EFFECT OF IRRIGATION SCHEDULING, SOIL MULCHING AND AMENDMENTS ON SOME SOIL PHYSICAL PROPERTIES, SOYBEAN YIELD AND CROP WATER RELATIONS UNDER CALCAREOUS CLAY SOILS

Abstract

Calcareous soils generally have some problems; poor soil physicaland chemical properties, crusting, salinity and low productivity. Optimizingwater application by irrigation scheduling increases water use efficiency,growth and yield of crops in addition to water rationalization. The aim of thepresent work was to study the effect of irrigation scheduling, soil mulchingand soil amendments application rates on some physical properties of a claycalcareous soil and soybean production and crop water relations. A fieldexperiment was conducted at Menshat Rabie Village, Itsa District, FyoumGovernorate, Egypt. Three irrigation treatments were applied i.e., I1 (1.0 ofcumulative pan evaporation, C.P.E.), I2 (0.8 of C.P.E.) and I3 (0.6 of C.P.E.).Two soil mulching treatments were applied, i.e., without soil mulching andblack plastic mulching. The effects of two soil amendments namely poultrymanure and agriculture sulfur were also tested. Three levels of each soilamendment were applied: (17.86, 35.71, and 53.57 m3 ha-1 of poultry manure)and (178.57, 357.14 and 535.71 kg ha-1 of agricultural sulfur). The experimentincluded 36 treatments distributed in a split split design with three replicates.Soybean (Glycine max. Giza 111 variety) was grown along two successiveseasons (2014 and 2015). Obtained results showed that the applied treatmentsresulted in significant and considerable effects on the studied soil propertiessuch as, decreases of soil bulk density and increases each of total porosity,available water content, soil hydraulic conductivity values and soybean plantgrowth and productivity. Applied treatments improved water consumptive useand increased the water use efficiency values of soybean crop. It wasconcluded the application of irrigation treatment 0.8 of cumulative panevaporation with the use of poultry manure at the rate 53.57 m3 ha-1 undermulching with black plastic were superior than all other studied treatments andcould save about 20% of water requirements of soybean crop grown on a claycalcareous soil.