Effect of sprinkler irrigation on growth of Paulownia Shan tong trees at first two years of cultivation in light soil

Abstract

The effect of sprinkler irrigation on the growth of Paulownia Shan Tong trees was investigated. The field experiment was carried out during the years 2016-2017 on sandy soil in the forest nursery Białe-Błota (Bydgoszcz Forest Division, Poland). The experiment was established as one factorial. The variability factor was irrigation: S- sprinkler irrigation and C- without irrigation (control). The irrigation scheduling was done according to tensiometer indications. Irrigation was started, when the water potential in the soil was - 40 kPa. Sprinkler irrigation was done using the NAAN sector sprinklers. Water for irrigation was taken from a deep well. The process included the controls of growth parameters: tree height, trunk diameter, number of leaves. It was found that the sprinkled seedlings of Paulownia Shan Tong were significantly higher than those growing in the non-irrigated plots. The sprinkler irrigation applied in the experiment resulted in an increase in the number of leaves of Paulownia. By analysing the results of the study on the trunk diameter, leaf number, it may be stated that irrigation watering significantly influenced the tested parameters. Irrigation significantly increased the height of Paulownia trees. The positive effect of the usage of sprinkler irrigation may indicate the possibility of effective application of this method in field cultivation of Paulownia Shan Tong.