Allivating Salinityand Sodicity by Adding Some Soil Amendments

Abstract

Nine hundred thousand hectares of the irrigated lands in Egypt are salt affected soils. Such conditions threaten not only the sustainability of land use for crops production, but also the whole ecosystem. The current study aimed at investigating the growth performance of some important crops in Egypt cultivated in saline sodic clayey soils of El-Hossainia and El-Fayoum soils. To attain the aim of the study, field experiments were conducted in the investigated soils during the summer and winter seasons of the years 2013 and 2014. Rice followed by sugar beet were grown in the saline sodic soil of El-Hossainia soil; whereas sunflower followed by wheat were grown in the saline sodic soil of El-Fayoum. The amendments involved gypsum at a rate of 100% of the gypsum requirements (GR), compost at its recommended dose (100%) for each soil, a combination between gypsum at 50% of the GR and compost at 50% of its recommended dose, beside of diluted H2SO4 at a rate equivalent to GR and finally bio-treatment with halophytic bacteria (Biotoul). Selected physical and chemical properties i.e. soil-water retention, soil bulk density, soil hydraulic conductivity, organic matter, soil pH and EC were considered in this study. Crop yield and growth performance of the grown plants were determined at the end of the growing seasons. The sole application of gypsum or compost at their recommended rates as well as the combined application of these amendments at 50% of these rates improved physical and chemical properties of the investigated saline sodic soils. Consequently, these treatments resulted in higher growth and growth parameters as compared with the other treatments i.e. diluted sulphuric acid and Biotoul.