Abstract
New Guinea impatiens (Impatiens Xhawkerii Barbados') were grown under drip irrigation with the aid of microtensiometers. There were two irrigation regimes (leach and no leach) and three fertility rates (6-1.5-2, 12-3-4, and 184.5-6 mM N-P-K). This was done to determine the feasibility of growing this crop in a no leach system and to determine an optimal fertility rate. The experiment was conducted twice (winter and fall). In both experiments, the leached treatments had significantly larger fresh weights than the no leach treatments. Among the no leach treatments, the 12-3-4 mM treatment had the largest growth index, flower number, and total fresh weight. The no leach treatments used significantly less water and N than the leached treatments of the same fertility rate. In post-production studies following both experiments, all plants continued to grow and flower. In a third experiment, plants were grown under a no leach irrigation regime and the 12-3-4 fertility rate with six different media (peat-perlite, RediEarth, Sunshine #1, rockwool mix, coconut coir mix, and Metromix 366). Those plants in the Metromix 366 treatment had a significantly larger growth index, flower number, and total fresh weight than any other medium treatment.
Pannkuk, Timothy Richard (1995). Growth of New Guinea impatiens under no-leach drip irrigation. Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /ETD -TAMU -1995 -THESIS -P3675.