Author : Nigusie abebe
Keyword : Keywords: onion, crop coefficient, growth stages, water balance, evapotranspiration, lysimeter
Subject : Agricultural research
Article Type : Original article (research)
Article File : Full Text PDF
Abstract : ABSTRACT The development of crop coefficients (KC), the ratio of crop evapotranspiration (ETc) to reference evapotranspiration (ETo) is important for estimating irrigation water requirements in relation to specific crop phenological development. This research was conducted to determine growth-stage-specific Kc and crop water use for onion at Werer Agricultural Research Center, Middle Awash Valley Ethiopia during the main season (July–October) and during cool cropping seasons (March–June) from 2012-2015. Three non weighing lysimeters of 1.6 m x 1.6 m in surface area and 2 m deep were used to measure crop water use and local weather data were used to determine the reference evapotranspiration (ETo). The results showed that the obtained Kc values for main cropping season planted onion during initial, crop development, mid season and late-season stages were 0.57, 0.78, 1.03 and 0.77 respectively. Meanwhile, the corresponding Kc values for cool cropping season planted onion were 0.49, 0.90, 1.01, and 0.79 in the respective growth stages. The seasonal crop evapotranspiration was 525.83mm and 465.57mm during main and cool cropping season respectively. The measured Kc values were significantly different from the FAO-56 reported values. Therefore, local calibration of crop coefficients is an essential for efficient irrigation water management and precise water applications.
Article by : Nigusie
Article add date : 2021-02-28
How to cite : Nigusie abebe. (2021-February-28). Nigusie abebe1, elias kebede2, yonas derese3, fikadu robi 4and kebede nanesa5. retrieved from https://openacessjournal.com/abstract/678