Vegetable crop performance under low tunnel and silver-black mulch technology in cold-arid eastern ladakh (changthang region)

Abstract Vegetable cultivation in the cold-arid ecosystem of Eastern Ladakh is severely constrained by short growing seasons, low soil temperatures, and frequent frost events. Low tunnel technology, combined with silver-black polyethylene mulch sheet application, offers a low-cost protected cultivation approach suitable for remote high-altitude regions. This study evaluated the crop performance and gross revenue of diverse vegetable crops grown under 36 low tunnels at Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Nyoma–Nidder farm during the summer seasons of 2024 and 2025. As this was an on-farm demonstration conducted without unmulched or open-field controls, the study characterises yield and revenue performance within the existing low tunnel plus mulch system rather than quantifying the incremental benefit of tunnels or mulch, and findings are reported descriptively to inform crop selection and varietal recommendation for smallholder farmers. Marketable yield (kg/tunnel) and gross revenue per tunnel (₹) were recorded for all crop–variety combinations across both years; gross revenue per tunnel ranged from approximately ₹40 to ₹2,400 across the crop–variety–year combinations evaluated. Chinese cabbage recorded the highest mean revenue per tunnel in 2024 (₹1,120) but declined markedly in 2025 (₹660), indicating sensitivity to inter-annual weather variability; growing-season (April–September) rainfall was around three-and-a-half times higher in 2025 (~ 93 mm) than in 2024 (~ 25 mm), with the difference concentrated in July and September. Swiss chard and carrot showed comparatively stable yields across both seasons (CV 12.9% and 9.4%, respectively). Among varieties, ‘Samrat’ knol khol recorded an exceptional single-tunnel yield in 2024 (40 kg; ₹2,400/tunnel), and the locally sourced turnip variety consistently outperformed commercial hybrids across both years. The two-year evaluation indicates that the integrated use of low tunnel technology and mulch sheet application can support vegetable productivity in high-altitude cold-desert conditions; however, indicative mulch material cost (₹1,325–3,975 per tunnel per season, depending on assumed reuse duration) is substantial relative to observed per-tunnel revenue, so gross revenue reported here should not be read as a proxy for net profitability. A diversified cropping strategy incorporating high-revenue crops (Chinese cabbage, knol khol), stable performers (Swiss chard, carrot), and locally adapted varieties is recommended to optimise income stability and reduce production risk among smallholder farmers in Eastern Ladakh, pending a full cost-of-cultivation study to confirm net returns.