Effects of Colored Water Pillows on Yield and Water Use Efficiency of Pepper (Capsicum annum L.) in Greenhouse Conditions

In this study, the effects of colored water pillows on yield and water use efficiency in Yalova Carliston and Demre Sivri long-type green pepper cultivars grown in greenhouse during summer were investigated, and compared to the drip irrigation method. Yield per hectare and per plant; number of fruits per plant and per square meter, and seasonal water consumption were determined. In both cultivars, the water pillows gave statistically higher values for the parameters investigated than the drip irrigation except for water consumption. Yield of Demre Sivri irrigated by white, blue and black water pillows were 73.7, 74.0 and 71.4 t ha(-1), respectively while it was 52.6 t ha(-1) for drip irrigation. Similarly, yield of Yalova Carliston was 56.0, 57.0 and 60.0 t ha(-1) for white, blue and black water pillows respectively, while it was 44.7 t ha(-1) for drip irrigation. The seasonal crop water consumption for the water pillows and drip irrigation were 461 and 584 mm in average, respectively. The results showed that irrigation with water pillows was more effective in terms of yield and water use efficiency than drip irrigation for pepper growing in greenhouse.