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Effects of Limited Supplemental Irrigation with Catchment Rainfall on Rain-fed Potato in Semi-arid Areas on the Western Loess Plateau, China

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Abstract

In semi-arid areas on the Western Loess Plateau, China, crop growth has been greatly limited by water supply. The comparative wet season in the region runs from July through September, and about 60 % of the yearly precipitation total falls within this period. Rainfall is very sparse from November of the preceding year through June of the following year. Water harvesting agriculture has been shown to be one of the most efficient ways to increase water use efficiency (WUE) and crop productivity for wheat, corn, broccoli etc. however, research on WUE in potato (Solanum tuberosum L.), one of the dominant crops in the area, is sparse. Field experiments on supplemental irrigation (amount and timing) using catchment rainfall were carried out in both 2008 and 2009 in Dingxi, a typical potato growing area, for the purpose of determining effective utilization of the limited supplemental irrigation water for potatoes. Soil water storage, evapotranspiration (ET), WUE, irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE), tuber yield and size and starch and protein contents were determined in this research. The results showed that both ET and tuber yield increased with supplemental irrigation, consequently WUE was improved. IWUE appeared to be better with 45 mm of irrigation applied at the vegetative growth stage and tuber yield was increased by 7–18 % compared to the treatment without irrigation (T1), and WUE and IWUE were significantly higher than other treatments in both years. Compared to the control, WUE with 45 mm of irrigation at the vegetative growth stage increased by 1.28 % and 2.17 % in 2008 and 2009, respectively. In addition, 45 mm of irrigation at the vegetative growth stage also increased the percentage of large tubers, and the sum of large and medium tubers. Tubers under such practice were of acceptable size and had the highest protein content. Therefore, we conclude, 45 mm of supplemental irrigation at the vegetative growth stage is the best way to use the limited available supplemental irrigation water from catchment rainfall for rain-fed potatoes grown in semi-arid areas on the Western Loess Plateau of China. Applying more water, or at a later growth stage of potato, was less effective.

Resumen

En las zonas semi-áridas en el valle del oeste de Loess, en China, el crecimiento del cultivo se ha limitado grandemente por el suministro de agua. La temporada húmeda comparativa en la región corre de julio hasta septiembre, y cerca del 60 % de la precipitación anual total cae dentro de este período. La lluvia es muy escasa de noviembre del año previo hasta junio del siguiente año. Se ha visto que la cosecha de agua en la agricultura es una de las maneras más eficaces de aumentar el uso del agua eficientemente (WUE) y de la productividad de los cultivos para trigo, maíz, brócoli, etc., no obstante, es escasa la investigación en WUE en papa (Solanum tuberosum L.), uno de los cultivos dominantes en el área. Se llevaron a cabo experimentos de campo en riego suplementario (cantidad y tiempo) utilizando captación de lluvia en 2008 y 2009 en Dingxi, un área típica de cultivo de papa, con el propósito de determinar la utilización efectiva del agua de riego suplementario limitado en papa. En esta investigación se determinaron el almacenamiento del agua del suelo, evapotranspiración (ET), WUE, eficiencia del uso del agua de riego (IWUE), tamaño y rendimiento de tubérculo, y los contenidos de almidón y proteína. Los resultados mostraron que tanto ET como el rendimiento de tubérculo aumentaron con riego suplementario, consecuentemente, se mejoró el WUE. Parecía ser mejor el WUE con 45 mm de riego aplicado en el estado de crecimiento vegetativo, y el rendimiento de tubérculo se incrementó en 7–18 % comparado con el tratamiento sin riego (T1), y el WUE y el IWUE fueron significativamente mas altos que en otros tratamientos en ambos años. En comparación con el testigo, WUE con 45 mm de riego en el estado vegetativo aumentó en 1.28 % y 2.17 % en 2008 y 2009, respectivamente. Además, 45 mm de riego en la fase vegetativa también incrementó el porcentaje de tubérculos grandes y la suma de grandes y medianos. Los tubérculos bajo dicha práctica fueron de tamaño aceptable y tuvieron el contenido proteico más alto. De aquí que concluimos que 45 mm de riego suplementario en la fase vegetativa es la mejor manera de usar el agua de riego suplementaria limitada disponible, de la captación de agua de lluvia para papas de secano o temporal, cultivadas en zonas semi-áridas en el valle del oeste de Loess de China. La aplicación de más agua, o en una fase de crecimiento posterior, fue menos efectiva.

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Acknowledgements

This research was financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (31260311), Gansu Provincial Key Laboratory of Aridland Crop Science (GSCS-2010-09), the Ministry of Agriculture (CARS-10-P18), the Ministry of Education (212185), China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2012M512042) and Gansu Provincial Department of Science and Technology (1104NKCA084, 1102NKDM025). All the authors are grateful for all the students and staff in Dingxi Rainfed agricultural Research Institute for their assistance in field work. The authors are also grateful to Albert Oates from Australia and Michele Konschuh from Canada for their kind work in suggesting improvements to this paper.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Gansu Provincial Key Lab of Aridland Crop Science, Lanzhou, 730070, China

    Shuhao Qin, Lingling Li, Di Wang & Junlian Zhang

  2. Gansu Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic & Germplasm Enhancement, Faculty of Agronomy, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, 730070, China

    Shuhao Qin, Di Wang & Junlian Zhang

  3. Dingxi Rainfed Agricultural Research Institute, Dingxi, Gansu, 730070, China

    Yulin Pu

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  1. Shuhao Qin
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Correspondence to Shuhao Qin.

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Qin, S., Li, L., Wang, D. et al. Effects of Limited Supplemental Irrigation with Catchment Rainfall on Rain-fed Potato in Semi-arid Areas on the Western Loess Plateau, China. Am. J. Potato Res. 90, 33–42 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12230-012-9267-y

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