Low tunnel technology in vegetable

Technology used for both vegetable and fruit production

1. WELCOME 1 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

2. Area: 329 million hectares. Temp: low (-45 °C) to high (51 °C). 86% of land holdings are less than 2 ha. More than 95% of farmer used traditional farming technique. Area under protected cultivation - 40,000 ha .

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4. University of Horticultural Sciences, BAGALKOTE SEMINAR-I COLLEGE OF HORTICULTURE, BAGALKOTE ANGELA ROLUAHPUII UHS19PGM1231 Sr. M.Sc. DEPARTMENT OF VEGETABLE SCIENCE COH, BAGALKOTE 4 LOW TUNNEL TECHNOLOGY IN VEGETABLE PRODUCTION 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

5. OUTLINE 5 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

6. History The first used of a plastic film in agriculture is said to date back from 1948 by Prof. E.M. Emmert. The first plastic tunnels was used in Fresno County by Mr. Richard Espinoza to grow Japanese eggplants and long Chinese beans in 1981. Mr. Richard also build the first tunnel laying machine. 6 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

7. CONT………. Walk-in tunnels, low plastic tunnels etc were evaluated for cultivation during their normal and off-season at the Indo-Israel Project in IARI , New Delhi (India) during the year 1999-2000 to 2002-2003. It was launched in 1999 in Punjab as a pilot project by ATMA. 7 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

8. Introduction Human beings learnt that maximum crop yield is achieved when the crops are grown during different seasons under favourable climatic conditions. There is a year round high demand for fresh vegetables in the country in domestic and export market. But due to unfavourable climatic conditions, there is a flood of vegetables in the season and high priced vegetables in off-season. Vegetables can be cultivated in off-season, with the introduction of low tunnel technology. 8 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

9. Kumar et al., 2017 Constraints of open field conditions 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC 9

10. Low-tunnel technology Low Tunnels are small greenhouse-like structures, covering the plants along the row. These tunnels are erected with wire hoops and covered with plastic which produce greenhouse like effect. These tunnels facilitate the entrapment of carbon dioxide, thereby enhancing the photosynthetic activities of the plant that help to increase yield. 10 Lawwa and Singh, 2013 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

11. 11 Benefits of Low tunnel 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

12. Advantages of Low tunnel Low cost structure. Light structure. Easy to install. It can be easily dissemble and relocate to other site. Maintenance is very easy. Year round employment generation . 12 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

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14. 14 Figure 1. Low tunnels were installed with a mechanical low tunnel layer. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

15. Cont ….. Low tunnel within a high tunnel: It add an additional increase of air temperature. 15 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

16. Establishment of Low tunnel Hoops are used to construct small tunnels. The height of the tunnel varies from 2-4 ft depending on the height and size of the plant. The hoop is position as a semi-oval. It is place at intervals of 2–3 m along the length of the beds. Length varies, but less than 50 feet is recommended for windy areas. 16 Fig1 : FRP Low tunnel Rod 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

17. C ont … At both ends of the tunnel, two crossed hoops may provide more stability against wind. T he direction of the tunnel should be keep from east to west for better temperature gains. Finally, the cover is place over the hoops and edge is fix. 17 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

18. Planting material Plants should be pest-free at the time of tunnel installation. Self-pollinated plants should be grown. If cross pollinated crop is grown, the covers must be remove when blossoming begins. 18 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

19. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC 19 Light weight Light weight Heavy weight

20. Irrigation Drip irrigation Furrow irrigation 20 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

21. Crops which can be cultivated under Low tunnel C ucurbits Solanaceous Lettuce Carrots Radish Cauliflower Spinach Leeks Kale etc. 21 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

22. Cost of installation 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC 22 Sl. Particulars Quantity Rate Amount 1. Bamboo 28 no's Rs. 150/Bamboo Rs. 4,200 2. Plastic (120 GSM) 9 kg Rs. 145/kg Rs. 1,305 3. Binding wire 2.5 kg Rs. 100/kg Rs. 250 4. Miscellaneous Rs. 2,000 Grand Total Rs. 7,755 Subsidy Plastic Tunnel: (Maximum 1000 sq m/ beneficiary). 50% of cost (15% higher for hilly areas) Rs 60 per sq. m in plain areas Rs 75 per sq. m in hilly areas Fig1: C ost of construction (per 100m 2 )

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24. Objectives: To assess the effect of different mulch and plastic low tunnel on soil so as to enhance brinjal production during spring and early summer season in north-western plains of India. Dept. of VSC 53 Journal of Horticultural Sciences Case study-1 Dhatt et al. ,2017 12-02-2021

25. Material and Methods Duration: 2 year Hybrid: BH-2 Season: Rabi season Design: Factorial Randomized Block design Replications: 3 Treatment: 5 Dept. of VSC 25 12-02-2021 Dhatt et al. ,2017

26. Details of treatment: T 1 : P addy straw mulch (PSM) T 2 : C lear plastic mulch (CPM) T 3 : B lack plastic mulch (BPM) T 4 : P lastic low tunnel (PLT) T 5 : C ontrol (bare soil) 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC 26 Dhatt et al. ,2017

27. 27 Week and month Net-house Open field PSM CPM BPM PLT Bare soil PSM CPM BPM P L T Bare soil 2 nd week of Dec. 17.1 18.0 19.6 18.3 17.0 16.5 18.3 17.7 1 7 . 16.7 3 rd week of Dec. 16.1 17.3 18.6 16.9 15.4 15.2 17.1 16.8 1 6 . 5 15.4 4 th week of Dec. 16.9 17.2 18.4 16.6 16.8 15.5 17.0 17.2 1 6 . 6 15.8 1 st week of Jan. 15.7 16.6 18.0 16.0 15.6 14.1 16.2 15.9 1 5 . 5 14.6 2 nd week of Jan. 16.2 17.2 18.5 14.4 15.7 13.1 14.6 16.2 1 2 . 5 14.0 3 rd week of Jan. 12.4 14.1 16.1 11.0 12.3 10.0 10.9 12.7 1 . 8 10.7 4 th week of Jan. 10.2 12.4 15.6 10.0 10.4 09.4 10.8 11.2 1 . 4 10.0 1 st week of Feb. 11.5 14.0 16.0 12.0 11.8 10.1 11.6 13.0 1 1 . 8 10.4 2 nd week of Feb. 10.7 14.2 16.0 12.0 10.8 09.7 11.6 12.0 1 . 6 10.0 3 rd week of Feb. 16.2 18.0 20.0 16.7 16.0 14.5 16.0 16.0 1 6 . 14.7 4 th week of Feb. 17.3 19.3 20.0 18.0 17.7 15.2 16.0 16.0 1 6 . 15.3 1 st week of March 20.1 21.0 22.0 20.0 20.0 18.9 20.0 21.0 2 . 19.0 2 nd week of March 21.8 21.6 21.6 21.6 21.6 18.9 19.0 19.0 1 9 . 19.0 Mean 15.6 17.0 18.5 15.7 15.5 13.9 15.3 15.7 1 4 . 8 14.3 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Table 1. Effect of plastic low tunnel and mulch type on weekly morning soil temperature ( o C ) at 5 cm depth in net-house and open field in north-western plains of India P addy straw mulch (PSM) C lear plastic mulch (CPM) B lack plastic mulch (BPM) P lastic low tunnel (PLT)

28. 28 Treatment Plant height (cm) (120 DAT) Plant height (cm) (210 DAT) Plant spread (cm) (210 DAT) Number of leaves plant -1 (120 DAT) NH OF M ea n NH OF Mean NH OF Mean NH OF Mean PSM 40.4 29.6 3 5 . 107.0 86.1 96.6 81.3 82.7 82.0 36.7 29.3 33.0 CPM 43.7 33.6 3 8 . 7 110.8 93.9 102.4 82.4 79.9 81.2 64.3 45.3 54.8 BPM 50.8 36.4 4 3 . 6 102.5 89.9 96.2 88.5 74.6 81.6 64.8 49.4 57.1 PLT 48.8 40.4 4 4 . 6 113.6 94.1 103.9 80.0 94.8 87.4 63.1 51.2 57.2 Bare soil 35.3 24.5 2 9 . 9 103.8 85.8 94.8 79.9 83.1 81.5 32.9 25.4 29.2 Mean 43.8 32.9 - 107.5 89.9 - 82.5 83.0 - 52.4 40.1 - CD (P = 0.05) NH vs OF (A) 2.2 - - 2.9 - - NS - - 2.8 - - Mulch type (B) 3.3 - - 4.4 - - 3.9 - - 4.0 - - Interaction (A x B) 4.7 - - 6.2 - - 5.6 - - 5.7 - - 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Dhatt et al. ,2017 Table 2 . Effect of plastic low tunnel and mulch type on growth attributes of brinjal in net-house (NH) and open field (OF) in north-western plains of India (pooled data of 2 seasons )

29. 29 Treatment Days to first picking Early yield (t.ha -1 ) No. of fruits plant -1 Total yield (t.ha -1 ) NH OF Mean NH O F Mean NH OF Mean NH OF Mean PSM 133.7 149.7 141.7 3.1 . 7 1.9 11.4 4.1 7.8 43.6 11.7 27.7 CPM 124.7 139.7 132.2 6.6 1 . 1 3.9 14.4 7.0 10.7 55.7 21.2 38.5 BPM 129.0 136.0 132.5 7.1 1 . 4 4.3 16.1 6.1 11.1 57.4 20.4 38.9 PLT 128.3 128.5 128.4 5.0 5 . 9 5.5 14.6 14.6 14.6 52.0 58.5 55.3 Bare soil 139.5 150.2 144.9 2.0 . 7 1.4 8.9 5.7 7.3 35.2 18.3 26.8 Mean 131.0 140.8 4.8 2 . 13.1 7.5 48.8 26.0 CD (P = 0.05) NH vs OF (A) 1.5 0.2 1.1 2.6 Mulch type (B) 2.2 0.4 0.8 3.8 Interaction (A x B) 3.2 0.5 1.2 5.4 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Dhatt et al. ,2017 Table 3 . Effect of plastic low tunnel and mulch type on earliness and yield attributes of brinjal in net-house (NH) and open field (OF) in north-western plains of India (pooled data of seasons)

30. 30 Fig. 1. Effect of plastic low tunnel and mulch type on incidence of shoot and fruit borer (%) in open field (OF) . 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Dhatt et al. ,2017

31. 31 Fig. 2. Effect of plastic low tunnel and mulch type on plant mortality (%) due to low temperature and frost in brinjal on open field ( pooled data of 2 seasons) 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Dhatt et al. ,2017

32. 32 Fig. 3 . Effect of plastic low tunnel and mulch type on plant mortality (%) due to Sclerotinia rot in brinjal under net-house (pooled data of 2 seasons) 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Dhatt et al. ,2017

33. Inference In open field, PLT is recommended as it was better than other treatments in improving growth attributes, increasing early and total yield, protecting plants from frost injury and decreasing the incidence of shoot and fruit borer. Dept. of VSC 12-02-2021 33

34. Objectives: To compare the efficiency of low tunnel technology and traditional open field growing of cabbage hybrid S 92. Dept. of VSC 53 Journal of Krishi Vigyan Case study-2 Saleem et al. ,2014 12-02-2021

35. Material and Methods Duration- 3 year Location- 3 Season- Feb- May Hybrid: S-92 ‘Mitra’ Dept. of VSC 35 12-02-2021 Saleem et al. ,2014

36. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC 36 Location 1 Location 2 Location 3 Average Low tunnel Open field Low tunnel Open field Low tunnel Open field Low tunnel Open field Germination (%) 90 72 96 84 87 70 91 75.3 Days to maturity of seedlings 46 52 48 54 46 51 46.6 53.0 Transplantation survival (%) 98 81 98 75 94 73 96.6 76.3 Days to head maturity 72 88 70 86 75 82 72.3 85.3 No. of head formed plant (%) 96 91 98 90 95 88 96.3 89.6 Average head weight (kg) 0.86 1.01 0.96 0.98 0.81 0.82 0.87 0.93 Yield (q/ha) 555.7 652.5 633.3 587.8 518.0 562.32 569.0 600.9 Yield of super heads (q/ha) 278.5 191.5 301.9 186.7 280.3 180.43 290.2 186.2 Saleem et al. ,2014 Table 1. Comparison of growth and yield of cabbage hybrid under low tunnel and open field conditions.

37. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC 37 Yield of main crop (q/ha) Return (Rs./ha) Yield of super heads (q/ha) Return (Rs./ha) Gross income (Rs./ha) Cost of input (Rs./ha) Net profit ( Rs./ha) Lo w tunnel 569.05 6,82,860 290.26 2,32,208 9,15,068 95,200 8,20,008 O pen field 600.92 4,80,736 186.24 1,48,992 6,29,728 - 6,29,728 % increase over open field 42.2 55.82 30.21 Saleem et al. ,2014 Table 2. Economics of cabbage hybrid under low tunnel and open field conditions . Cost of input includes only cost of polythene and willow sticks keeping a life span of 1 to 3 years respectively. Sale rate of main crop under low tunnel (off season) Rs.12/kg and rest @ Rs. 8/kg

38. Inference Low tunnel cultivation advanced the growing of crop by around two months. Higher net returns per unit area were realized under low tunnel cultivation of cabbage than open cultivation due to early maturity, early market entry of produce and evading market glut. Dept. of VSC 12-02-2021 38

39. Objective: To study the effect of onion cultivation under low cost plastic tunnel for restricting over winter in eastern Himalayan region. Dept. of VSC 39 International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences Case study-3 Singh et al., 2020 12-02-2021

40. Material and Methods Duration: 2 year Season: October - June Design: F actorial randomized block design Replications: 3 Treatment: 11 Dept. of VSC 40 12-02-2021 Singh et al., 2020

41. Details of treatment: T 1 : 75cm tunnel height T 2 : 90cm tunnel height T 3 : 100cm tunnel height T 4 : Onion variety F1 hybrid ‘Rani’ T 5 : Onion variety ‘Nasik red’ T 6 : Onion variety ‘ Minar ’ T 7 : Onion variety ‘Leader’ T 8 : F1 hybrid ‘Rani’ (control) T 9 : Nasik red (control) T 10 : Minar (control ) T 11 : Leader (control) 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC 41 Singh et al., 2020

42. Fig.1 Microclimate data under the different tunnel height and control condition during experiment 42 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Singh et al., 2020

43. Tunnel Height Variety Survival % Plt . ht. (cm) No. of Leaves Days to harvest F ruit wt (g) Yield/ha ( t ) H1 -75cm V1 - Rani 19.477 43.00 2.663 114.33 22.667 7.01 H1 V2 -Nasik red 33.297 32.70 5.333 116.33 17.807 12.07 H1 V3 - Minar 12.113 24.30 2.663 106 24.667 4.08 H1 V4 -Leader 30.587 24.10 4.667 107 15.227 3.78 H2 -90cm V1 12.983 27.1 2.330 118.66 25.333 20.30 H2 V2 34.727 36.0 5.333 119 19.837 11.29 H2 V3 31.163 21.60 3.110 102.66 41.667 5.10 H2 V4 31.160 23.60 4.333 104.33 19.760 6.30 H3 -100cm V1 41.120 47.00 2.887 113.66 29.667 20.02 H3 V2 65.673 48.70 5.000 97.66 32.227 21.65 H3 V3 31.160 25.20 3.220 103.66 44.333 6.67 H3 V4 53.943 21.60 6.333 107.33 26.593 7.11 Control V1 35.373 32.5 3.107 117.33 34.667 20.61 Control V2 38.050 34.00 5.000 117.66 37.373 19.67 Control V3 27.143 28.5 2.887 109.33 35.667 7.76 Control V4 11.553 19.4 4.333 106.66 34.140 9.63 Tunnel Ht. x Variety F value 24.114 7.394 3.146 93.350 2.860 26.027 P value 0.0001 0.0121 0.0001 0.0191 0.0001 43 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Table.1 Analysis of variance (ANOVA), F value, P values and interaction effects (low tunnel height x variety) on growth and yield characteristics of onion

44. Inference The onion variety ‘Nasik Red’ be can raised in low cost low plastic tunnel height of 100cm for restricting overwinter in hilly region. Dept. of VSC 12-02-2021 44

45. Objectives: To investigate poly tunnel technology as a means to improve profitability of fresh market vegetables in Bihar. Dept. of VSC 53 International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences. 2019 Case study-4 Ranjan et al. ,2019 12-02-2021

46. Material and Methods Design: R andomized block design. Variety: Madhuraja Replications: 3 Treatment: 5 i.e date of sowing T 1 : 5 th December, T 2 : 1 5thDecember, T 3 : 30 th December, T 4 : 5 th January and T 5 : 1 5th January under open field as well as low plastic poly tunnel respectively. The farmer practice was taken as a control in open field. Dept. of VSC 46 12-02-2021 Ranjan et al. ,2019

47. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC 47 Treatments No. of fruits per plant Average Fruit wt (g) Fruit yield per plant (Kg) Yield (q /ha) Low Poly tunnel S1 = 5 th December 13.26 482.70 06.40 1066.62 Low Poly tunnel S2 = 15 th December 18.36 494.06 09.07 1511.60 S3= 25 th December 13.20 504.40 06.65 1108.28 Low Poly tunnel S4= 5 th January 15.26 505.37 07.71 1284.94 Low Poly tunnel S5= 15 th January 16.00 523.66 08.37 1394.94 Open field condition S1 = 5 th December 06.00 226.33 01.35 0224.99 Open field condition S2 = 15 th December 09.33 448.00 04.17 0694.97 Open field condition S3= 25 th December 05.13 375.06 01.92 0319.98 Open field condition S4= 5 th January 09.43 256.20 02.41 0401.65 Open field condition S5= 15 th January 11.00 260.50 02.86 0476.64 Farmers practice S6= 15 th February 19.36 547.00 10.58 1763.26 SEm(+-) 1.38 39.02 0.73 48.0 CD at 5% 4.4 123.0 2.3 223 Table.1 Effect of planting time and growing conditions on growth and yield attributing parameters

48. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC 48 Treatment Treatment Yield /ha (q) Marketable price (Rs per quintal) In c ome Rs/ha Cost of c ultivation Net return Rs/ha B e n e f it Cost ratio Low Poly tunnel S1 = 5 th De c Cover S1 1066.62 1400.00 1493268 290353.00 1202915 4.14 Low Poly tunnel S2 = 15 th Dec S2 1511.60 1330.00 2010428 290353.00 1720075 5.92 S3= 25 th Dec S3 1108.28 1200.00 1329936 290353.00 1039583 3.58 Low Poly tunnel S4= 5 th Jan S4 1284.94 1026.00 1318348 290353.00 1027995 3.54 Low Poly tunnel S5= 15 th Jan S5 1394.94 900.00 1255446 290353.00 965093 3.32 Open field condition S1 = 5 th Dec Open S1 0224.99 950.00 213740 163000.00 50740 0.33 Open field condition S2 = 15 th Dec S2 0694.97 900.00 625473 163000.00 462473 2.83 Open field condition S3= 25 th Dec S3 0319.98 880.00 281230 163000.00 118230 0.72 Open field condition S4= 5 th Jan S4 0401.65 850.00 341402 163000.00 178402 1.09 Open field condition S5= 15 th Jan S5 0476.64 800.00 381312 163000.00 218312 1.33 Farmers practice 15 th feb F a rmers practice 1763.26 700.00 1234282 163000.00 1074282 6.57 Table.2. Economics

49. Inference L ow poly tunnel with 15th December sowing achieved the maximum net return and cost: benefit ratio in muskmelon. Off-season fruits produced under low tunnels can fetch very high price in the market and the benefit reap can be almost same with the crop grown in the main season. Dept. of VSC 12-02-2021 49

50. 50 Case study-5 HORTSCIENCE . Objectives: To determine the differences in microenvironmental conditions between LT and open field, and their association with irrigation requirement. To determine differences in vegetative growth, production, and WUE in brussels sprouts grown under LT and open field. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Acharya et al,.2020

51. Material and Methods Design: Split-plot design Replications: 4 Cultivar: Dimitri Season: Spring 2017, Fall 2017, and Spring 2018 Treatment: The main effect (plots) consisted of two plastic mulches (white and black) and the secondary effect (subplot) consisted of treatments with LT and open field. Dept. of VSC 51 12-02-2021 Acharya et al,.2020

52. 52 Table 1. Soil temperatures 15 cm below soil surface in Brussels sprouts production under low tunnel (LT) and open field conditions. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Acharya et al,.2020 Spring 2017 Spring 2017 Fall 2017 Spring 2018 Spring 2017 Max. Max. Min. Max. Min. Min. Treatment Mulch Black 23.5 24.2 21.0 27.7 24.5 Black LT 20.5 White 22.2 22.6 20.5 26.7 23.9 Open 20.0 Tunnel LT 23.2 23.5 21.1 27.4 24.4 White LT 19.9 Open 22.6 23.4 20.4 27.0 24.0 Open 18.7 P value Mulch 0.054 0.026 0.162 0.162 0.016 0.017 0.023 Tunnel 0.071 0.311 <0.0001 <0.0001 0.177 0.027 0.005 M X T 0.220 0.796 0.846 0.937 0.369 0.029

53. 53 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Acharya et al,.2020 Spring 2017 Fall 2017 Spring 2018 Maximum Minimum Maximum Minimum Maximum Minimum Treatment LT 30.4 15.1 30.2 15.0 38.7 19.5 Open field 26.2 15.5 24.6 14.3 30.1 19.6 P value 0.009 0.669 0.022 0.808 Table 2. Air temperature at canopy level (30 cm above soil surface) in brussels sprouts production under low tunnel (LT) and open field conditions.

54. 54 Fig. 1. Daily evapotranspiration at canopy levels in brussels sprouts grown under low tunnel (LT) and open field (Open). Air temperatures, solar radiation, relative humidity, and wind speed were used to determine evapotranspiration by using the Penman–Monteith equation (Synder and Eching, 2007). A = Spring 2017, B = Fall 2017, and C = Spring 2018. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Acharya et al,.2020

55. 55 Fig. 2. Daily minimum volumetric water content (VWC), and timing of irrigation events in brussels sprouts grown under low tunnel (LT) and open field (Open). A = Spring 2017, B = Spring 2018. Data presented are from one replication in each trial. Arrows correspond to irrigation events. Darker arrow corresponds to irrigation events for plant establishment and fertilizer application applied to all subplots. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Acharya et al,.2020

56. 56 Fig. 3. Total applied irrigation water and number of irrigation events in brussels sprouts grown under low tunnel (LT) in comparison with open field (Open). Spring 2017 and 2018. 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Acharya et al,.2020

57. 57 Spring 2017 Fall 2017 Spring 2018 Spring 2017 Fall 2018 Spring 2018 Spring 2017 Fall 2017 Spring 2018 Treatment 60 DAT Harvest 60 DAT 60 DAT Harvest 60 DAT Harvest Harvest Harvest LT 26,152 26,648 14,813 100 107 104 67.7 66.7 50.3 Open field 16,602 18,486 8,895 80 106 76 46.7 46.6 31.0 P value Mulch 0.541 0.719 0.679 0.438 0.785 0.960 0.796 0.342 0.276 LT <0.0001 <0.0001 0.002 0.047 0.962 <0.0001 <0.0001 <0.0001 <0.0001 M · LT 0.105 0.788 0.348 0.063 0.225 0.563 0.181 0.237 0.857 Leaf area (cm2) Specific leaf area (cm/g) Plant ht (cm) 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Acharya et al,.2020 Table 3. Leaf area, specific leaf area, and plant height in brussels sprouts grown under low tunnel (LT) and open field condition

58. 58 Treatment Spring 2017 Fall 2017 Spring 2018 Spring 2017 Fall 2017 Spring 2018 Spring 2017 Fall 2017 Spring 2018 Spring 2017 Spring 2018 LT 4.1 10.8 3.3 68.8 77.3 53.8 3.3 7.7 4.2 269 292 Open field 2.8 7.4 2.7 53.4 63.2 41.8 2.9 6.7 4.3 213 213 P value Mulch 0.072 0.975 0.992 0.441 0.445 0.606 0.148 0.689 0.94 0.837 0.089 LT 0.001 0.047 0.045 <0.0001 0.005 <0.0001 0.02 0.335 0.883 0.049 0.005 M · LT 0.331 0.912 0.892 0.353 0.182 0.634 0.533 0.074 0.909 0.524 0.178 Yield ( MT.ha –1) Sprouts per plant (no.) Sprout wt (g) Plant dry wt (g) 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC Acharya et al,.2020 Table 4. Yield, number of sprouts per plant, sprout weight, and plant dry weight in brussels sprouts grown under low tunnel (LT) and open field conditions .

59. Inference Low tunnels modified the microenvironment by increasing soil and air temperatures and reducing ET in comparison with open field, which resulted in increased vegetative growth and yield of brussels sprouts. Dept. of VSC 12-02-2021 59

60. Success story-1 Poly tunnel technology has been established in different village of Himachal Pradesh under the technical support of KVK. Low tunnel technology enabled the farmers to get up to Rs 2.50 to 3.00 lacs from 1.0 ha of land from one year. 60 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

61. Success story-2 The KVK, Bundi conducted various trainings and demonstrations for Off-season cultivation of vegetables by low-tunnel method and nursery raising by Pro-tray method. Results- It enhanced the farmer's income from the range of Rs. 2,35,000.00 in case of traditional practice to Rs. 3,75,000.00 per hectare. In case of pro-tray, cost of cultivation decreases by using pro-tray upto Rs. 10,000.00 per hectare . 61 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

62. Success story-3 Mr. Sunil Minj from Jharkhand has started low tunnel cultivation using bamboo poles as a hoops. The benefit which translate to a return of Rs. 2.5 for every rupee spent. 62 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

63. FUTURE THRUSTS Testing of low tunnel technology for different vegetables. The optimum tunnel heights for various vegetable crops. The optimum polyethylene sheet thickness and effect of perforation. Replacing the plastic with biodegradable films. Awareness among farmers through on farm training. 63 12-02-2021 Dept. of VSC

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