Effect of Deficit Irrigation on Yield, Fruit Quality and Water Use Efficiency of Grapes cv. Turkmen-4

IntroductionWater is a critical factor for the growth and fruiting of the grapevines. Considering the water scarcity crisis in Iran and most parts of the world in recent years, it is necessary to apply methods such as deficit irrigation for the optimal management of water use in agriculture. It has been determined that by deliberately reducing water consumption in vineyards, it is possible to preserve the existing water resources and improve the water use efficiency. Materials and MethodsA research was carried out in summer 2023 in a randomized complete block design with three replications on 8-year-old vines of the Turkmen-4 variety, to investigate the effect of deficit irrigation levels on the quantitative and qualitative traits and water use efficiency of grapevines. The vines were planted with 2 x 4 meter intervals, were trained as a vertical trellis on a bilateral cordon system, and the vineyard was irrigated by drip irrigation. The experimental treatments included full irrigation (providing 100% of vine water requirement; as control), 25% deficit irrigation (providing 75% of vine water requirement) and 50% deficit irrigation (providing 50% of vine water requirement). Irrigation of the vineyard started from May 22 and continued until November 6 at 7-day intervals, according to the conventional procedure. The water requirement of each vine in non-stressed condition was calculated by a class A evaporation pan based on reference crop evapotranspiration (ETo) and crop coefficient (Kc) throughout the season. Then, the amount of water for each treatment was determined according to the irrigation levels in the treatments and applied in volume form. Results and DiscussionThe amounts of water consumption of control, 25% and 50% deficit irrigation treatments were 5140, 3855 and 2570 m3 per hectare, respectively. The results showed that irrigation levels had a significant effect on the berries length, berries diameter, cluster length, cluster width, berries weight, cluster weight, sugar percentage, chlorophyll index, relative water content, midday leaf water potential, vegetative growth, vine yield, yield index and water use efficiency. The 25% and 50% deficit irrigation treatments caused a decrease of 7.2% and 14.2% of the berry length compared to full irrigation, respectively. Also, these treatments caused a reduction of 8.3% and 13.9% of the berry diameter, respectively. While the 25% deficit irrigation treatment had no significant effect on the berries sugar content (°Brix), the 50% deficit irrigation treatment caused a significant decrease (5%) in sugar content compared to the control. Both relative water content and midday water potential of the leaves decreased significantly with the reduction of irrigation levels. Reducing the level of irrigation led to a significant decrease in the SPAD index and vine vegetative growth. Increasing the intensity of deficit irrigation had a significant negative effect on yield components including berry weight, cluster weight, vine yield and yield index. The highest and lowest yields were obtained from full irrigation and 50% deficit irrigation, respectively but the effect of 25% deficit irrigation on yield reduction was not significant. Although the 25% and 50% deficit irrigation treatments caused a 5.8% and 27.5% decrease in vine yield, respectively but these treatments increased water use efficiency by 34% and 44.5%, respectively compared to the control. The lowest water use efficiency was related to the control (3.53 kg of fresh fruit per cubic meter of water used), while the water use efficiency of vines under 25% and 50% deficit irrigation was 4.73 and 5.10 kg of fruit per cubic meter of water, respectively. The 25% and 50% deficit irrigation treatments had a statistically significant difference with the control in terms of water use efficiency, but the difference between the two was not significant. ConclusionIn the present study, reducing the volume of irrigation water led to a decrease in vine yield, but what is important is the low yield reduction rate compared to the amount of water consumption. The decrease in vine yield was 5.8% and 27.5%, respectively with a 25% and 50% decrease in water consumption. Also, with 25% and 50% reduction in water consumption, the yield index decreased by 6.1% and 27.3%, respectively. Meanwhile, the water use efficiency of vines increased by 34% and 44.5% in response to 25% and 50% deficit irrigation treatments, respectively. It is recommended to apply 25% deficit irrigation to increase the water use efficiency of Turkmen-4 grapes in climatic conditions of Malayer, but 50% deficit irrigation leads to a decrease in quality of grapes.