Growth and Yield Response of Wheat Varieties to Irrigation Scheduling under Semi-Arid Conditions

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted during the Rabi season of 2024-25 at the Agricultural Research Farm, Vikrant University, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, to evaluate the response of wheat varieties to irrigation scheduling under semi-arid conditions. The experiment was laid out in a factorial randomised block design with three replications. Treatments comprised three irrigation schedules, namely IW/CPE ratios of 0.6 (I₁), 0.8 (I₂) and 1.0 (I₃), and three wheat varieties, HI-1650 (V₁), HI-1634 (V₂) and RVS-4106 (V₃). Growth parameters, yield attributes and yield were recorded and analysed using analysis of variance. Irrigation scheduling significantly affected wheat growth, yield attributes and yield. The IW/CPE ratio of 1.0 recorded the highest plant height at 90 DAS (93.15 cm), effective tillers at 60 DAS (8.13 plant⁻¹), dry matter accumulation at harvest (37.43 g plant⁻¹), spike length (11.66 cm), grains spike⁻¹ (50.44), 1000-grain weight (43.63 g), grain yield (5182.22 kg ha⁻¹) and straw yield (7429.55 kg ha⁻¹). Among the varieties, HI-1650 produced the highest 1000-grain weight (44.68 g), grain yield (5616.66 kg ha⁻¹) and harvest index (44.03%), whereas RVS-4106 showed greater vegetative growth and straw yield. The interaction between irrigation schedules and varieties was significant for grain and straw yield. The combination of IW/CPE ratio 1.0 with HI-1650 (I₃V₁) produced the maximum grain yield (5850 kg ha⁻¹). These results suggest that adequate irrigation increased growth and yield expression, while varietal differences affected the allocation of biomass to grain and straw. The findings indicate that scheduling irrigation at IW/CPE ratio 1.0 with HI-1650 was the most productive treatment combination for wheat under the semi-arid conditions of Gwalior.