Enhancement in water use efficiency and economic feasibility of mulching roll prepared from reusable plastic bags for growing rabi onion under drip irrigation

unknown. The cost of conventional black plastic is a constraint for small and marginal farmers under Badi cultivation. To address this issue, a field experiment was conducted at Raipur to study the enhancement in water use efficiency and economic feasibility of mulching roll prepared from reusable plastic materials for growing rabi onion. Eight types of mulching conditions (black plastic mulch-BPM, silver plastic mulch- SPM, reusable wheat flour bag mulch-WFBM, reusable rice bag mulch-RBM, reusable cement bag mulch- CBM, paddy straw mulch-PSM, soil mulch-SM and without mulch-WM (control)) having three replications in randomized block design (RBD) had been adopted. Irrigation was provided on the basis of evapotranspiration of crop at 100% ETc using modified Penman method. Maximum plant height, number of functional leaves per plant, polar diameter, equatorial diameter and maximum bulb yield was recorded in BPM in all the growth stage and minimum plant height, number of functional leaves per plant, polar diameter, equatorial diameter and minimum bulb yield of onion was recorded in WM condition as compare to other conditions. The maximum water use efficiency (1.13 q ha-1mm-1) was observed under BPM and the minimum water use efficiency (0.66q ha-1mm-1) under WM while the water use efficiency under SPM, WFBM, CBM, RBM, PSM and SM was found to be 1.11, 0.94, 0.90, 0.87, 0.78 and 0.72 q ha-1mm-1, respectively which was nearly 1.5 times the WM condition. Similarly, the benefit: cost ratio was found to be maximum under BPM (2.28) and minimum under WM (1.71) while the benefit: cost ratio was found to be 2.26, 2.21, 2.12, 2.06, 1.98 and 1.86, respectively under SPM, WFBM, CBM, RBM, PSM and SM condition. On the basis of study it can be concluded that low cost mulching roll can be prepared from reusable plastic material and can be utilized as mulches for enhancing water use efficiency and benefit:cost ratio particularly for small and marginal farmers under Badi cultivation.