David Kimani Muigai, Richard N Onwonga, George N Karuku , and Abdullahi Mohammed, from the different institute of the Kenya. wrote a research article about, Assessing Maize Yield Under Different Water Depletion Levels in Bura Irrigation Scheme, Kenya. Entitled, Evaluating maize performance under varying water depletion levels in bura irrigation scheme, Kenya. This research paper published by the International Journal of Agronomy and Agricultural Research (IJAAR). an open access scholarly research journal on Agronomy. under the affiliation of the International Network For Natural Sciences | INNSpub. an open access multidisciplinary research journal publisher.
Abstract
Sufficient soil
moisture in the root zone is critical for optimal crop development. Excess or
deficit water leads to reduced crop growth and yields. A field study was done
to determine the effect of available water on performance of PH4 maize variety
on sandy clay loam soil at Bura Irrigation Scheme, eastern Kenya. Three water
depletion level treatments T75, T50 and T25 laid in Randomized Complete Block
Design (RCBD) were used during 2015 long rain (March to June) and 2016 short
rain (October to December) seasons. Irrigation was undertaken when 25% (T75),
50% (T50) and 75% (T25) of available water capacity (AWC) was depleted,
respectively. Canopy cover, above ground biomass and grain yield was used as
indicators of maize performance. Treatments T75 and T50 had no significance
difference among them but both had significantly (P ≤ 0.05) higher above ground
biomass, canopy cover, stover and grain yield compared to T25. Maize
performance showed a positive linear relationship with the quantity of
irrigation water applied up to a certain optimal quantity. Additional
irrigation water used in T75 treatment gave slightly higher yields though
statistically insignificant compared to T50 treatment. Higher Water Use
Efficiency (WUE) was recorded in T75 than T50. Supplemental irrigation at 50%
AWC is recommended for the scheme as it gives high yields and is safe on water
compared to T75.
Introduction
Globally, irrigation provides 60% of cereal produced and uses over 70% of global fresh water (FAO, 2003). With the expected future global increase in food and fibre demands and water scarcity, more pressure will be put on the available fresh water resources. Every available drop of water therefore needs to be prudently used to increase crop production (UN, 2016). The potential for increasing maize production in SSA is huge but unfortunately, maize production has been on the decline, getting as low as 1.5 Tonha-1 (You et al., 2012). One of the major contributing factors to this poor performance is water. Challenges in its availability and efficient use especially at farm level have immensely contributed to the low yields. This is the situation replicated in the study area and in many other irrigation schemes in Kenya (Ali, 2012; Koech, 2014). For instance, irrigation land in the Scheme totals 5,360ha though only 3,340ha are currently under irrigation due to inadequate water supply (Scheme Management-2015). Improvement of WUE in the scheme would mean possible use of less water or the same amount of available water to produce more food by irrigating more land. Maize production in the scheme currently stands at 3.5Mgha-1 for commercial farm and 4.4Mgha-1 for seed maize. This falls below the global average of 4.9Mgha-1 (Edgerton, 2009). It is also well below the attainable yield of 6Mgha-1 or more with hybrid maize varieties and application of recommended fertilizer rates (Kang’ethe, 2004; Republic of Kenya, 1997; 2004).
To change this trend and
produce more food with less water, increased attention to water management
comprising monitoring and measurement at all stages of the irrigation value
chain is key. This means that water conservation practices will become the
focus of renewed research to maximize on irrigation water. Sustainable water
management practices may in future reduce the irrigation demand for water and
spare some for use in expansion of irrigated land and other competing sectors.
It is in this light that this study was carried out to improve Kenya’s
agricultural water resource management through understanding yield potentials
and exploiting gaps in present irrigated maize (Zea mays L.) production.
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