Responses of Capsicum annum (red pepper) to Fertilization Rates at Various Soil Moisture Conditions

This research was performed to test the hypothesis that the optimal fertilization rate for red pepper is changed by soil moisture condition. The experiment was conducted in rainfall-intercepted fields in Suwon, South Korea from 2002 to 2003. Soil was irrigated at 30, 50, or 80 kPa of soil moisture tension at 20 cm soil depth in 2002 and 30, 50, 100, or 150 kPa in 2003. For both years, fertilization was performed with four levels: none, 0.5, 1, and 1.5 times of the recommended N, P, and K fertilization rate. The irrigation amount was the greatest at 30 kPa irrigation while the water use efficiency increased with decrease of irrigation amount. The Irrigation amount was 508 mm at 30 kPa irrigation and ranged from 355 mm to 435 mm at 50 kPa irrigation. The maximum yield was found at 30 kPa irrigation and 1.5 times of the recommend fertilization rate in 2002 and 2003. The yield index of red pepper increased linearly with the fertilization rate at 30 kPa which implied that excess irrigation induced nutrient leaching and reduced nutrient availability. The maximum yield in 50 kPa and 80 kPa was found at the recommend fertilization rate while the yield decreased by fertilization at 100 kPa and 150 kPa irrigation. It implies that reduction of fertilization is the feasible practice to mitigate drought stress in fields without stable irrigation resources.