Irrigation and fertigation frequencies with nitrogen in the watermelon culture

Abstract

This study evaluates the influence of different irrigation frequencies and different nitrogen fertigation frequencies on the growth performance of the watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) culture. Two experiments were conducted at the Paraguay farm in the Cruz municipality, Ceará, Brazil. They was randomized blocks design with six treatments and four replications. The irrigation frequency experiment consisted of the application of different irrigation frequencies. The treatments were: DM - daily irrigation in the morning with 100% daily dosage; DT - daily irrigation in the afternoon, with 100% daily dosage; DMT - twice daily irrigation, with 50% daily dosage in the morning and 50% daily dosage in the afternoon; 2D - irrigation every two days; 3D - irrigation every three days and 4D - irrigation every four days. To the experiment with different nitrogen fertigation frequencies, the treatments used were: 2F - 2 fertigations in a cycle; 4F - 4 fertigations in a cycle; 8F - 8 fertigations in a cycle; 16F - 16 fertigations in a cycle; 32F - 32 fertigations in a cycle and 64F - 64 fertigations in a cycle. We evaluated the marketable yield (PC), fruit weight (M), polar diameter (DP), equatorial diameter (DE), shell thickness (EC) and soluble solids (SS). The irrigation frequency treatments influenced all variables significantly, with twice daily irrigation (DMT, 50% in the morning and the 50% in the afternoon) promoting the highest productivity (69.79 t ha-1). The different frequencies of fertigation also significantly influenced all variables, except for the shell thickness, the highest yield (80.69 t ha-1) being obtained with treatment 64 fertigations in a cycle.