Irrigation effects on elephant grass morphology, and its genotype-dependent responses

Abstract

This study hypothesised that different elephant grass genotypes respond differently in terms of their morphological development to irrigation. The objective of this study was to evaluate how water availability could affect the morphological development of different genotypes of elephant grass. The treatments consisted of four genotypes of elephant grass [Cenchrus purpureus (Schumach.) Morrone], managed under irrigation or not, during a two-year field trial. The experiment was arranged in a randomised block design in a split-plot, with four replicates per treatment (n = 4). Between the genotypes, two of them were classified as tall-sized (IRI 381 and Elephant B), and two as dwarfs (Taiwan A-146 2.37 and Mott). A three-way interaction between season, irrigation, and genotype affected the variables plant height, stem diameter, number of dead tillers, light interception (LI), and leaf area index (LAI) (p < .05). The morphological development of all genotypes was negatively impacted by the dry season. All genotypes grew taller during the rainy season (p < .05) and had a greater light interception (62%–80%) compared to the dry period (28%–59%). The genotype Mott, showed comparable LI and LAI to the tall-sized genotypes, whilst Taiwan A-146 2.37 was characterized by the lowest values, despite being the genotype with the greatest tiller density (60 tillers m⁻²) (p < .05). The use of irrigation mitigated the negative effects of the dry season on the plants, however, the type and size (tall vs. dwarf) of the elephant grass genotypes defined the extent of the responses to the use of the irrigation during the dry period.