Abstract
In the context of a growing population in West Africa and frequent yield losses due to erratic rainfall, it is necessary to improve stability and productivity of agricultural production systems, e.g., by introducing and assessing the potential of alternative irrigation strategies which may be applicable in this region. For this purpose, five irrigation management strategies, ranging from no irrigation (NI) to controlled deficit irrigation (CDI) and full irrigation (FI), were evaluated concerning their impact on the inter-seasonal variability of the expected yields and improvements of the yield potential. The study was conducted on a maize crop (Zea mays L.) at a representative site in northern Togo with a hot semi-arid climate and pronounced dry and wet rainfall seasons. The OCCASION (Optimal Climate Change Adaption Strategies in Irrigation) framework was adapted and applied. It consists of: (i) a weather generator for simulating long climate time series; (ii) the AquaCrop model, which was used to simulate the irrigation system during the growing season and the yield response of maize to the considered irrigation management strategies; and (iii) a problem-specific algorithm for optimal irrigation scheduling with limited water supply. We found high variability in rainfall during the wet season which leads to considerable variability in the expected yield for rainfed conditions (NI). This variability was significantly reduced when supplemental irrigation management strategies (CDI or FI) requiring a reasonably low water demand of about 150 mm were introduced. For the dry season, it was shown that both irrigation management strategies (CDI and FI) would increase yield potential for the local variety TZEE-W up to 4.84 Mg/ha and decrease the variability of the expected yield at the same time. However, even with CDI management, more than 400 mm of water is required if irrigation would be introduced during the dry season in northern Togo. Substantial rainwater harvesting and irrigation infrastructures would be needed to achieve that.
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Claims 5
Claim · model-written summary
Wet-season rainfed expected yield varied considerably with rainfall.
- Treatment
- rainfed conditions (NI)e0
- Outcome
- variability in the expected yielde0
- Direction
- considerable variabilitye0
- Setting
- wet seasone0
Zea maysOrganisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“high variability in rainfall during the wet season which leads to considerable variability in the expected yield for rainfed conditions (NI)”
e1“maize crop (Zea mays L.)”
Claim · model-written summary
Supplemental irrigation significantly reduced wet-season expected-yield variability.
- Treatment
- supplemental irrigation management strategies (CDI or FI)e0
- Outcome
- variabilitye0
- Direction
- reducede0
- Value
- about 150 mme0
- Comparator
- NIe0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“rainfed conditions (NI). This variability was significantly reduced when supplemental irrigation management strategies (CDI or FI) requiring a reasonably low water demand of about 150 mm were introduced”
e1“maize crop (Zea mays L.)”
Claim · model-written summary
Dry-season CDI and FI would increase TZEE-W yield potential up to 4.84 Mg/ha.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“both irrigation management strategies (CDI and FI) would increase yield potential for the local variety TZEE-W up to 4.84 Mg/ha”
e1“maize crop (Zea mays L.)”
Claim · model-written summary
Dry-season CDI and FI would decrease expected-yield variability.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“both irrigation management strategies (CDI and FI) would increase yield potential for the local variety TZEE-W up to 4.84 Mg/ha and decrease the variability of the expected yield at the same time”
e1“maize crop (Zea mays L.)”
Claim · model-written summary
Dry-season CDI would require more than 400 mm of irrigation water.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“even with CDI management, more than 400 mm of water is required if irrigation would be introduced during the dry season in northern Togo”
e1“maize crop (Zea mays L.)”
The same questions in other papers
irrigation · yield · Zea mays (maize)Positive and negative results
790 papers in the same direction as this paper · 209 in the opposite direction · 16 reporting no difference from an alternative
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