Constraints in Vegetables Production Due to Climate Change
摘要
Vegetable production is facing numerous constraints due to the changing climate. The current chapter provides an overview of the major constraints faced by vegetable farmers and how climate change intensifies these challenges. Increasing temperature can cause heat stress in vegetable crops, leading to decreased yield with poor quality. Heat stress can also affect the timing of bud initiation, flowering, and fruiting, causing management problems in vegetable production. Climate change can result in either water scarcity or excessive rainfall, both of which pose challenges to vegetable production. Water scarcity can lead to inadequate irrigation, affecting crop growth and yield. Excessive rainfall can cause waterlogging and soil erosion, damaging root systems and hindering nutrient uptake. Climate change can also elevate the occurrence of pests and diseases as warmer temperature and irregular rainfall can indulge the explosion of pests and spread of diseases, resulting in decreased marketable yield. Ozone, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, floods, winds, and hail storms can have detrimental effects on vegetable production. These constraints force the growers to adopt climate-resilient farming practices in vegetable production. This comprises the use of climate-resilient cultivars, and improved irrigation system like drip irrigation to conserve water and sustain optimum soil moisture levels. Integrated pest management approaches and crop diversification can also support in lessening the risks linked with climate change by spreading out the production and reducing susceptibility to explicit weather patterns. Hence, there is a need to implement climate-resilient farming practices to warrant sustainable vegetable production in changing climate scenario.