IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2017) 8-1

Research article
erd

Effect of Drip-Fertigation Intervals and Hand-Watering on
Tomato Growth and Yield
NARETH NUT*
Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, Royal University of Agriculture, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Email: nnareth@rua.edu.kh

SAMBATH SENG
Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, Royal University of Agriculture, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

MACHITO MIHARA
Faculty of Regional Environment Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Received 17 December 2016

Accepted 3 May 2017(*Corresponding Author)

Abstract Irrigation is vital to increase the crop yield or crop productivity. The research was
conducted in Royal University of Agriculture (RUA), Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in order tocompare the influence of different irrigation intervals and methods on plant development andyield of tomatoes. As replicated three times, the treatments designed in the experiment layout
included daily drip irrigation without fertilizer (T0), daily drip fertigation (T1), drip fertigationin every two days (T2), and (T3) daily hand-watering by applying the same amount of fertilizer
before planting. In the study, the quantity of water applied in each treatment was equal to 5.22
m3, or 20.88 m3 as a whole. The chemical fertilizers, 46-0-0 and 20-20-15, were only applied
for three treatments (T1, T2 and T3), and the total amount of fertilizers used was 7,662 g, or
2,554 g for each treatment, whereas T0 was not added with any fertilizer. The result illustrates
that T0, T1, T2 and T3 yielded 10.4 t/ha, 42.25 t/ha, 27.45 t/ha and 29.95 t/ha, respectively. The
average numbers of tomatoes in each treatment were 8, 22, 18 and 17 fruits per stem for T0, T1,
T2 and T3 respectively. Moreover, the stem growth rate and diameter growth rate was 63.36 cm
and 9.38 mm (T0), 84.81 cm and 12.03 mm (T1), 75.96 cm and 10.50 mm (T2) and 79.33 cm
and 11.10 mm (T3). Based on the experiment, it could be concluded that the application ofwater and nutrients to meet the crop needs without interrupting irrigation, as seen in T1, had
optimal effects on the growth and yield of tomatoes. Therefore, growers should irrigate crops
by focusing on the real crop needs for water and nutrient and should choose drip-fertigation
methods, which offers multiple benefits such as providing water effectively, reducing erosion
and loss of nutrients in the soil, making the ground slower in density, reducing grass, saving
time and water and increasing crop growth and yield.
Keywords drip-fertigation, hand-watering, effect, tomatoes, growth, yield, fertilizer

INTRODUCTION
Supplying an adequate amount of water is very important for plant growth; especially, when rainfall is
not sufficient, the plants must receive additional water from irrigation. There are various irrigation
methods that can be used to supply water to the plants. Each irrigation method has its own advantages
and disadvantages, so these should be taken into account when choosing the irrigation method which isbest suited to the local circumstances. A simple irrigation method is to bring water from the source of
supply, e.g. a well, to each plant with a bucket or a watering can (FAO, 2001). The drip irrigation
system is one of the most effective irrigation systems which can controll the water supply to theⒸ ISERD

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IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2017) 8-1

rootzone of the crops before the water is evaporated or run-off. This irrigation method is able to savewater and time, providing a certain amount of water to suit crop requirements. However, water content
in the soil must be taken into consideration before supplying the irrigation water as non-uniformity ofthe soil water content could lead to different crop productions (Hargreaves et al., 1998). Drip irrigation
is currently a suitable irrigation method for reducing the impact from drought to the agricultural
productivities. It can diversify and maximize crop productions through effective water management(GDA, 2016). Moreover, in the irrigation process, proper irrigation interval is very important tostrengthen the effective water use and crop productivities by providing a particular amount of water
based on the crop water need (Ismail et al., 2009).
Tomato is one of the most popular vegetable crop which is widely grown in the world. It belongs
to the genus Lycopersicon which is grown for its edible fruit (Jones, 1990). The fruit contains highlevels of vitamin A, B, C, E and nicotinic acid and is therefore an important source of vitamins. On the
average, the fruit contains 8% protein, 34% minerals (mainly K + Ca + and P), 48% total soluble
sugars, 9% citric acid and 0.5% vitamin. Tomato has a higher acreage than any vegetable crop in theworld and it requires a high water potential for both optimal vegetative and reproductive development
stages (Jones, 1990). The crop tolerates fairly acid soil and liming is unnecessary unless the soil pH isbelow 5. Well drained sandy loam is preferred by the crop. No horticultural crop has received more
attention and detailed study than tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum). Water deficit decreases tomato
growth, yield and quality (Byari and Al-Sayed, 1999). Therefore, proper water management is vital forsustainable crop production. In Cambodia, drip irrigation system is mainly used for fruit tree
plantations and some vegetable cultivation. Tomato is one of the crops which is suitable for drip
irrigation to produce a better yield (Sy, 2004).
OBJECTIVE
The research aims to compare the influence of different drip fertigation intervals and irrigation
methods with the diversed application of fertilizers on plant development and yield of tomatoes.
MATERIALS AND METHOD
Study area: The study was carried out at the Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, Royal University ofAgriculture (RUA), which is located at latitude of 11030’40.91” and longitude of 104054’01.24” fromJanuary 01, 2016 to April 30, 2016. Soil samples at the study area were taken to the laboratory to
determine pH = 7.10, Organic matter (OM) = 0.85%, Ec = 137.00 μS cm-1, Nitrogen (N) = 530.00
mg/kg, Phosphorus (P) = 109.60 mg/kg, and Potassium (K) = 180.00 mg/kg. Flow rate and operatingpressure before and after irrigation were measured with flow meters and a pressure gauge. The amountof water and fertilizers were applied equally in all treatments/plots. The total amount of irrigated water
was 20.88 m3, from which each treatment consumed 5.22 m3. The chemical fertilizers, 46-0-0 and 2020-15, were only applied for three treatments (T2, T3 and T4), and the total amount of fertilizers used
was 7,662 g, or 2,554 g for each treatment, whereas the control treatment (T 0) was not tested with any
fertilizer.
Experimental design: A Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) was applied. There were 12
plots and each plot size was 1 x 2.8 m. There were two rows in each plot with plant spacing of 0.4 x
0.8 m and plant population per plot was 16 plants. The experimental plots were divided into 4
treatments as the following:- Treatment T0 = Drip irrigation with no application of fertilizer (Control treatment)- Treatment T1 = Drip irrigation with daily application of fertilizers- Treatment T2 = Drip irrigation with every two days application of fertilizers- Treatment T3 = Daily hand-watering with application of fertilizer at the land preparationⒸ ISERD

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All treatments were irrigated in the morning and evening when the irrigation schedules wererequired.
Sample collection: Some parameters selected to analyze plant development/growth and yield werecollected during the experiment such as blooming period, stem diameter, stem height, and yield
including good and bad yields of the fruits.
Statistical analysis: Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was conducted on the data using XLSTAT
statistical package. The means were compared by applying Least Significant Difference (LSD) at test
5% probability level.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Blooming 50% and 100% of Tomatoes
The duration of 50% blooming was counted when the 6 plants per plot flowered and the period of
100% blooming was also counted when all plants reached full flowering..
Table 1 Effect of irrigation method on blooming period of tomatoes
Treatment
Treatment T0
Treatment T1
Treatment T2
Treatment T3
F-test probability
CV (%)

50% Blooming
56.33a47.33b53.66ab50.00ab
0.03
3.50

100% Blooming
63.66a50.66b
58.33ab54.33ab
0.03
2.70

Note: Different used alphabets indicate measurement is significantly different (p<0.05) from each other

Table 1 shows that the average blooming period of tomato plants in each treatment wassignificantly different. For the number of 50% blooming days, T 1 could produce the flowers within 47
days, which was faster compared to the other treatments. Meanwhile, T2 and T3 took 52 days, whereas
56-day flowering period was recorded in T0, and this period was the longest and differed significantlywith T1. Aside from these, the tomato plants took 51-64 days in order to produce 100% blooming
period. Based on the observation, the 100% blooming period were the same as the 50% blooming
period did. The different irrigation system could affect the blooming period of the tomatoes. T 1 hadquick flowering, but T2 had slower flowering, 6 days for 50% flowering and 7 days for 100%
flowering. Similarly, the research conducted by (Sionit, 1977) and (Kramer, 1983) on soybean foundthat if we retard the water to the plants, it might prolong the blooming period but also cause more
flower drop.
Stem Diameter and Height
Figures 1 and 2 illustrate the stem growth rate (stem height) and diameter growth rate (stem diameter)of all treatments: T0, T1, T2 and T3 which there were 63.36 cm and 9.38 mm, 84.81 cm and 12.03 mm,
75.96 cm and 10.50 mm and 79.33 cm and 11.10 mm, respectively. When the tomato plants were 3040 days old (5 days after applying fertilizer), each stem diameter and height in all treatments were notmuch significantly different. However, after 25 days of fertilizer application, the stem diameters andheight were steeply increased because it was the development stage of the crop, but the stem diametersand height increased slightly at the age of 70-90 days (flowering stage), which was the mid-season of
the crops. Moreover, irrigation systems highly affected the stem diameter and height of tomato crops,
as shown in figures below. After 45 days of planting, the stem diameter and height of tomatoes in T1Ⓒ ISERD

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were the greatest in comparison to the other treatments. This illustrates that the development of plant
diameter is parallel with the increase in stem height if the adequate amount of water and fertilizers areapplied regularly. Moreover, the differences in average stem diameter measured in each treatment
remained significant until the end of the harvesting time. The stem diameter grew rapidly in thedevelopment stage, but from the flowering stage till the end of harvesting time, its growth was retarded.

Fig. 1 Effect of irrigation on stem diameter

Fig. 2 Effect of irrigation on stem height

Having compared the average stem heights in all treatments, the findings show that T2 had greater
stem height than T3, but from day 60, the plants grown in T 3 was 2 cm higher than in T2. Cevik et al.,(1996) and Yazar et al., (1991) showed that insufficient irrigation scheduling based on the crop waterrequirements can reduce partly the development of plant growth. Moreover, Srinivas et al., (1989)
carried out the research on plant water relations, canopy temperature, yield and water-use efficiency ofwater melon Citrullus lanatus indicates that while the plants cannot be able to intake enough water, themoisture at the root zone is reduced, resulting in retardation of the plant development.
Yield of Tomatoes
a. Number of fruits: The count of tomato fruits per stem was done at the harvesting time by counting
the numbers of fruits out of 6 tomato stems in each treatment. Each fruit was identified and totaled
considerately. The average numbers of tomatoes in each treatment were 8, 22, 18 and 17 fruits per stem
for T0, T1, T2 and T3 respectively. These tomato fruits per stem collected from each treatment wereaffected by different irrigation as it was indicated in the Fig. 3 that T 1 could yield 22 fruits/stem,compared to other treatments.

Number of fruit per stem40
P < 0.05

30
20
10
0
T0

T1

T2

T3

Treatment

Fig. 3 Effect of irrigation on number of fruits

Fig. 4 Effect of irrigation on fruit yieldsⒸ ISERD

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However, there was no significant difference in tomato fruits per stem between T 2 and T3, while
the T0 yielded the lowest numbers of fruits which was only 8 fruits/stem and it was significantly
different in comparison to the other three Treatments. Candido et al., (1999) studied the effect ofirrigation regime on yield and quality of processing tomato cultivars found that inadequate applicationof water could retard the plant development and fruit size. Moreover, low soil moisture can cause
irregularity to plant physics as a result of dropping flowers and producing less flowers. Furthermore,
Ponce et al., (1996) indicated that all crops with stress problems may encounter stunted growth,lessening flowers to produce the fruit set.
b. Total tomato yield: Total tomato yield (Fig. 4) included good and bad yields of fruits which werecollected from all treatments. The Table 2 below illustrates the total yield of tomatoes during theexperiment, and the result indicates that different irrigation methods and irrigation intervals could
dramatically affect the yield of tomatoes.
Table 2 Effect of irrigation method and interval on tomato yield (t/ha)
Irrigation method
Treatment T0
Treatment T1
Treatment T2
Treatment T3

Tomatoes yield (t/ha)
10.40c42.25a27.45b
29.95bF-test probability

74.59

CV (%)

1.79

SE
0.08
0.56
0.31
0.28

Note: Different used alphabets indicate measurement is significantly different (p<0.05) from each other

The results show that T0, T1, T2 and T3 yielded 10.4 t/ha, 42.25 t/ha, 27.45 t/ha and 29.95 t/ha,
respectively. The highest yield of tomatoes (42.25 t/ha) obtained from the experiment was the T 1,
whereas the lowest yield (10.40 t/ha) obtained was the T0, while the T2 could produce the same yieldas the T3. Zhai, et al., (2010) studied the effects of drip irrigation regimes on tomato fruit yield andwater use efficiency found that the more the irrigation interval is prolonged or not often irrigated, thelower the yield would be. Moreover, the other research findings of Pasternak, et al., (1995) also
indicated that drip irrigation systems with daily fertilizer application provide higher yields, comparedto the same drip irrigation method with the application of fertilizer for 2-3 days per time.
CONCLUSION
Based on the experiment, it could be concluded that the drip-fertigation system is an effective irrigation
method to promote tomato growth and yield and it is easy to control the amount of fertilizer and water
applied to the crops. The application of water and nutrients to the crop needs without interrupting
irrigation as in T1 had optimal effects on growth and yield of tomatoes while it highly affected not only
the stem diameter, but also the height of tomatoes which after 45 days of planting, were the greatest incomparison to the T0, T2 and T3. Moreover, the tomato fruits per stem collected from each treatment
were also affected by different irrigation methods as T 1 could yield 22 fruits/stem. Furthermore, thehighest yield, 45.30 t/ha, could be obtained, if compared to the other Treatments and the average yieldof bad fruit was only 3.05 t/ha as the yield of T 3 was 29.95 t/ha and the yield of its bad fruit was 6.9
t/ha. Therefore, growers should irrigate crops by focusing on the real needs of the crop requirement andshould choose drip-fertigation methods, which offers multiple benefits such as providing water
effectively, reducing erosion and loss of nutrients in the soil, making the ground slower in density,
reducing grass, saving time and water and increasing crop growth and yield. Thus, farmers shouldⒸ ISERD

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apply this irrigation technique for their own cultivations and stop using the conventional hand-watering
as it may waste water and obtain low yields.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors would like to be grateful to lecturers and staff at the Faculty of Agricultural Engineering,
Royal University of Agriculture (RUA), for providing the place to conduct the experiment by giving
relevant data and assisting in the research.
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