At Pinney Purdue (PPAC) 2.19 inches of rain fell July 12 through July 26. The potential evapotranspiration (PET) over the period was 2.67 inches. Estimates for water use by the crops are somewhat lower than potential evapotranspiration. For tomatoes, estimated water use was 2.03 inches, and for watermelons, 1.54 inches. Dry periods between heavy rains[Read More…]
Irrigation
At Southwest Purdue Ag Center (SWPAC), more than 10 inches of rain fell since July 7; over 8 inches happened since the evening of July 24. Soil water content on the unirrigated tomato/pepper/eggplant bed (12’’ under plastic mulch) increased from 10% (early July) to about 15% after 3 inches of rain on July 7-9. The[Read More…]
At Pinney Purdue (PPAC) 1.66 inches of rain fell June 25 through July 11. The potential evapotranspiration (PET) over the period was 2.79 inches. Estimates for water use by the crops are lower than potential evapotranspiration because it is only 5 weeks after transplanting. For tomatoes, estimated water use was 2.01 inches, and for watermelons,[Read More…]
After planting on May 16, we only received 1.4 inches of rain in June. The early-setting tomatoes on plants grown on the unirrigated bed had more than 40% fruit blossom end rot (BER) (recorded on June 23). It was 3% on plants grown in a bed that received 17 irrigation events in June and 10%[Read More…]
At Southwest Purdue Ag Center (SWPAC) and Pinney Purdue Ag Center (PPAC), we demonstrate irrigation impacts on several fruiting vegetable crops. Tomato, pepper, eggplant, watermelon, and cantaloupe are planted on plastic-covered beds with drip tapes. They grow on beds side-by-side with and without irrigation. We used two approaches to schedule irrigation, one bed is irrigated based on[Read More…]
Vegetable growers understand that water deficiency decreases yield, reduces fruit marketability and quality, and, in extreme case, causes plants to die. In Indiana, we are typically not short of precipitation during growing seasons; rainfall is the primary water source. However, concentrated heavy rains and extended dry periods are not desirable for vegetable production. Severe losses[Read More…]
Supported by Indiana Vegetable Growers Association and Illiana Watermelon Association, a collaborative project between Purdue University and Michigan State University that aims to help watermelon farmers improve irrigation management was recently funded. In this project, the team will conduct the scientific experiment at the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center to test currently used irrigation management tools,[Read More…]
About half of the watermelon fields in our area are not equipped with supplemental irrigation. Watermelon production in these fields is therefore dependent exclusively on rainfall. In fields where supplemental irrigation is available, drip irrigation under black plastic mulch is the most commonly used system. Overhead irrigation through central pivot is also used in some[Read More…]
We recently received several calls reporting blossom end rot of tomatoes (Figure 1). Although blossom end rot is caused by deficient supply of calcium to the developing fruit. The occurrence of this physiological disorder often relates to inconsistent supply of water. As a general rule, vegetables require 1-1.5 acre-inches of water per week. Since there[Read More…]
I have recently received calls from growers who use surface water to irrigate produce crops. Their concern was that the results of their current water tests were very different from their last tests and that levels of indicator organisms appeared to have increased dramatically. Ponds and lakes that are used for irrigation can be very[Read More…]