Estimation of Potential Evapotranspiration and Crop Coefficient of Maize at Rupandehi District of Nepal

Subject Areas : Environmental policy and management

Govinda  Bhandari ¹ (Environment Professionals’ Training and Research Institute Pvt. Ltd. Kathmandu, Nepal)

Received: 2015-08-29 Accepted : 2015-08-29 Published : 2012-12-01

Keywords: Maize, Potential evapotranspiration, Nepal, lysimeter, Crop Coefficient, Aridity Index,

Abstract :

This study was conducted to determine the potential evapotranspiration (PET) of maize, the crop coefficient (Kc) under full water requirement as well as the cause of decrease in maize yield. It was determined that the seasonal PET of maize is about 486.6 mm. The Kc under full water supply was found to be: 0.11, 0.35, 1.51 and 0.34 for initial, development, midseason and the late season stages respectively. The study also revealed that maintenance of sufficient moisture need of maize has a significant effect on growth, development and fruiting of the crop.