Approaches for enhancing water productivity in horticulture crops

Increasing productivity of fruits and vegetables along with efficient water utilization is a huge challenge at various levels and proper water management practices need to be standardized and practiced. A scientific basis for replenishing moisture in root zone at different stages of plant growth has to be standardized under micro irrigation system. The moisture distribution pattern at root zone needs to be studied properly for different crop-soil combinations for attaining higher water efficiency. Experiments for exploring micro irrigation systems rather than conventional methods for high yield need special attention. Proper irrigation scheduling and frequency needs to be established and standardized in different horticultural crops under varied climate and soil conditions. It is important to evolve water utilization techniques for arid and semi-arid zones where water scarcity along with saline soil is a massive problem.