Fiber Quality, Yield, and Profitability of Cotton in Response to Supplemental Irrigation with Treated Wastewater and NPK Fertilization

Cotton yield under the rainfed farming system in tropical semi-arid regions is significantly decreased by prolonged dry spells. In this context, supplemental irrigation (SI) with treated wastewater emerges as a strategy for the sustainability of agricultural production besides contributing to the re...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Agronomy (Basel) Vol. 12; no. 10; p. 2527
Main Authors:	de Araújo, Antonio Flávio Batista, Cavalcante, Eduardo Santos, Lacerda, Claudivan Feitosa, de Albuquerque, Fábio Aquino, da Silva Sales, Jonnathan Richeds, Lopes, Fernando Bezerra, da Silva Ferreira, Jorge Freire, Costa, Raimundo Nonato Távora, Lima, Silvio Carlos Ribeiro Vieira, Bezerra, Marlos Alves, Gheyi, Hans Raj
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Basel MDPI AG 01-10-2022
Subjects:	Agricultural chemicals Agricultural production Agricultural wastes Agriculture Arid regions Arid zones Brazil Compound fertilizers Cotton Cotton industry Crop yield Drought Droughts Economics Farming systems Fertilization Fertilizer use reduction Fertilizers Gossypium hirsutum L Hydrologic data Irrigation Mineral fertilizers Municipal wastewater Photosynthesis Productivity Profitability Purification Rainfed farming Reduction Seeds Semi arid areas Semiarid lands Sewage Soil improvement Supplemental irrigation Sustainability Sustainable development tropical semi-arid Wastewater Wastewater treatment water reuse Water scarcity Water shortages water stress Brazil United States > US
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Summary:	Cotton yield under the rainfed farming system in tropical semi-arid regions is significantly decreased by prolonged dry spells. In this context, supplemental irrigation (SI) with treated wastewater emerges as a strategy for the sustainability of agricultural production besides contributing to the reduction of fertilizer costs. The objective of this research was to evaluate the productivity, photosynthetic parameters, fiber quality, and profitability of cotton cultivation, under supplemental irrigation (SI) with municipal treated wastewater (MTW), with and without mineral fertilization. The treatments consisted of three water scenarios (normal, drought, and severe drought), defined by the historical series of precipitation data of 30 years, and two treatments of supplemental irrigation with MTW, with or without NPK fertilization. SI with treated wastewater increased cotton yield in all three scenarios (normal, drought, and severe drought) by approximately 29%, 255%, and 251%. Longer dry spells in drought and severe drought scenarios increased the volume of SI with MTW, resulting in greater nutrient input to the soil, improved photosynthetic response, higher physical water productivity, reduction in fertilizer costs, and higher farmers’ income. Therefore, our results show the importance of using treated wastewater in supplemental irrigation of cotton under scenarios of water scarcity in tropical semi-arid regions.
ISSN:	2073-4395 2073-4395
DOI:	10.3390/agronomy12102527