Effect of Plant Density on the Performance of Two Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) Cultivars under Irrigation

A field experiment was conducted for two consecutive seasons (2000/01 and 2001/02) at Kenana Sugarcane Research Farm to investigate the effect of planting density on the performance of two cultivars of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.); namely, Khidir and Promo. The plants were sown at four planting densities: 5, 10, 15 and 20 plants/m2(0.5x105,1.0x105,1.5x105 and 2.0x105 plants/ha, respectively). The treatments were arranged in a randomized complete block design with four replications. The results indicated that the leaf area index and dry matter production increased with increasing plant density. Increasing plant density significantly decreased the number of capsules per plant, number of seeds per capsule and seed yield per plant, and increased seed yield per unit area. There were no significant differences in oil and protein content between plant densities. The differences between the two cultivars were significant in all the studied characters, and Promo cultivar outyielded Khidir by 11% in the first season and by 22 % in the second season.  The higher yield of Promo was associated with higher number of capsules per plant and greater number of seeds per capsule.  It is recommended that irrigated sesame should be sown at a stand density of approximately 15-20 plants/m2 (1.5x105–2.0x105 plants ha-1).