Boosting Peach Production in Rainfed Areas of Punjab Through Mulching Techniques
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.38211/joarps.2024.05.263Keywords:
Mulching Peach Production, Punjab, RainfedAbstract
Mulching is an approach to cover soil around plants with materials like polyethylene sheets, organic matter or crop residues, gaining wide recognition for its capability to enhance soil moisture retention, regulate soil temperature and suppress weed growth. The experiment was conducted at Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute, Chakwal aimed at investigating the potential of mulching techniques to enhance peach production in rainfed areas of Punjab. The treatments were laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD), selecting two years old peach plants. The mulch treatments were polypropylene sheet, black plastic polyethene sheet, grass, gypsum amendment, and control (without any mulch). The results indicated a substantial improvement in mean soil moisture content, with the maximum enhancement observed in the treatment utilizing black sheet mulch (10.8% and 11.2%) followed closely by polypropylene sheet mulch (10% and 10.1%) in 1st and 2nd year respectively. Fruit yield, a critical parameter for assessing orchard productivity, exhibited the highest values in treatment unit comprising black sheet mulch, recording an impressive 27.2 kg plant-1. Conversely, the control showed the lowest fruit yield as 18.5 kg plant-1. These findings emphasize the significant potential of mulching techniques in optimizing soil moisture levels and augmenting peach fruit yield in rainfed areas. The study contributes into sustainable agricultural practices, illustrating the practical benefits of mulching strategies to improve water retention and overall orchard productivity in rain fed areas. This study will be helpful for policymakers, farmers, and researchers for adopting this technique in peach cultivation in rainfed areas of Punjab.
Downloads
References
Alex, D. and Thomas, S. (2011). Impact of product quality, service quality and contextual experience on customer perceived value and future buying intentions. European Journal of Business and Management.3(2), 307-215.
Altland, JE., Boldt, JK. and Krause, CC. (2016). Rice hull mulch affects germination of bittercress and creeping woodsorrel in container plant culture. American Journal of Plant Sciences. 7(16), 2359-2375
Ampofo, EA. (2018) Influence of organic mulches on soil physico-chemical properties and maize (Zea Mays L.) crop performance. Journal of Agricultural Studies.6(2):1.
Anonymous, (2022). Agricultural Statistics of Pakistan, http://www.amis.pk/agristatistics/Data/ html%20Final/Peach/Production.html.
Anzalone, A., Cirujeda, A., Aibar, J., Pardo, G., & Zaragoza, C. (2010). Effect of biodegradable mulch materials on weed control in processing tomatoes. Weed Technology, 24(3), 369-377.
Ayyogari, K., Sidhya, P., & Pandit, M. K. (2014). Impact of climate change on vegetable cultivation-a review. International Journal of Agriculture, Environment and Biotechnology, 7(1), 145-155.
Das, H., Kundu, C. K., Bandyopadhyay, P. K., Bandyopadhyay, S., & Bandopadhyay, P. (2018). Effect of mulching practices on growth and yield of forage crops under rainfed ecosystem. Journal of Applied and Natural Science, 10(1), 266-271.
DeVetter, L. W., Zhang, H., Ghimire, S., Watkinson, S., & Miles, C. A. (2017). Plastic biodegradable mulches reduce weeds and promote crop growth in day-neutral strawberry in western Washington. HortScience, 52(12), 1700-1706.
Downer, J. (2009). Mulch effects on trees. Western Arborist, 35, 30-34.
Ewere, C. O., Iseghohi, I. O., & Gold, E. J. (2017). Effects of different mulch materials on soil properties, weed control, growth and yield of pineapple in Akure, Nigeria. Fuoye J Agric Human Ecol, 1(2), 62-74. Gajri, P.R., Arora,V.K. and Chaudhary, M.R. (1994). Maize growth, response to deep tillage,straw mulching and farmyard manure in coarse textured soils of N.W. India. Soil Use and Management 10, 15–20.
Gupta, P., Bhat, D. J., Bakshi, P., Wali, V. K., Sharma, N., Arya, V. M., ... & Jasrotia, A. (2022). Mulching and herbicidal treatment impact on weed growth and performance of low chilling peach under sub-tropical condition. 77-84.
Hussain, S., Iqbal, M. M., Iqbal, M., Aziz, O., Murtaza, D. G., Iqbal, S., ... & Rasool, T. (2015). Effect of different irrigation practices and plastic mulch on water use efficiency, growth and yield of spring maize. Basic Res. J, 4.
Kumawat, A., Yadav, D., Samadharmam, K., & Rashmi, I. (2020). Soil and water conservation measures for agricultural sustainability. Soil moisture importance, 23.
Kaur, J., & Bons, H. K. (2017). Mulching: A viable option to increase productivity of field and fruit crops. Journal of Applied and Natural Science, 9(2), 974-982.
Khurshid, K., Iqbal, M., Arif, M.S., Nawaz, A., (2006). Effect of tillage and mulch on soil physical properties and growth of maize. Int. J. Agric. Biol. 5, 593–596.
Kumar, S., & Dey, P. (2011). Effects of different mulches and irrigation methods on root growth, nutrient uptake, water-use efficiency and yield of strawberry. Scientia Horticulturae, 127(3), 318-324.
Kumar, V., Naresh, R. K., Dwivedi, A., Kumar, A., Sahi, U. P., Singh, S. P., & Singh, V. (2015). Tillage and mulching effects on soil properties, yield and water productivity of wheat under various irrigation schedules in subtropical climatic conditions. Journal of Pure and Applied Microbiology. 9(2), 217-228.
Kumar, V., Singh, V. B., Sohan, Priyanka and Khajuria, S. (2014). Effect of various mulches on soil moisturecontent, soil properties, growth and yield of kinnow under rainfed ConditionInternational Journal of Agricultural Science, 10(1), 225-259.
Lalitha M Thilagam VK Balakrishnan N and Mansour M (2010) Effect of plastic mulch on soil properties and crop growth - a review. Agricultural Research Communication Centre. 31(2), 145-149.
Laulina, K., & Hasan, M. (2018). Soil temperature variation for different plastic mulches for capsicum crop under greenhouse condition. International Journal of Chemical Studies, 6(5), 3339-3342.
Li, B., Gao, J., Wang, X., Ma, L., Cui, Q., & Vest, M. (2016). Effects of biological soil crusts on water infiltration and evaporation Yanchi Ningxia, Maowusu Desert, China. International Journal of Sediment Research, 31(4), 311-323.
Li, S. X., Wang, Z. H., Li, S. Q., Gao, Y. J., & Tian, X. H. (2013). Effect of plastic sheet mulch, wheat straw mulch, and maize growth on water loss by evaporation in dryland areas of China. Agricultural water management, 116, 39-49.
Matković, A., Božić, D., Filipović, V., Radanović, D., Vrbničanin, S., & Marković, T. (2015). Mulching as a physical weed control method applicable in medicinal plants cultivations. Lekovite sirovine, (35), 37-51.
Mehmood, S., Rasool, T., Iqbal, M., Iqbal, M., Haq, I., Sohail, M., & Rehmani, M. I. A. (2015). Effect of plastic mulch and different irrigation practices on soil properties, nutrient contents and their availability in Maize. Journal of Environmental & Agricultural Sciences, 3, 35-41.
Pramanik, P., Bandyopadhyay, K. K., Bhaduri, D., Bhattacharyya, R., & Aggarwal, P. (2015). Effect of mulch on soil thermal regimes-a review. International Journal of Agriculture, Environment and Biotechnology, 8(3), 645-658.
Raza, A., Razzaq, A., Mehmood, S. S., Zou, X., Zhang, X., Lv, Y., & Xu, J. (2019). Impact of climate change on crops adaptation and strategies to tackle its outcome: A review. Plants, 8(2), 34.
Sikhandakasmita, P., Kataoka, I., Mochioka, R., & Beppu, K. (2022). Impact of temperatures during fruit development on fruit growth rate and qualities of ‘KU-PP2’Peach. The Horticulture Journal, 91(2), 152-156.
Sangakkara, U. R., Frehner, M., & Nösberger, J. (2000). Effect of soil moisture and potassium fertilizer on shoot water potential, photosynthesis and partitioning of carbon in mungbean and cowpea. Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science, 185(3), 201-207.
Shirgure, P.S. (2012). Sustainable acid lime fruit production and soil moisture conservation with different mulches. Agricultural Engineering Today,36(3):21-26
Sagar, L., Singh, S., & Sindhu, L. (2020). Impact of mulching in improving soil properties and crop performance An Introspect. Biosc. Biotech. Res. Comm. (13), 178-184.
Suo, G. D., Xie, Y. S., Zhang, Y., & Luo, H. (2019). Long-term effects of different surface mulching techniques on soil water and fruit yield in an apple orchard on the Loess Plateau of China. Scientia horticulturae, 246, 643-651.
Sharma, A., Pandya, Y. H., & Bakshi, M. (2022). Mulching: Its effect on fruit productivity and soil health: A review. The Pharma Innovation Journal 2022; SP-11(6): 1106-1109.
Thakur, A., Singh, H., Jawandha, S. K., & Kaur, T. (2012). Mulching and herbicides in peach: Weed biomass, fruit yield, size, and quality. Biological Agriculture & Horticulture, 28(4), 280-290.
Tapiwa, K. A. (2019). Assessing the effect of cattle manure and reduced rates of nitrogen (N) and potassium (K2 O) as integrated nutrient management options on growth and yield of potatoes. International Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 7(4), 21-27. 21-27.
Vashisht, B. B., Sidhu, B. S., Satvinder Singh, S. S., & Nilesh Biwalkar, N. B. (2013). Effect of different mulches on soil erosion and carry-over of residual soil moisture for sowing of rabi crop in maize-wheat cropping sequence in rainfed Shivaliks of Punjab. 41(2), 136-140.
Wang, H., Wang, C., Zhao, X., & Wang, F. (2015). Mulching increases water-use efficiency of peach production on the rainfed semiarid Loess Plateau of China. Agricultural Water Management, 154, 20-28.
Yaghi, T., Arslan, A., & Naoum, F. (2013). Cucumber (Cucumis sativus, L.) water use efficiency (WUE) under plastic mulch and drip irrigation. Agricultural Water Management, 28, 149-157.
Zaman, W.U., Arshad, M., Saleem, A., (2001). Distribution of nitrate nitrogen in the soil profile under different irrigation methods. International Journal of Agriculture and Biology 2, 208–209
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Muhammad Yunas, Majid Rahim, Riffat Bibi, Azhar Mahmood Aulakh, Waqas Naseem, Safia Naureen Malik, Sultan Ahmad Rizvi, Obaid-ur Rehman
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
