Irrigation management effect on greenpepper production using moderately saline water

Abstract

Greenpepper is of great importance for Brazil, particularly in communal farms and in the semi-arid region. The objective of this work was to evaluate the greenpepper production under different conditions of irrigation frequency, soil cover and irrigation depths, using water with electrical conductivity of 1.2 dS m^-1 in Fluvic Neossol from the semi-arid northeast. The research was carried out in a greenhouse, in PVC columns, using completely randomized block design, in a 2 x 2 x 2 factorial, with two irrigation depths (0.80 and 1.20 ETc), two irrigation frequencies (1 and 2 days), and two soil cover densities with corn residues (0 and 1000 kg ha^-1). The irrigation depth of 80% of crop evapotranspiration, associated to soil cover and daily irrigation, produced fruits significantly heavier than the treatments adopting leaching depths, and without producing significant increase in the soil salinity at the end of the cropping period. The treatment with depth of 80% ETc, using soil cover, and adopting irrigation frequency of 2 days, produced plants taller than the other ones. Such results are promising, particularly for areas subject to water deficits.