Effect Of Mixed Ratio Of Awash Water With The Water Of Beseka Lake On Yield Of Tomato (Lycpersicon Esculentum Mill) In The Central Rift Valley Of Ethiopia

Abstract

Irrigation water is an essential element in agricultural practice for the availability of irrigation water, pasture, and fiber production, particularly in the semi-arid and arid regions. Quality of irrigation water has an adverse effect on soil and crop performance. This study was undertaken to evaluate and identify a suitable mixed ratios of Lake Beseka water with Awash River water on growth, yield, and quality of tomato. Five mixed irrigation levels of Lake Beseka and Awash River water (2:98, 3:97, 5:95, 8:92, and 10:90) and a control (0:100), respectively were used as a treatment. The treatments were arranged in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The water analyses for the Awash River water during the cropping season indicated an ECw with 0.30 dS/m, SAR with 7.06, pH with 7.64, and RSC with 0.24 meq/l which was within the safe limit for irrigation purpose. While Beseka water quality had an ECw with 5dS/m, pH with 9.50, SAR with 103.06, and RSC with 21.40 which was not safe for irrigation purposes. Each treatment was replicated three times and arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design. Plant height, number of branches per plant, number fruit per plant, and yield at harvest time were recorded. The different blended irrigation water had a highly significant (p< 0.01) effect on plant growth and yield of tomatoes. Control treatment gave the highest plant height, yield, and yield parameters and had no significant difference with the blended irrigation water up to 5% lake Beseka water. The lowest crop yield and yield parameters were obtained from the mix ratio of 10:90 and 8:92 Beseka to Awash River water, respectively. soil salinity increased with increasing the amount of saline water with irrigation water i.e., increasing Lake Beseka in mixed ratio. The max soil quality parameter was obtained from 10:90 and 8:92 Beseka water with Awash River water applied plot (ESP=14.5%,14.2% and pH=8.6,8.5). This might decrease nutrients availability with increasing soil solution which decreases the quality of crop yield, degrading soil structure sod-city effect. Hence, mixing Lake Beseka with Awash River up to 5:95% respectively is safe for growing tomatoes and on soil propriety in the central rift valley of Ethiopia.