Applications of Decision Support System: A Case Study of Solanaceous Vegetables

Crop simulation models constitute the major proportion in decision support systems. A large number of crop models have been developed for potato and few for tomato and peppers. In the literature, thirty three crop models have been reported to simulate potato, nine for tomato and six for peppers. Some of these models dealt with the climate change scenario and others with the crop management practices such as sowing time, irrigation, nitrogen, and insect-pests management. The most evaluated and applied models for potato include; SUBSTOR, and LINTUL-Potato, whereas CROPGRO-tomato model is the most tested and applied for tomato. The AQUACROP is the most widely used model to simulate the water dynamics. The CROPGRO model has been tested for elevated temperatures and CO₂ under greenhouse conditions for tomato. In tomato and peppers, almost similar models have been applied for field conditions as well as under greenhouse environments with some modifications. Nitrogen dynamics has been widely tested by employing the EU-Rotate-N model for tomato and peppers. Simulation studies dealing with changing climate conditions are rare in potato and are not found for tomato and peppers. To modify potato, tomato and peppers models for climate impact studies, it is required that they are (a) calibrated and evaluated with new cultivars under various agro-environmental conditions and (b) assessed under varying field conditions under changing climates and crop management practices, including temperature increases, water and nutrient management and their interactions. These comprehensive model studies and modifications need a collaborative international effort and a multi-year, large scale field research studies on potato, tomato and peppers.