Performance of mungbean under deficit irrigation application in the semi-arid highlands of Ethiopia

• Underutilized crops like mungbean can improve food security in semiarid areas.
• Mungbean grows well under deficit irrigation using household on-farm ponds.
• Water stress during midseason/flowering stage should be avoided.
• Mungbean yield is directly proportional to the amount of water applied.

Knowing the performance of short season crops under deficit irrigation has a paramount importance for arid and semi-arid regions with limited access to on-farm water harvesting or other irrigation infrastructure. In this research, the performance of mungbean, a newly introduced crop into the cropping systems in Ethiopia, to stage-wise and uniform deficit irrigation was tested at Sekota Dryland Agricultural Research Center, Northern Ethiopia. Eight treatments – four stage-wise deficit and four uniform deficit irrigation applications were evaluated during the 2010/2011 dry season. Plant phenological variables, grain yield and irrigation water use efficiency were used for performance evaluation. The results showed that a uniform water stress shortened the dates to 50% flowering and maturity, but with proportionate reduction in yield. The yield obtained varied between 1366 kg/ha under 331 mm optimal seasonal irrigation to 492 kg/ha when one-fourth of ETc (102 mm) was uniformly applied though out the growing season. The flowering/reproductive stage was noted as the most sensitive growth stage with a 24.9% yield reduction compared to the control treatment. In all other stages, yield is linearly associated (R2 = 0.93) with the amount of irrigation water applied, over the range tested. IWUE values ranged from 0.248 to 0.304 kg/m3. It can therefore be concluded that provided stress at the midseason stage is avoided and depending on the volume of water available, different deficit irrigation arrangements using on-farm pond water is possible.