Evaluation of strawberry genotypes response to reduced water irrigation trial in southern Spain

For the extended strawberry cultivation area in mild-hot cultivation areas, a primary target is the optimization of water use and an accurate irrigation management for achieving a satisfactory production of high quality fruit. The aim of this work is to assess the effect of variation of water supply on strawberry production during crop cycle. Nine selections originating from the D3A-UPM breeding program, along with 'Rociera', a commercial cultivar widely grown in Spain, are compared to identify their yield and quality response to limited water condition. All genotypes were grown at a standard water regime W100 (100% water restitution) and reduced water regime: W72 (72% of water restitution) and W50 (50% of water restitution). The W72 treatment tested in this trial was found to be much more appropriate for the cultivation of 'Rociera', by promoting a 32% increase in plant yield compared to control (W100). This benefit, combined with the saving of water use and labour work for irrigation, gave a high economic benefit to the company at a reduced environmental impact. As expected, the different breeding selections showed a wide variability in response to the irrigation treatments. Some breeding selections, showed a plant vegetative growth and yield performances near to 'Rociera' when treated with the 28% reduction of water use (W72).