Abstract:
The majority of cultivated crops in the West Bank are rain-fed; the
productivity of these crops is far below its potential. Therefore, the
objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of water harvesting
techniques (contour ridge and half-moon structure) on snake melon
(Cucumis melo L. var. flexuosus) yield under semiarid conditions. Three
treatments (contour ridge, half-moon, and control) were evaluated during
2015/2016 and 2017/2018, using randomized complete block design with
three replicates. The results showed that the yield of snake melon during a
high-rainfall year was about triple (mainly for control treatment) the yield
in a low-rainfall year. The yield of snake melon in water harvesting
treatments shows a significant increase that ranges from 49.3% (in a high rainfall year) to 95% (in a low-rainfall year) compared with the control
treatment, no significant difference between the contour ridge and half moon structure. These results show that water harvesting structures have
the potential to improve the snake melon yield under semiarid conditions.
Contour ridge is simple, practicable, easy to establish, and not costly;
therefore, we recommend this technique to be applied by the farmers
under similar environmental conditions. More studies are required to
evaluate the impact of these water harvesting techniques on the yield of
other rain-fed vegetable crops under semiarid conditions.
