Improving Water Use and Sugarcane Yield Using Irrigation Strategies in Nicaragua
One of the greatest challenges in crop science worldwide is balancing crop production and water management. In the context of sustainability and vertical production growth, understanding water relations is fundamental for improving crop management in irrigated and rainfed sugarcane fields. Adequate...
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MDPI AG
2025-05-01
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| author | Rafael Menezes Pereira Felipe Schwerz Adriano Valentim Diotto Carolina Altamirano Oñate Marlon Daniel Vargas Sandoval Braulio Otomar Caron Bernardo Cândido |
| author_facet | Rafael Menezes Pereira Felipe Schwerz Adriano Valentim Diotto Carolina Altamirano Oñate Marlon Daniel Vargas Sandoval Braulio Otomar Caron Bernardo Cândido |
| author_sort | Rafael Menezes Pereira |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | One of the greatest challenges in crop science worldwide is balancing crop production and water management. In the context of sustainability and vertical production growth, understanding water relations is fundamental for improving crop management in irrigated and rainfed sugarcane fields. Adequate irrigation management can improve water use efficiency and agronomic performance. Nicaragua, due to its limited research and information on irrigation, has significant opportunities to increase crop yields and enhance water efficiency. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the response of sugarcane growth, yield, and water use efficiency under different irrigation management strategies. The study was performed in a field area from Casur Sugarcane mill in Nicaragua during the crop cycle 2021/2022. The experimental area was cultivated in high clay soil, with the variety CP72-2086 in the second cut with the furrow irrigation method. Two treatments were evaluated, irrigation based on soil moisture (ISw) and irrigation with fixed intervals (IFI), and their effect on growth variables and crop yield. On a temporal analysis, the plants showed compensatory growth in IFI, recovering from water-deficit stress in most measured variables. Sugarcane yield was statistically different between the treatments with 97.87 and 83.84 Mg ha<sup>−1</sup> for ISw and IFI, respectively. The water use efficiency was similar for both irrigation strategies. Based on the results found by the authors, it is recommendable to manage irrigation based on soil moisture content because of the best growth response and sugarcane yield. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-d804712d30d94e65ad87e9189e315f3f |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2624-7402 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | AgriEngineering |
| spelling | doaj-art-d804712d30d94e65ad87e9189e315f3f2025-08-20T03:14:42ZengMDPI AGAgriEngineering2624-74022025-05-017516210.3390/agriengineering7050162Improving Water Use and Sugarcane Yield Using Irrigation Strategies in NicaraguaRafael Menezes Pereira0Felipe Schwerz1Adriano Valentim Diotto2Carolina Altamirano Oñate3Marlon Daniel Vargas Sandoval4Braulio Otomar Caron5Bernardo Cândido6Compañía Azucarera del Sur—CASUR, Carretera Panamericana, Potosí, Rivas 48300, NicaraguaDepartment of Agricultural Engineering, Federal University of Lavras, Lavras 37200-000, MG, BrazilDepartment of Water Resources, Federal University of Lavras, Lavras 37200-000, MG, BrazilCompañía Azucarera del Sur—CASUR, Carretera Panamericana, Potosí, Rivas 48300, NicaraguaCompañía Azucarera del Sur—CASUR, Carretera Panamericana, Potosí, Rivas 48300, NicaraguaDepartment of Agronomic and Environmental Sciences, Federal University of Santa Maria, Frederico Westphalen 98400-000, RS, BrazilCollege of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USAOne of the greatest challenges in crop science worldwide is balancing crop production and water management. In the context of sustainability and vertical production growth, understanding water relations is fundamental for improving crop management in irrigated and rainfed sugarcane fields. Adequate irrigation management can improve water use efficiency and agronomic performance. Nicaragua, due to its limited research and information on irrigation, has significant opportunities to increase crop yields and enhance water efficiency. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the response of sugarcane growth, yield, and water use efficiency under different irrigation management strategies. The study was performed in a field area from Casur Sugarcane mill in Nicaragua during the crop cycle 2021/2022. The experimental area was cultivated in high clay soil, with the variety CP72-2086 in the second cut with the furrow irrigation method. Two treatments were evaluated, irrigation based on soil moisture (ISw) and irrigation with fixed intervals (IFI), and their effect on growth variables and crop yield. On a temporal analysis, the plants showed compensatory growth in IFI, recovering from water-deficit stress in most measured variables. Sugarcane yield was statistically different between the treatments with 97.87 and 83.84 Mg ha<sup>−1</sup> for ISw and IFI, respectively. The water use efficiency was similar for both irrigation strategies. Based on the results found by the authors, it is recommendable to manage irrigation based on soil moisture content because of the best growth response and sugarcane yield.https://www.mdpi.com/2624-7402/7/5/162<i>Saccharum officinarum</i>water managementcompensatory growthsoil moisturefurrow irrigation |
| spellingShingle | Rafael Menezes Pereira Felipe Schwerz Adriano Valentim Diotto Carolina Altamirano Oñate Marlon Daniel Vargas Sandoval Braulio Otomar Caron Bernardo Cândido Improving Water Use and Sugarcane Yield Using Irrigation Strategies in Nicaragua AgriEngineering <i>Saccharum officinarum</i> water management compensatory growth soil moisture furrow irrigation |
| title | Improving Water Use and Sugarcane Yield Using Irrigation Strategies in Nicaragua |
| title_full | Improving Water Use and Sugarcane Yield Using Irrigation Strategies in Nicaragua |
| title_fullStr | Improving Water Use and Sugarcane Yield Using Irrigation Strategies in Nicaragua |
| title_full_unstemmed | Improving Water Use and Sugarcane Yield Using Irrigation Strategies in Nicaragua |
| title_short | Improving Water Use and Sugarcane Yield Using Irrigation Strategies in Nicaragua |
| title_sort | improving water use and sugarcane yield using irrigation strategies in nicaragua |
| topic | <i>Saccharum officinarum</i> water management compensatory growth soil moisture furrow irrigation |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2624-7402/7/5/162 |
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