Effect of soil moisture regimes and mulch materials on growth, yield and economics of summer squash in Uttarakhand hills Thapliyal Pramod, Bhatt Lalit, Uniyal S.P., Maurya S.K. Department of Vegetable, College of Agriculture, G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar-263145, Uttarakhand Online published on 29 March, 2016. Abstract A study was under taken to elucidate the effect of soil moisture regimes and mulch materials on plant growth, flowering, yield and economics of summer squash (Cucurbita pepo L.) under rain fed mid-hill condition of Uttarakhand during spring-summer seasons of 2010–11 and 2011–12. The experimental findings revealed that summer squash performance was significantly influenced by different soil moisture regimes and mulch materials. Among three soil moisture regimes, 20 to 25% soil moisture level was found to be the best with respect to plant growth characters, total yield (73.37 t ha−1), net return (Rs. 5, 68, 705.33 ha−1) and benefit-cost ratio (4.48). Similarly, out of two mulches, black polyethylene mulch was found best with respect to plant growth characters, total yield (72.13 t ha−1), net return (Rs.5, 51, 513.67 ha−1) and benefit-cost ratio (4.23). Out of the 9 treatment combinations, S1M1 (20 to 25% soil moisture range under black polyethylene mulch) had recorded maximum yield of 83.80 t ha−1 along with highest net profit of Rs. 6, 61, 439.00 ha−1 and benefit-cost ratio of 4.74, hence, recommended for commercial cultivation in Uttarakhand hills. Top Keywords Summer squash, mulch, blackpolyethylene. Top |