Material Suitability of Wick Irrigation for Urban Horticulture in Rajkot City

Material Suitability of Wick Irrigation for Urban Horticulture in Rajkot City | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Material Suitability of Wick Irrigation for Urban Horticulture in Rajkot City Hardik Pujara, Hemantkumar Sonkusare This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7137361/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract In the semi-arid urban environment of Rajkot, Gujarat (India), efficient water management is crucial for sustaining small-scale horticultural practices. This study explores the optimization of water use in cultivating tomato, chili, and spinach using wick-based irrigation systems. Four different wick materials were evaluated: Polyester Cloth Material (PCM) , Catechu Wick (CtW) , C otton Non-Wovens(CNW) , and Cotton Woven (CW) .These materials are selected based on their comparative maximum capillary height(MCH) and effective water absorption capacity(WAC).Results demonstrated that cotton non-woven wicks offered the highest water retention and consistent capillary flow, leading to improved yield in spinach and chili with up to 55% less water use compared to traditional methods. Catechu wicks , being biodegradable and locally available, showed strong potential for sustainable use, especially in leafy crops like spinach. Polyester cloth ensured durability but had moderate performance in water efficiency. Cotton woven wicks balanced durability and performance, particularly effective for tomatoes. The study confirms that wick-based irrigation—especially when matched with suitable wick materials—can significantly optimize water usage while supporting sustainable urban farming practices in Rajkot. Wick based irrigation urban horticulture capillary irrigation Sustainable farming Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7137361","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":505403319,"identity":"88f7029f-e5a7-4276-a56c-b96d76405c20","order_by":0,"name":"Hardik Pujara","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"","institution":"Atmiya University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Hardik","middleName":"","lastName":"Pujara","suffix":""},{"id":505403320,"identity":"f9e2ff09-4ccb-4e9f-9add-7ad5b0c30046","order_by":1,"name":"Hemantkumar Sonkusare","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Atmiya University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Hemantkumar","middleName":"","lastName":"Sonkusare","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-07-16 08:08:20","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7137361/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7137361/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":102905955,"identity":"f6a2134f-9f2b-4859-a631-b29d1b6ce5eb","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-02-18 09:12:15","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":371537,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"ReserchpaperHP2025ver.2.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7137361/v1_covered_1c4e861c-ce65-40ff-9670-567dbcfaea9c.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Material Suitability of Wick Irrigation for Urban Horticulture in Rajkot City","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Wick based irrigation, urban horticulture, capillary irrigation, Sustainable farming","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7137361/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7137361/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eIn the semi-arid urban environment of Rajkot, Gujarat (India), efficient water management is crucial for sustaining small-scale horticultural practices. This study explores the optimization of water use in cultivating tomato, chili, and spinach using wick-based irrigation systems. Four different wick materials were evaluated: \u003cb\u003ePolyester Cloth Material (PCM)\u003c/b\u003e, \u003cb\u003eCatechu Wick (CtW)\u003c/b\u003e, C\u003cb\u003eotton Non-Wovens(CNW)\u003c/b\u003e, and \u003cb\u003eCotton Woven (CW)\u003c/b\u003e .These materials are selected based on their comparative maximum capillary height(MCH) and effective water absorption capacity(WAC).Results demonstrated that \u003cb\u003ecotton non-woven wicks\u003c/b\u003e offered the highest water retention and consistent capillary flow, leading to improved yield in spinach and chili with up to \u003cb\u003e55% less water use\u003c/b\u003e compared to traditional methods. \u003cb\u003eCatechu wicks\u003c/b\u003e, being biodegradable and locally available, showed strong potential for sustainable use, especially in leafy crops like spinach. \u003cb\u003ePolyester cloth\u003c/b\u003e ensured durability but had moderate performance in water efficiency. \u003cb\u003eCotton woven wicks\u003c/b\u003e balanced durability and performance, particularly effective for tomatoes. 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