The Effect of Irrigation Frequency and Amount on the Growth and Yield of Kale (Brassica Oleracea var. Acephala)

Abstract— A study was conducted in which Kale (Brassica oleracea var. Acephala) was grown in a Randomized Block Design experiment at the Faculty of Agriculture at Luyengo Campus of the University of Eswatini to compare five different irrigation frequencies (treatments) on the production of kale. The five treatments were: Treatment 0 (T0) the control irrigated daily – applying 5.0 mm, treatment 1 (T1) irrigated after two days, treatment 2 (T2) irrigated after three days, treatment 3 (T3) irrigated after four days and treatment 4 (T4) irrigated after five days. Two litre (2 L) soft drink plastic bottles were used as the irrigation method. The results showed that irrigating kale every two days and applying 14 mm of water was the best option for the Luyengo area compared to applying 5 mm daily. Skipping more than two days between irrigations resulted in significantly lower yields. There were no significant differences in the other measured plant parameters: leaflength, leafwidth, plant height and the number of leaves per plant. The results of these parameters for treatment 1 (T1) were higher of that of the other treatments