Evaluation of Yield, Actual Crop Evapotranspiration and Water Productivity of Two Canola Cultivars as Influenced by Transplanting and Seeding and Deficit Irrigation

To evaluate the effects of planting methods and deficit irrigation, an experiment was conducted on treatments of direct seeding with full irrigation (DSI1), transplanting on Nov. 1 with full irrigation (T1I2), direct seeding with omitting one irrigation at rosette stage (DSI3), direct seeding with omitting two irrigations at rosette stage (DSI4), direct seeding with omitting irrigation after rosette and before flowering stage (DSI5), direct seeding with omitting irrigation from the grain filling stage to physiological maturity (DSI6) and transplanting on Oct. 9 with full irrigation (T2I7) on yield, water productivity and actual crop evapotranspiration of canola cultivars (Neptune and Danube), at the research station of School of Agriculture, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Islamic Republic of Iran, in the two consecutive growing seasons (2015–2017). This study was carried out as a factorial experiment based on complete randomized block design with four replicates. In this study the AquaCrop model was used for estimating root depth and actual crop evapotranspiration. The results showed that planting methods had significant effect on the grain and oil yields. It was also revealed transplanting on Nov. 1 was not a suitable date for transplanting. Water productivity for grain and oil yields was calculated based on irrigation water and actual crop evapotranspiration. The lowest water productivity was obtained 0.03 kg m−3 based on actual crop evapotranspiration in the second year for oil yield in the T1I2 treatment. Also, the results indicated that in the direct seeding treatments DSI6 treatment and in cultivars, Neptune had the lowest grain and oil yields.