Abstract:
This research was conducted at the Intercropping
and Betel Research Station of the Department of
Export Agriculture, Sri Lanka, to assess the
impact of different irrigation levels (6 L or 8 L per
day) and amounts of inorganic fertilizer mixture
(660 kg, 1320 kg, or 1980 kg per ha) consisting of
Urea, MOP, and Eppawala Rock Phosphate, on
the growth and yield of bush pepper planted under
coconut. The study was a factorial experiment in a
randomized complete block design with three
replicates. Data on growth and yield were
collected for five years. The findings didn’t reveal
significant differences in canopy diameter or
branching. However, after 20 months, plants
irrigated with 8 L per day exhibited a higher
percentage of flowered plants, indicating that
increased irrigation can accelerate flowering.
Nevertheless, more spikes were observed under
low fertilizer application, suggesting that low
nutrient supply positively influences the anthesis
of bush pepper. Although the increased irrigation
and fertilizer application improved the spike
filling rate, it showed a decrease in spike
production. Nonetheless, no interaction between
the two factors has been identified. Moreover, the
decline in yield from the third to the fifth year was
observed which can be attributed to the mutual
shading of growing plants. However, these results
do not support the feasibility of field cultivation of
bush pepper, as the dry yield achieved in this
experiment (maximum 660 kg/ha/year) falls short
when compared to traditional climbing pepper.
