IRRIGATION REGIME AND FERTILIZATION OF TOMATOES UNDER DRIP IRRIGATION IN THE REPUBLIC OF CRIMEA

Purpose: to establish rational irrigation and fertilization regimes for tomatoes with drip irrigation systems in the central agroclimatic zone of Crimea. Materials and methods. A two-factor experiment was conducted: factor A – irrigation regimes, factor B – calculated fertilizer rates for the planned yield. Soils: foothill residual-carbonate chernozem with high humus content, high nutrient supply. Results and discussion. It was found that linear growth increased with an increase in the fertilizer rate by 5.5%, and with an improvement in moisture supply – by 8.8 % compared to the control. The maximum increase in leaf area of 44.9 thousand m²/ha was noted in variant A3B3. Plant weight increased by 30.5 % from fertilizers, by 10.6 % from irrigation compared to the control. In the A1 variant group, the average yield increased from 79.0 to 94.8 t/ha, and in the A2 variant group – from 86.6 to 124.8 t/ha. Total water consumption varied from 5530 to 6541 m³/ha. The water consumption coefficient increased with decreasing fertilizer rates: in the A1 variant group – from 58.4 to 70.0 m³/t, in the A2 variant group – from 51.4 to 74.1 m³/t, in the A3 variant group – from 56.0 to 79.6 m³/t. Conclusions. More favorable conditions were achieved with irrigation regimes of 80 and 90 % minimum water capacity, as evidenced by an increase in vegetation by 4–6 days, linear growth, leaf surface area, and an increase in the wet weight of plants. Tomato yield increased both from improved moisture conditions and from increased fertilizer rates. It was also influenced by natural moisture: in the wet 2022, under the A2B3 option, it reached 132.2 t/ha, which was 10.3 and 8.1 % higher than the dry 2023 and 2024 indicators.