Effect of irrigation level and natural inputs on yield and economics of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) under Chhattisgarh plains

Introduction

Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is an important cucurbitaceous vegetable grown for its tender fruits, which are consumed fresh as salad and valued for their high moisture content and refreshing quality. Its shallow root system and rapid vegetative growth make the crop highly responsive to soil moisture, and both deficit and excess irrigation can reduce fruit set, fruit weight and marketable yield (Hari et al., 2017; Li et al., 2024) [1, 2] . Irrigation is also a major component of production cost, and its effect on profitability depends on whether the additional yield offsets the additional expenditure (Nair et al., 2018; Patel et al., 2022) [3,4] . At the same time, there is growing interest in low-cost, farm-prepared natural inputs such as Jeevamrut, Beejamrut and Ghanjeevamrut, which supply nutrients and beneficial microorganisms at little cost and are reported to improve crop productivity and returns (Kumar et al., 2021; Saharan et al., 2023; Kasundra et al., 2026) [6,7,5] . Information on how irrigation level and natural inputs jointly influence the yield and economics of cucumber under the Chhattisgarh plains is limited. The present study therefore evaluated three irrigation levels and four natural input treatments on fruit yield per hectare and benefit-cost ratio of cucumber cv. Arka Veera.

Materials and Methods

The experiment was conducted during the *Rabi* season of 2025-26 at CHRS, Sankara, Patan, Durg, Chhattisgarh (21°18′ N, 81°55′ E; 291 m AMSL). The soil was loamy and slightly acidic (pH 6.44), with EC 0.15 dS m -1 , organic carbon 0.68%, and available N, P and K of 213.2, 10.2 and 281.8 kg ha -1 , respectively. Cucumber cv. Arka Veera was sown on 25 December 2025 at 60 × 30 cm spacing. The experiment was laid out in a Split Plot Design with three replications and 12 treatment combinations. Main plots consisted of three irrigation levels: I 1 (100%, 16 irrigations), I 2 (75%, 12 irrigations) and I 3 (50%, 8 irrigations) of crop water requirement. Sub-plots comprised N 0 (control), N 1 (Jeevamrut @ 500 L ha -1 ), N 2 (Beejamrut @ 250 ml kg -1 seed) and N 3 (Ghanjeevamrut @ 1000 kg ha -1 ). Fruits were harvested at edible maturity and yield was expressed as q ha -1

. Economics were calculated using a market price of Rs 30 kg -1 , with net return obtained by subtracting cultivation cost from gross return and B:C ratio calculated as gross return/cost of cultivation. Data were analysed using ANOVA for Split Plot Design, and treatment means were compared by CD at 5% significance (Gomez et al., 1984) [8] .

Results and Discussion

Irrigation levels and natural inputs significantly influenced fruit yield per hectare and the economics of cucumber, as presented in Tables 1 to 3.

Irrigation significantly affected yield per hectare (Table 1). The maximum yield (17.93 q ha -1 ) was recorded under I 1 (100% irrigation), statistically at par with I 2 (75%; 16.80 q ha -1

), while I 3 (50%) recorded the minimum (14.52 q ha -1

). Full irrigation produced about 23.5% higher yield than 50% irrigation, probably due to adequate soil moisture supporting cell expansion, fruit filling and fruit weight (Hari et al., 2017; Santosh et al., 2024) [1,9] . Reduced yield under water deficit may be associated with restricted cell expansion (Li et al., 2024) [2] . Natural inputs also significantly influenced yield. The highest yield was obtained with N 1 (Jeevamrut; 18.55 q ha -1

), which was at par with N 3 (Ghanjeevamrut; 17.53 q ha -1

), followed by N 2 (Beejamrut; 15.80 q ha -1

), while N 0 recorded the lowest yield (13.79 q ha -1

). Jeevamrut increased yield by about 34.5% over the control, possibly due to improved nutrient availability and microbial activity in the root zone (Saharan et al., 2023; Bhadu et al., 2023) [7,10] . Among treatment combinations (Table 2), the maximum yield (21.17 q ha -1

) was recorded in I 1 N 1 , followed by I 1 N 3 (19.35 q ha -1 ), while I 3 N 0 recorded the minimum (12.84 q ha -1

). This indicates a complementary effect of adequate irrigation and natural inputs (Santosh et al., 2024; Saharan et al., 2023) [9,7] . Under full irrigation, Jeevamrut increased yield by about 47%.

Benefit-cost ratio

The economics of different treatment combinations are presented in Table 3. Cost of cultivation increased with irrigation intensity and natural-input application, ranging from Rs 25,240 ha -1 in I 3 N 0 to Rs 30,040 ha -1 in I [3,4,5] . Gross and net returns generally followed the yield trend. The maximum gross return (Rs 63,510 ha -1 ) and net return (Rs 33,070 ha -1 ) were recorded in I 1 N 1 , while the minimum gross return (Rs 38,520 ha -1 ) occurred in I 3 N 0 . The high returns from I 1 N 1 resulted from its greater yield with only a small additional cost for Jeevamrut (Kumar et al., 2021; Bhadu et al., 2021) [6,11] . The highest B:C ratio was recorded in I 1 N 1 (2.09), followed by I 2 N 1 (1.95) and I 3 N 1 (1.90). Jeevamrut produced the highest B:C ratio at each irrigation level. In contrast, I 1 N 0 recorded a lower ratio (1.44) than I 2 N 0 and I 3 N 0 (1.53 each), indicating that the additional cost of full irrigation was not compensated by a proportional yield increase without natural inputs. The relatively high B:C ratios of I 2 N 1 and I 3 N 1 suggest that Jeevamrut may help maintain profitability under reduced irrigation (Kumar et al., 2024; Malik, 2017; Kumar et al., 2017) [12,13,14] .

Table 1. Effect of irrigation levels and natural inputs on fruit yield of cucumber.

Treatment

Yield per hectare (q ha -1 ) Irrigation levels I 1 -100% irrigation (16 irrigations) 17.93 I 2 -75% irrigation (12 irrigations) 16.80 I 3 -50% irrigation (8 irrigations)

14.52 SEm ± 0.58 CD at 5% 2.33 Natural inputs N 0 -Control (no natural input) 13.79 N 1 -Jeevamrut @ 500 L ha -1 18.55 N 2 -Beejamrut @ 250 ml kg -1 seed 15.80 N 3 -Ghanjeevamrut @ 1000 kg ha -1 17.53 SEm ± 0.34 CD at 5% 1.03

Conclusion

Both irrigation level and natural inputs significantly influenced the yield per hectare and the benefit-cost ratio of cucumber cv. Arka Veera. Full irrigation (100%) gave the highest yield, though it was statistically at par with 75% irrigation, and Jeevamrut was the best natural input, followed by Ghanjeevamrut. The combination of 100% irrigation with Jeevamrut (I 1 N 1 ) recorded the maximum yield (21.17 q ha -1 ), gross return (Rs 63,510 ha -1 ), net return (Rs 33,070 ha -1 ) and B:C ratio (2.09). Jeevamrut under 75% and 50% irrigation also maintained high B:C ratios of 1.95 and 1.90, respectively. Full irrigation with Jeevamrut is therefore recommended for cucumbers in the Chhattisgarh plains, while Jeevamrut with 75% irrigation is a sound option where water is limited.

Acknowledgement

AcknowledgementsThe authors express deep gratitude to Dr. Amit Dixit (Advisor) and the committee members of the College of Horticulture and Research Station (CHRS), Sankara, Patan, Durg, Mahatma Gandhi Udyanikee Evam Vanikee Vishwavidyalaya, for providing essential support and facilities necessary for this research work.

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