Increasing Irrigation Water Use Efficiency by Adding Soil Conditioner to Improve Vegetative Growth, Fruit Quality and Yield on Flame Seedless Grapevines Under Water Stress Conditions

Abstract

T HE trial was conducted during the four successive seasons of 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 in a vineyard in the El-Khatatba region, Lat. 29:92 o , Long. 30.93 o to study the influence of Irrigation scheduling and hundz soil substance to improve water use efficiency, vegetative growth, fruit quality and yield of Flame Seedless grapevines grown in sandy soil. Seven-year-old vines in sandy soil were chosen, spaced at 2 x 3 meters, irrigated by the surface drip irrigation system, and trellised by the Spanish Parron system. The experiment was designed to study the effects of different rates from soil conditioners, Hundz soil, (0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2 kg/ vine) under irrigation levels at 70, 85, and 100% IWR. Hundz soil was applied to the soil under drip irrigation lines yearly. The Results showed that hundz soil substances 2 kg/vine plus an irrigation level at 85%IWR was effective in improving bud burst, bud fertility percentage, shoot length, number of leaves /shoot, and leaf area as well as enhancing yield per vine, cluster weight, berry weight, soluble solids content, and total anthocyanin while ,reducing total acidity in berries compared with irrigation level alone in four seasons of study. Additionally, water use efficiency (WUE) was improved at irrigation level at 70% IWR with 2 kg/vine and, it can save about 15% of water to achieve the same yield and fruit quality, according to the availability of water due to addition of hundz soil substances, especially under drip irrigation.