ABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to evaluate the water productivity into biomass and into sugar for 23 sugarcane varieties (second ratoon crop) under two levels of drip irrigation. Two experiments were conducted in a greenhouse. Experiment 1 comprised nine sugarcane varieties grown in a clay soil and Experiment 2 was composed of 14 varieties in a sandy-loam soil. Moreover, two irrigation treatments were adopted: T100 - full irrigation with 100% crop evapotranspiration replacement, maintaining soil moisture near field capacity for each variety; and T70 - irrigation with 70% T100 water depth. Water productivity was evaluated in terms of stem fresh biomass (WPFB) and sugar (WPGSY). The results showed that WPFB ranged from 11.45 to 18.45 kg m-3. The highest values were observed for varieties CTC14, CTC6, RB867515, and SP81-3250 (in T100) and for the varieties CTC6 and CTC14 (in T70). The WPGSY values ranged from 1.68 to 2.22 kg m-3, with emphasis placed on CTC6, RB9675-15, SP81-3250, and RB925211 (in T100) and on CTC6, CTC14, and SP81-3250 (in T70).
Key words:
deficit irrigation; second ratoon; evapotranspiration