PERFORMANCE OF GRAPEVINES UNDER IRRIGATION SYSTEMS - Management, Performance, and Applications of Micro Irrigation Systems - page 290

FIGURE 26 Economic cost for each irrigation system.

20.4 SUMMARY
The field research was conducted during two successful growing seasons 2002/2003
and 2003/2004 at the Experimental Farm of Agriculture Faculty of Ain Shams Univer-
sity. It is located at Shalaqan village 1 km from El Kanater El Khairea District, Qalubia
Governorate. Three years old grapevines (700 vines.fed -1 ) were irrigated using drip
irrigation system (DIS), low head bubbler irrigation system (LHBIS) and gated pipes
irrigation system (GPIS). Soil at site represents the Nile alluvial, and silty clay loam.
Irrigation requirements were calculated according to the procedures by Nakayama et
al. [33]. The objectives of this research were: to encourage replacing the surface irriga-
tion system by a localized irrigation systems in the old lands of the Delta and Valley
in Egypt; increase the water and fertilizers use efficiencies; study the changes in some
soil physical properties; and to study the performance of grapevines for three irriga-
tion systems. Data obtained were subjected to statistical analysis. Also, the costs were
economically evaluated.
The irrigation systems in this study can be arranged in the ascending order
GPIS<LHBIS<DIS, according to the values of the water intake rate (IR) into the soil
during 2002/2003. According to the average soil salinity, the irrigation systems can be
arranged in ascending order LHBIS<DIS=GPIS and LHBIS=DIS<GPIS at the begin-
ning and end of seasons, respectively. Differences in soil moisture percentage between
any two irrigation systems were signifi cant at 5% level except that between LHBIS
and DIS before irrigation.
For the two seasons 2002/2003 and 2003/2004, the leaf area differences between
any two irrigation systems were signifi cant at 5% level. The increase in leaf area for
the 2nd season compared to the 1st season was 5.2, 4.1 and 1.8% for DIS, LHBIS and
GPIS, respectively. The differences in leaf dry weight between any two irrigation sys-