USE OF SALINE WATER FOR GREENHOUSE BELL PEPPER (CAPSICUM ANNUUM) PRODUCTION

Abstract

A greenhouse experiment was conducted to study the response of bell pepper to quality of irrigation water and irrigation regimes. The main treatments included non-saline water (EC-0.5 dS m^-1) and saline water (EC-3.5 dS m^-1). The sub-treatments included three irrigation regimes (at 100, 80 and 60% of crop Evapotranspiration (ET_c)) in combination with three crop growth stages (vegetative, flowering to fruit set and fruit development to harvest). Application of saline water significantly reduced marketable fresh fruit yield from 5.47 to 2.60 kg m^-2. Irrigation at 80% ET_c till the end of vegetative stage and at 100% ET_c later significantly increased the yield (5.01 kg m^-2). Irrigation with non-saline water at either 80 or 60% ET_c till the end of vegetative stage and at 100% ET_c later resulted in similar fresh fruit yield. Saline water irrigation at 80% ET_c till the end of vegetative stage and at 100% ET_c later, proved superior to all the other treatments. Use of saline water (3.5 dS m^-1) for irrigation of greenhouse bell pepper resulted in an increase in soil electrical conductivity and caused a drop in the fresh fruit yield by 72% as compared to irrigation with non-saline water (0.5 dS m^-1). Irrigation at 80% ET_c in the vegetative stage and at 100% ET_c in the other two stages (flowering to fruit set and fruit development to harvest) recorded significantly higher total (5.52 kg m^-2) and marketable (5.01 kg m^-2) fresh fruit yield than all the other irrigation treatments. Saline water irrigation improved fruit quality with higher TSS (10.80%), Vitamin C (228.66 mg^-100g) and acidity (0.305%).