Response of guava to integrated nutrient and water management

Micro irrigation and fertigation supplemented with plastic mulch has proven to be the best to mitigate water scarcity. Calibrated systems and calculative irrigation and fertigation doses were tested for studying the effciency of provided water and nutrients under different mulching treatments in guava cv VNR Bihi. The experiment was executed at Horticulture Research Center of G.B.P.U.A&T Pantnagar, during the years 2017 and 2018. The experimental plants of four years old were irrigated as well as fertigated with a drip system having four emitters per plant of eight litre/hour (LPH) capacity. Three levels each of drip irrigation (100%, 80% and 60% CPE) and fertigation (100%, 80% and 60% RDF) and two levels of mulching (with and without use of silver-black plastic mulching 100 µ) were set for the experiment. Among the different levels of irrigation and fertigation, 100 per cent recommended dose of fertilizers (RDF) with drip irrigation at 80% (CPE) along with Silver-black plastic mulch improved the yield (52.55 kg/tree), no of fruits per plant (89.77), fruit weight (585.36 g), TSS (10.57 ºB), ascorbic acid (267.13 mg/100g), total sugars (7.78%) and leaf N (1.49%), P (0.46%), K (0.80%) and Zn (65.37 ppm) contents. WUE and FUE were 72.71 kg.ha⁻¹.mm⁻¹ and 84.87 kg/ha, respectively. Treatment combinations of mulching with drip irrigation at 60% CPE along with 100 RDF revealed the highest WUE of 81.83 kg.ha⁻¹ mm⁻¹. Similarly. treatment combination of mulching with drip irrigation at 80% CPE and 60% RDF recorded FUE to the tune of 107.11 kg.ha⁻¹.