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

Crop simulation models constitute the major proportion in decisionsupport systems. A large number of crop models have been developed for potatoand few for tomato and peppers. In the literature, thirty three crop models havebeen reported to simulate potato, nine for tomato and six for peppers. Some ofthese 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 andapplied for tomato. The AQUACROP is the most widely used model to simulatethe 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 undergreenhouse environments with some modifications. Nitrogen dynamics has beenwidely tested by employing the EU-Rotate-N model for tomato and peppers.Simulation studies dealing with changing climate conditions are rare in potatoand are not found for tomato and peppers. To modify potato, tomato and peppersmodels for climate impact studies, it is required that they are (a) calibrated andevaluated with new cultivars under various agro-environmental conditions and(b) assessed under varying field conditions under changing climates and cropmanagement 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 fieldresearch studies on potato, tomato and peppers.