Sweet corn yield response to alternate furrow irrigation methods under different planting densities in a semi arid climatic condition

Abstract

A field study was conducted to investigate sweet corn variety KCS 403 performance for yield and yield components 
under treatments of every furrow irrigation (EFI), semi-alternate furrow irrigation (SAFI) and alternate furrow irrigation 
(AFI), with different planting densities in shallow and deep groundwater regimes. Plots under SAFI were irrigated 
every other furrow from sowing till six weeks, followed by full irrigation on every furrow till the end of growing season. 
Plots under EFI were irrigated every furrow throughout the growth period, while those under AFI were irrigated every 
other furrow throughout growth period. Results showed significant effects of the three irrigation regimes for fresh ear 
yield, 1000-kernel weight, ear diameter, cob diameter, number of kernel rows per ear, number of kernels per row, 
number of kernels per ear (all at p 0.01), and fresh ear weight (p 0.05). However, there was no significant difference on 
the effects between EFI and SAFI for all the traits measured in the study. This indicates that yield and yield 
components of sweet corn under SAFI treatment were comparable with those under EFI. Unexpectedly, fresh ear yield 
and number of kernels per ear were found to be significantly higher under SAFI at the density of eight plants per m2 
than the other irrigation treatment combinations. The results also revealed significant effects of planting densities for 
all the traits measured except fresh ear weight. Plants at lower density produced ears with higher quality, however the 
overall performance was found to be higher while the number of plants per unit area was higher. This might be due to 
the level of competition among the individual plants for water, sunlight and nutrients at the different planting 
densities. In general, sweet corn yield under SAFI at the density of eight plants per square meter was found to be 
same as those under EFI, with 30% less water supplied. It can be concluded that SAFI is a way to save water in arid 
and semi-arid areas where corn production relies heavily on repeated irrigation.