Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1
Department of Horticulture Science and Agronomy, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
2
Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran.
3
Dry Land Agricultural Research Institute (DARI), Maragheh, Iran.
4
Department of Plant Biotechnology, National Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (NIGEB), Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) is one of the drought-tolerant vegetable crops, however, recently climate change has had a devastating impact on crop cultivation in many parts of Iran. The present research aimed to investigate the application of date straw mulches (DSM) and plastic mulches (PM) on yield and morphological and physiological characters of the plant under different crop water requirements. A split-split plot experiment using an RCB design with three replications in Rodan, Hormozgan, Iran at 2017. The three levels of crop water requirement (CWR), i.e. 40, 70, and 100%, the two levels of DSM (i.e. control and DSM), and the three levels of PM (i.e. 0, 100, and 120 cm in soil depths), were allocated in the main, sub and sub-sub plots, respectively. The results of the analysis of variance revealed that the triple- interaction effects of the DSM, PM, and CWR were statically significant for all traits (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). However, none of the simple and interactions effects were not statically significant for leaf length and width. The results revealed that 40% of CWR reduced the yield by 49% compared with 100% CWR. Also, the application of the DSM and PM alleviated the deleterious effects of water deficit. Finally, the application of the mulches is recommended for eggplant in areas affected by water shortages.
Keywords
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