Assessment of crop water requirement of field pea (Pisum sativum L.) in foothills valley areas of Manipur, North East India

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the evapotranspiration in field pea (Pisum sativum L.) in foothills valley areas of Manipur using the Hargreaves-Samani equation to predict the plant water demand. The crop coefficient (Kc) values ranged between 0.45 and 1.28 during the crop growth stages of field pea for the five crop seasons (2013-18). The average five-year effective rainfall was estimated to be 59.0 mm, with standard deviation (SD±) ranging between 4.4 to 35.1 mm. The average crop water requirement for field pea was estimated to be 221.0 mm and the average water demand for different crop growth stages of field pea was estimated to be 20.0 mm (initial stage), 52.0 mm (development stage), 100.0 mm (mid-season) and 49.0 mm (late season). Thus, the information generated may help in effective management of crop water requirements for sustainable crop production including field pea in the region.

Keywords

• Crop coefficient
• reference evapotranspiration
• crop evapotranspiration
• effective rainfall