SOIL AND WATER MANAGEMENT OF NEWLY RECLAIMED SOILS

Abstract

Soil and water management techniques play a decisive role in growing crops for high profit, supplying available water in the root zone environment, and maintammg soil fertility. Sounded and correctly integrated soil and water management practices provide a suitable medium in which seeds can germinate, roots can grow, supply of adequate available water, and produce sufficient nutrients necessary for crop growth and yield. For achieving the current study objectives, two sites different in EC, 4.4 and 15.5 dS/m contents were chosen in Demo Farm, Fayoum, Egypt, which their soils are known to be newly reclaimed soils. Some soil and water agro-management techniques through different levels of some organic amendments applications and irrigation treatments via different available soil water depletion levels were used in the chosen newly reclaimed soils of the two sites. Three different organic amendments (i.e., sludge, cattle manure and poultry manure) with three levels of application (low, moderate and high), in addition to three irrigation treatments in which irrigated the soil whenever the depletion of the available soil water at 25, 50 and 75%, were used as a soil and water management. Incorporation of the used amendments was carried out into a depth of 20 em, and completed prior to planting. Two main crops, such as sorghum and wheat were grown under the conditions of the current study in order to clarify the reflection of such used soil and water management on the existed grown crops, along two successive seasons. The obtained results revealed that some studied physical and chemical properties have been drastically and significantly affected as a result of applying the mentioned management practices. The applied amendments and/or irrigation treatments resulted in considerable and significant changes in both water consumptive use and water utilization efficiency by the existed grown sorghum and wheat crops. Meanwhile, the used soil and water management techniques improve the newly reclaimed soils properties, which reflect upon the growth, yield and quality of the existed grown crops.

The considerable and significant variations among the physical and chemical soil properties, water consumptive use and water utilization efficiency, and crop growth and yield parameters may be attributed to the ameliorative role of the applied amendments and sufficient available water as a result of the added treatments. Moreover, such previous trends and behaviour may be referred to the hydrophilic nature, the vital role in modification of some soil properties and reducing the mechanical impedance of the applied amendments and/or irrigation treatments as a soil and water management. Consequently, such indicated previous findings and statements must be taken into consideration in order to obtain high productivity of the grown crops with satisfactory quality. Additionally, integrated and accurate correctly soil and water management techniques are necessary for the newly reclaimed soils. The best treatment was found in 25% available water in sorghum and 50% in wheat. The increased was found to be; 18-57% in Site I and 34-75% in Site II.