Yields, fruit quality, and water use in a Jalapeno pepper and tomatoes under open field and high-tunnel production systems in the Texas High Plains

Authors: RHO, HYUNGMIN (TONY) - Texas A&M Agrilife; Colaizzi, Paul; GRAY, JAMES - Texas A&M Agrilife; PAETZOLD, LI - Texas A&M Agrilife; XUE, QINGWU - Texas A&M Agrilife; PATIL, BHIMANAGOUDA - Texas A&M University; RUSH, CHARLES - Texas A&M Agrilife

Submitted to: HortScience
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/21/2020
Publication Date: 9/10/2020
Citation: Rho, H., Colaizzi, P.D., Gray, J., Paetzold, L., Xue, Q., Patil, B., Rush, C.M. 2020. Yields, fruit quality, and water use in a Jalapeno pepper and tomatoes under open field and high-tunnel production systems in the Texas High Plains. HortScience. 55(10):1632-1641. https://doi.org/10.21273/hortsci15143-20.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21273/hortsci15143-20

Interpretive Summary: The Texas High Plains is a very agriculturally productive region. Crops grown include cotton, corn, forages, sorghum, and winter wheat. Irrigation increases crop production and farm revenue up to four times compared with dryland cropping because the region is semi-arid, with low rainfall and high winds. Irrigation is dependent on the Ogallala Aquifer, which is being depleted because pumping rates exceed recharge, and farmers are looking for ways to maintain farm revenue while reducing water used to irrigate crops. High value vegetable production may be one alternative because revenue potential per water used is many times greater for vegetables compared with traditional field crops. Further, vegetables can be grown in enclosed environments such as high tunnels (essentially canvas-covered Quonset huts), and high tunnels offer protection from high winds, hail, and freezing temperatures typical of the region that can damage or destroy crops. However, high tunnels are a capital investment, and farmers require data on irrigation requirements and yield potential for vegetables grown in both open fields and high tunnels in the Texas High Plains. Scientists from Texas A&M AgriLife Research and the ARS in Bushland, Texas, compared crop yield, water use, and fruit quality of peppers and tomatoes grown in high tunnels versus open fields during the 2018 and 2019 growing seasons. In both years, peppers and tomatoes grown in high tunnels had greater crop yield, used less water, and had the same fruit quality as those grown in open fields. Therefore, high tunnels are a justified investment for high value vegetable production. Vegetables grown in either high tunnels or open fields offer farmers opportunities to diversify crop production, conserve water, and meet increasing consumer demands for locally grown produce.

Technical Abstract: The Texas High Plains has a semi-arid, hot, windy climate with high crop evapotranspiration (ET). Irrigation is essential for vegetable production in the region but constrained by depleting groundwater from the Ogallala Aquifer. High-tunnel (HT) production systems may reduce irrigation water demand and protect crops from severe weather events (e.g., hail, high wind, freezing). The objective of this study was to compare yields, fruit quality, crop water use, and crop water use efficiency (WUE) in peppers and tomatoes in HT versus open fields (OF). A two-year field experiment was conducted during the 2018 and 2019 growing seasons at Bushland, TX, USA. Peppers and tomatoes were grown in HT and OF, both under plastic mulch with surface drip irrigation. Air temperatures were significantly higher during the daytime, and wind speed and light intensity were significantly lower in HT compared with OF. Pepper and tomato yields and WUE were greater, and seasonal ET was lower, in HT compared with OF. Chemical quality parameters of fruits grown in HT, such as ascorbic acid and lycopene contents, were not significantly different compared with OF. HT production is economically justified in terms of increased WUE and severe weather risk mitigation for high-value vegetable production in the Texas High Plains.