Exploring Soil Salinity Management in Entisols Using Trickle Irrigation System

Abstract

Entisols are common soils in the arid regions and have the potential for irrigated agriculture. However, when these soils are irrigated with brackish/saline water and the irrigation is poorly managed, the soils become saline. Maintaining desired saltwater balance in the potential root zone area is the key factor for growing agricultural, forestry, and landscaping plants under saline soil and water conditions. Irrigation management is one of the practices that can assist in achieving such a goal. In fact, irrigation methods along with better scheduling can manage the wetting-front movement and salt accumulation in the root zone. Micro-irrigation methods are usually desirable under water scarcity/salinity situations to facilitate water conservation and managing soil salinity. Among these irrigation systems, the trickle is commonly used for efficient soil salinity management and irrigation. In order to verify the above, field experiments on three emitter spacing (25, 50, and 75 cm) in two layout patterns (square and triangle) were evaluated on Entisols at the experimental farm of Dubai-based International Center for Biosaline Agriculture. Soil samples were collected at 0–25- and 25–50-cm depths and analyzed for EC of soil saturation extract to assess soil salinity development around the emitters. Results show that triangle pattern of emitters minimizes soil salinity development compared to salinity development in the square-type pattern through overlapping of wetting fronts and subsequent leaching. Similarly, close spacing of emitters also overlaps wetting fronts, and that helps in reducing salt accumulation. These preliminary findings may help formulate suitable irrigation management practices for growing different plants under saline environments.