Using Magnetic Technologies in Management of Water Irrigation Programs under Arid and Semi-Arid Ecosystem

Abstract

Agriculture in arid and semi arid regions is currently affected by lack of fresh water and a remarkable increase in salt saline soil and underground water Recently the available information of simple and eco friendly technology in using magnetic field in correcting brackish water is possible Field experiments were carried out at Agricultural Research Station College of Food and Agriculture Sciences King Saud University Saudi Arabia aimed at examine whether there are any beneficial effects of magnetic treatment on correcting underground brackish water for irrigation The experiments included three cereal crops viz wheat barley and triticale and three types of water i e magnetized and non magnetized underground brackish water and treated wastewater A magnetic unit for water treatment magnetron with magnetic field amounting to mT was installed to flow out magnetized water through a magnetic field Overall the results indicate that the effects of magnetic treatment varied with plant type and the type of irrigation water used and their interaction In particular the magnetic treatment of underground water respectively increased germination percentage nearly the complete emergence was recorded after days from sowing as compared to non magnetized and treated waste water and Furthermore magnetic water induced positive significant effect on mobility and uptake of micronutrient concentration ppm Fe Zn and Mn Using magnetized water also increased significantly all growth criteria including main stem height cm number of tillers m fresh and dry weight g m as compared to underground water mounting to and at heading stages respectively And thus all these parameters reflected in increasing biomass and finally grain yield While the findings of the present study are interesting the potential of the magnetic treatment of irrigation water for crop production needs to be further tested under different conditions