daily temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and sunshine hours were analysed using Mann-Kendall test and Sen’s slope estimator to establish the trend. The CROPWAT model was used to estimate the PET. Minimum temperature, mean daily temperature, relative humidity and wind showed increasing trend, whereas sunshine hour and ETo had decreasing trend. Results revealed that mean daily minimum and mean daily temperature increased by 0.02°C/year and 0.01°C/year, respectively. Mean daily maximum temperature remained constant over the period as indicated by the Sen’s slope. Mean daily relative humidity and wind speed increased by 0.11% per year and 0.57 km/year during 1981–2011. Mean daily sunshine hours and reference evapotranspiration decreased by 0.06 hour/year and 0.01 mm/year, respectively during 1981–2011.
Proper drip fertigation management requires the knowledge of fertigation rate, nutrient distribut... more Proper drip fertigation management requires the knowledge of fertigation rate, nutrient distribution in soil and nutrient uptake by the cro p to ensure maximum crop productivity. An experiment was carried out on sweet pepper in a nat urally ventilated greenhouse under low head drip irrigation system to investigate the crop response to NH 4 + -N, NO 3 - N and K distribution in soil. The fertigation schedule was with three levels of nitro gen (N) as urea, three levels of potassium (K) as muriate of potash (MOP) and ready mixed dry liquid fertilizer (DLF) of NPK (20-20-20) including without N and K as a control. The fertilizer was app lied weekly in 32 spilt equal doses through drip irrigation while the irrigation was scheduled at 2 week interval. The investigation of nutrient distribution in soil profile showed that an extreme ly high ammonium and potassium concentration was found to be closer to the dripping point. One notab le result was the accumulation of nitrate at the boundary o...
Drip fertigation is an effective way to apply water soluble fertilizer in a split doses to meet w... more Drip fertigation is an effective way to apply water soluble fertilizer in a split doses to meet water and nutrient demands of sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.). The application rates of N and K through urea and muriate of potash (MOP) were evaluated for sweet pepper under naturally ventilated greenhouse during two consecutive seasons of 2010-11 and 2011-12. Eleven N and K fertilizer combinations, including nine combinations of urea and MOP, one commercially available ready mix dry liquid (water soluble) fertilizer with a ratio of 20:20:20 and a control, were applied through low head drip irrigation system weekly in 32 equal split doses. Uniform P (through surface) was applied in all the treatments. The two years average maximum yield of 62.2 t ha-1 was achieved at the fertilizer rate of 400 kg N ha-1 and 360 kg K ha-1. This yield was significantly higher than the average yield of 56.1 t ha-1 recorded from the normal recommended dose of 320 kg N ha-1 and 360 kg K ha-1 and was at par with 400 kg N ha-1 and 450 kg K ha-1 (59.4 t ha-1). The average yield obtain from the fertilizer rate of 400 kg N ha-1 and 360 kg K ha-1 was 11, 26 and 104% higher than the fertilizer application of normal dose, ready mix dry liquid fertilizer and the control, respectively. These results were obtained after enhancing the rate of application of N fertilizer by 25% while keeping the normal dose of application of K fertilizer.
A study was undertaken to establish the annual trend in climatic variables of the Betwa basin loc... more A study was undertaken to establish the annual trend in climatic variables of the Betwa basin located in Central India. District wise daily data (1971–2007) of rainfall, maximum and minimum temperature, relative humidity and wind speed were analysed using Mann-Kendall test and Sen’s slope estimator. The annual rainfall in majority of the districts showed non-significant decreasing trend. Maximum temperature exhibited significant increasing trend in nine out of 14 districts, whereas minimum temperature exhibited significant increasing trend in only four districts. Relative humidity has increased significantly in Bhopal and Jhansi districts, whereas wind speed has significantly decreased in Bhopal, Jhansi, Tikamgarh and Vidisha districts. Decrease in the rainfall varied from 0.674 to 6.46 mm/year which was insignificant. The increase in mean daily maximum and minimum temperature varied from 0.014–0.022°C/year and 0.015–0.024°C/year, respectively. Significant increase in rela...
A field experiment was carried during the rainy seasons of 2011 and 2012 in split-plot design at ... more A field experiment was carried during the rainy seasons of 2011 and 2012 in split-plot design at New Delhi, to study the impact of conservation practices and fertilizer levels on yield of sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Monech] under rainfed conditions. Sorghum variety ‘CSH 14’ hybrid was planted using 2 types of tillage (minimum and conventional) and 2 methods of planting (ridges and furrows, and flat bed). For each type of tillage and method of planting three levels of fertilizer were applied. No significant effects of the treatments and interaction was observed at 5% level of significance on the leaves/plant, plant height, stem girth, panicle weight, harvest index and benefit: cost ratio. However, it affected the panicle length, panicle girth, 1,000-seed weight, total cost of production, gross returns and net returns significantly. The plant-moisture content was affected by sowing method and tillage type regardless of fertilizer levels. The highest average grain yield (2.03 tonnes/...
Drip fertigation is an effective way to apply water soluble fertilizer in a split doses to meet w... more Drip fertigation is an effective way to apply water soluble fertilizer in a split doses to meet water and nutrient demands of sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.). The application rates of N and K through urea and muriate of potash (MOP) were evaluated for sweet pepper under naturally ventilated greenhouse during two consecutive seasons of 2010–11 and 2011–12. Eleven N and K fertilizer combinations, including nine combinations of urea and MOP, one commercially available ready mix dry liquid (water soluble) fertilizer with a ratio of 20:20:20 and a control, were applied through low head drip irrigation system weekly in 32 equal split doses. Uniform P (through surface) was applied in all the treatments. The two years average maximum yield of 62.2 t ha−1 was achieved at the fertilizer rate of 400 kg N ha−1 and 360 kg K ha−1. This yield was significantly higher than the average yield of 56.1 t ha−1 recorded from the normal recommended dose of 320 kg N ha−1 and 360 kg K ha−1and was at par with 400 kg N ha−1 and 450 kg K ha−1 (59.4 t ha−1). The average yield obtain from the fertilizer rate of 400 kg N ha−1and 360 kg K ha−1 was 11, 26 and 104% higher than the fertilizer application of normal dose, ready mix dry liquid fertilizer and the control, respectively. These results were obtained after enhancing the rate of application of N fertilizer by 25% while keeping the normal dose of application of K fertilizer.
A water budget confers the relationship between input, output and changes in the amount of water ... more A water budget confers the relationship between input, output and changes in the amount of water at an individual farm level to the watershed level depending upon point of interest. Basic components of water budgets are precipitation, evapotranspiration, change in soil moisture storage, deep percolation and runoff. However, non-availability of water balance parameter is the main problem for achieving the more crop per drop. Therefore, the current study was undertaken at ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi farm (Mid-block, MB) during rabi 2016-17 to study the water budget of different major rabi crops (wheat, mustard, chickpea) under surface irrigation. Water budget components like soil moisture were measured by gravimetric method periodically, and daily crop-evapotranspiration (ETc) and stage-wise effective rainfall (Pe) for the test crops were estimated using FAO-CROPWAT- 8.0 model. Irrigation scheduling was done on the basis of soil moisture depletion method and...
Knowledge about variability in crop evapotranspiration (ETc) is essential for realistic assessmen... more Knowledge about variability in crop evapotranspiration (ETc) is essential for realistic assessment of crop water footprint. In this study, administrative districts falling under the Gomati basin were divided into 21 Agricultural Production Units (APUs) on the basis of homogeneity of soil and agro-ecology. Blue and green components of ETc of 15 major crops grown in each APU were assessed using CROPWAT model. Ordinary kriging and ordinary co-kriging were evaluated for mapping spatial variability of ETc. Prediction error was lowest for ordinary cokriging. Etc variability maps for kharif and rabi crops were developed using ordinary co-kriging. In case of kharif crops, the maximum Etc was observed in the central region while that for rabi crops it was in the lower region of the Gomati basin. Variability in green crop water use was high. Green water use by paddy was 425.0 mm, 420.4 mm and 410.4 mm in the lower, upper and middle regions, respectively. The green water use of winter crops va...
Geomorphological parameters of any river basin provide information about their hydrological behav... more Geomorphological parameters of any river basin provide information about their hydrological behaviour. Geomorphology of river basins can be used to derive geometrical similarity among basins and relate the flood characteristics to stream network parameters. A study was conducted to extract the geomorphological parameters of the Betwa basin which is located in the central India. The geomorphological parameters were extracted from SRTM 90 m DEM using Arc GIS 9.3 and Watershed Morphology Estimation Tool (WMET) Software. The delineation of the basin boundary and the stream network was done using SWAT tool in Arc GIS 9.3. The stream order of the basin ranged from first to fourth. Drainage density and relief of the basin were 0.046 km"1 and 1.016, respectively. The hypsometric curve of the basin indicated that the basin was in equilibrium stage. The value of hypsometric integral of delineated 51 sub-basins also indicated that the basin has reached the equilibrium stage. This informat...
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