Abstract:
This study was conducted to determine the effects o
f different lateral spacings and
wetting factors on the yield and yield components o
f drip-irrigated potato under the
Middle Anatolian climatic conditions in Konya, Turk
ey. The experiments were carried
out during the growth seasons of 2008 and 2009. The
Russet Burbank potato variety was
used as a plant material in this study. The irrigat
ion design treatments consisted of two
different lateral spacings (A
1
= 0.7 m and A
2
= 1.4 m) and three different wetting factors
(P
1
= 1.0, P
2
= 0.5, and P
3
: A variable percentage of the wetted area dependin
g on the
lateral spacing). The results showed that the total
amounts of applied irrigation water
ranged from 297 to 625 mm and from 288 to 598 mm in
2008 and 2009, respectively.
Considering the average yields for the two years, t
he highest tuber yield (50.87 t ha
–1
) was
obtained from the A
1
P
1
treatment, and the lowest tuber yield (27.37 t ha
–1
) was obtained
from the A
2
P
3
treatment. It was found that the different lateral
spacings and wetting
factors statistically affected the mean tuber weigh
t, the number of tubers per plant, the
tuber diameter, the tuber size, and the marketable
tuber yield (P< 0.01). The highest
Water Use Efficiency (WUE) and Irrigation Water Use E
fficiency (IWUE) calculated
were 7.78 and 9.40 kg m
−3
, respectively,
in the A
1
P
3
treatment. A single lateral design for
two crop rows resulted in less income than one late
ral design for each crop row for drip-
irrigated marketable potatoes.
Keywords:
Konya Plain, Lateral spacing, Percentage of wetted
area, Water use efficiency.
