Flood Irrigation System Research Articles

Ebb and flood nutrient delivery system for sustainable automated crop production

For more than 40 years ebb and flood irrigation and nutrient delivery systems have been nurturing crops within greenhouse controlled environments. Bedding plants, potted plants, cut flowers and even tomatoes have been produced. An overview and critical discussion of the delivery of water, dissolved oxygen and plant nutrients to the root zone of the crop using the ebb and flood principles is discussed in this article. Ebb and flood systems have functioned within automated crop production systems from table transport devices to concrete floor heating systems. The benefits were the easily manageable means to uniformly provide water, dissolved oxygen and plant nutrients to the root zone of the crop, without requiring a fixed plumbing connection, either for inflow during flood or for drainage at ebb. The results were effective transport of water, nutrients and oxygen from the bottom of the root zone upwards, and with saturation of the bottom of the root zone, allowing minimal flushing of nutrients and other dissolved substances from the root zone. All unused irrigation water was collected and returned to storage for future use, creating a recirculating hydroponic system which conserved water and nutrients and directly benefited the environment by eliminating discharge. Fundamental design criteria and operation management practices; integration with concrete floor heating system; and, examples of successful applications are discussed, as are limitations and future applications.

The Assessment of Hydrological Availability and the Payment for Ecosystem Services: A Pilot Study in a Brazilian Headwater Catchment

The assessment of water availability in river basins is at the top of the water security agenda. Historically, the assessment of stream flow discharge in Brazilian watersheds was relevant for dam dimensioning, flood control projects and irrigation systems. Nowadays, it plays an important role in the creation of sustainable management plans at the catchment scale aimed to help in establishing legal policies on water resources management and water security laws, namely, those related to the payment for environmental services related to clean water production. Headwater catchments are preferential targets of these policies and laws for their water quality. The general objective of this study was to evaluate water availability in first-order sub-basins of a Brazilian headwater catchment. The specific objectives were: (1) to assess the stream flow discharge of first-order headwater sub-basins and rank them accordingly; (2) to analyze the feasibility of payment for environmental services related to water production in these sub-basins. The discharge flow measurements were conducted during five years (2012 to 2016), in headwaters in a watershed on the São Domingos River at the Turvo/Grande Watershed, represented as the 4th-largest hydrographic unit for water resources management—UGRHI-15 in São Paulo State, Brazil. A doppler velocity technology was used to remotely measure open-channel flow and to collect the data. The discharge values were obtained on periodic measurements, at the beginning of each month. The results were subject to descriptive statistics that analyzed the temporal and spatial data related to sub-basins morphometric characteristics. The discharge flows showed space–time variations in magnitude between studied headwater sub-basins on water availability, assessed based on average net discharges. The set of ecological processes supported by forests are fundamental in controlling and recharging aquifers and preserving the volume of water in headwater in each sub-basin. The upstream inflows influence downstream sub-basins. To avoid scarcity, the headwater rivers located in the upstream sub-basins must not consider basin area as a single and homogeneous unit, because that may be the source of water conflicts. Understanding this relationship in response to conservationist practices installed uphill influenced by anthropic actions is crucial for water security assessment. The headwaters should be considered a great potential for ecosystem services, with respect to the “provider-receiver” principle, in the context of payments for environmental services (PES).

Yield of Whole, Polished Whole Grains and Degree of Whiteness of Rice for Japanese Cuisine Obtained in Flood Irrigation System

New rice cultivars with grains for Japanese cuisine have been launched in order to add value to irrigated rice production systems in the country. The objective was to evaluate the yield of polished and whole grains of cultivar BRS 358, at harvest and at six months of storage grown under a continuous irrigation system. The experiment was conducted in a lowland area, in Cantá-RR, with application of 150 kg ha-1 of N, 50% at the base and 50% at 45 days after emergence. Three harvest seasons were carried out: 38 days after flowering - DAF (A01), 45 DAF (A1) and 52 DAF (A2), to evaluate the yield of whole and polished whole grains, at harvest and at 6 months of storage. The results showed that application of N, promoted higher yield of whole grains, with 65% yield at harvest, and when stored for six months at room temperature, yield above 75%. For the polished whole grain yield, the best harvest range is 38-45 DAF, with whole grain yield above 50% and regardless of the harvesting and storage time of the grains the total whiteness is above 55%.

Estimates of genetic selection gain in irrigated F3 rice families

Rice production estimate in Brazil is 10.7 million tons, of which approximately 80% comes from the flood irrigation system in the southern region. Rice breeding programs have an important role in the development of cultivars with high production potential and industrial quality. This study estimates variance components and genetic parameters in F 3 families, and predicts the genetic gain in rice grain quality for the F 4 generation. We used fifty-six (56) F 3 families obtained from the advance of generations of the hybrid BRSCIRAD 302. This hybrid was selected for its traits of agronomic and scientific interest, such as grain yield and industrial yield. The hybrid was developed by Embrapa in partnership with CIRAD (Center for International Cooperation in Agronomic Research for Development) for Rio Grande do Sul State through the crossing of CIRAD 464 (M) × SBT 106 (F). The quality of the selected families was analyzed for amylose content, white belly, and gelatinization temperature. The F 3 families showed low gelatinization temperature. Selection of BRSCIRAD 302 hybrid families with smaller white belly spots and higher amylose content may be more successful if carried out between F 3 families. Twenty-two (22) families showed amylose content higher than that of the highest parent (29.44%). The predicted genetic gain in amylose content was 4.85% for families derived from the hybrid BRSCIRAD 302.

Water Balance and Nitrate and Salt Exports from a Saline–Sodic Irrigation District in Castelflorite (Huesca, NE Spain)

In the current context of climate change, there is growing interest in the optimization of water management in irrigated areas, in semi-arid environments. The design of adequate adaptation and mitigation measures requires specific data at different scales of the water management hierarchy, up to basin level. In this work, the irrigation and drainage system of San Pedro de Castelflorite Irrigation Community (Huesca province, NE Spain), first set up as a flood irrigation system around 1970 and then modernized to sprinkler irrigation around 2008, was studied over two irrigation seasons. The land in this basin, with a surface of 11,450 ha, is affected by severe sodicity problems, which impedes cultivation in large areas. Most of the drainage water discharges into Clamor Vieja ravine, in which the quantity and quality of drainage, using water, salt, and nitrogen balances, were monitored. The water regime was found to be essentially regulated by irrigation. From the water balance, the consumed and the recoverable fractions were estimated at 76% and 23%, respectively, and the depleted beneficial fraction for the irrigated area at 73%. A predominance of salt dissolution processes over precipitation processes was found, with salt exports of approximately 2000 kg ha−1·year−1. The nitrogen exported by the drainage water was 7 kg N·ha−1·year−1. This value, remarkably lower than those reported for nearby basins in the central Ebro valley, can be attributed to the flooding of rice fields and to the low permeability of the soils present in this basin, which would hamper nitrate washing through the soil profile.

Effect of gibberellin, benzyladenine and ascorbic acid on flowering, fruit set and yield of Costata persimmon trees

This investigation was conducted during 2017 and 2018 seasons on twenty years old persimmon trees (Diospyros kaki L.) Costata cultivar budded on Tarabuls rootstock (Diospyros virgeniana) grown in loamy soil under flood irrigation system at El-kanater Horticultural Research Station, Egypt. The study aimed to enhance flowering, yield and fruit quality particularly fruit size using foliar applications with growth regulators substances namely, gibberellic acid, benzyladenine, and ascorbic acid. The obtained data showed that, all treatments had significant effects on all experimental parameters. The most effective treatment was benzyladenine foliar application with a concentration of 40 ppm that gained 31.66 and 35.27 kg fruit per tree compared to the control, which gained 13.65 and 13.32 kg fruit per tree in the first and second seasons, respectively.

Irrigation and tillage effects on soil nitrous oxide emissions in maize monoculture

AbstractIrrigation and soil management can impact soil nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. Flood and sprinkler irrigation systems together with conventional tillage are the main practices used in the high yielding maize systems in Mediterranean Spain. The objective of this field work was to quantify the effect of the irrigation system (i.e., flood, F; and sprinkler, S) and the soil tillage system (i.e., conventional tillage, CT; no‐tillage maintaining the maize stover, NTr; and no‐tillage removing the maize stover, NT) on the N2O emissions from the soil during 3 yr (2015, 2016, and 2017). S irrigation, with mean values of 1.35 kg N2O‐N ha−1 yr−1 throughout the 3 yr, obtained 42% lower N2O emissions than F irrigation. On average of the three growing seasons, yield‐scaled N2O emissions by grain yield and by grain N uptake in F irrigation were two‐fold higher than in S irrigation. Moreover, in one out of three growing seasons (2017), no‐tillage systems (i.e., NTr and NT) showed greater yield‐scaled N2O emissions compared with CT. The higher maize grain yield with the S irrigation compared to F irrigation, as well as the lower N2O emissions reported under S irrigation resulted in the reduction of the yield‐scaled N2O emissions. Our findings highlight the role of sprinkler irrigation decreasing N2O emissions in comparison to flood irrigation in Mediterranean agroecosystems.

Short-term impacts of biochar, tillage practices, and irrigation systems on nitrate and phosphorus concentrations in subsurface drainage water.

Leaching of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) from agricultural lands can cause serious environmental problems such as eutrophication. The objective of this study was to investigate the impacts of biochar application, tillage practices, and irrigation systems on nitrate and dissolved phosphorus (DP) concentrations in subsurface drainage water and grain yield of winter wheat using a strip-split plot design with 3 replications. Irrigation at three different levels (flood (Ifl), furrow (Ifu), and sprinkler (Is) systems) considered as main factor, tillage at two levels (reduced tillage (Tr) and conventional systems (Tc)) as subplot factor, and bagasse biochar at two levels (without biochar (B0) and 20tonha-1 biochar (B1)) as sub-subplot factor. Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) standpipes were used in each sub-subplot to collect leachate water at 100-cm depth. The results indicated that irrigation had significant effects on yield, collected water volume (CWV), nitrate, and DP concentrations (P < 0.01). Interaction of tillage and irrigation was significant for grain yield (P < 0.05). Biochar application only caused a significant decrease in nitrate concentration under sprinkler irrigation (P< 0.05), while no significant impact was observed under flood and furrow irrigation systems. Under sprinkler irrigation, the total nitrate collected in the PVC standpipes decreased by 37.51 and 34.29% compared with flood and furrow irrigations, respectively. Biochar application reduced the total nitrate collected by 16.84%, while difference among tillage treatments was negligible (4.51%). The total DP collected under sprinkler irrigation was lower in comparison with flood and furrow irrigations by 42.24 and 38.76%, respectively. Biochar application reduced the total DP collected by 10.84%, while reduced tillage increased the total DP collected by 8.90% compared with the conventional tillage.

Desempenho agronômico de cultivares de arroz sob sistema de irrigação por aspersão e inundação

Currently, agronomic practices needed to improve the water efficiency use in irrigated rice crops. The study aimed to evaluate rice cultivars in flood and sprinkler-irrigated system with linear pivot. The experiment was conducted at Embrapa, in Capao do Leao, Rio Grande do Sul (31o48’49”S, 52o28’20”W), in 2011/12 and 2013/14 crop season. It was implemented in the permanent flood-irrigation systems with water blade and sprinkler-irrigation system with linear pivot. Were evaluated the genotypes BRS Atalanta, BRS Querencia, BRS Pampa, BR IRGA 410, BR IRGA 409, BRS Sinuelo CL, BRS Fronteira, BRS 7 ‘Taim’, BRS Pampeira and AB 10101 CL. The parameters evaluated were: grain yield, days to flowering, plant height and percentage of entire grains after industrial processing. The cultivar BRS Pampa stands out in sprinkler-irrigation, while in the flood-irrigation system the cultivar BRS Pampeira presents greater yield potential. The sprinkler-irrigation system with the linear pivot results in an increase in cycle to flowering, reduction in plant height and a 32% reduction in a grain yield compared to flood-irrigation in irrigated rice.

EFFECT OF NITROGEN FERTILIZATION AND SOME STIMULANTS ON DRY WEIGHT, YIELD, BULB QUALITY AND STORABILITY OF GARLIC

Two filed experiments were carried out during the winter seasons of 2016/2017and 2017/2018 at the Experimental Farm, El-Gemmeiza, Agric Res. Station, (ARC), GharbyaGovernorate (Middle Delta, Egypt), to study the effect of nitrogen fertilization at 90 and 120 kg/fad.,and some stimulants; viz, salicylic acid (SA at 100 mg/l ), lithovit at 2 g/l and algae extract at 2%,beside unsprayed treatment on dry weight, yield, bulb quality and storability of garlic, Baladycultivar under clay soil conditions using flood irrigation system. The obtained results revealed that,the interaction between using 120 kg N/fad., and lithovit at 2 g/l increased dry weight of bulb, leavesand total dry weight/plant, N, P and K contents in bulb and leaves mineral uptake, uptake by bulb,leaves and their total uptake by plant as well as total chlorophyll in leaves, average bulb weight,marketable and total yields/faddan. While, the interaction between using 90 kg N/fad., and lithovit orSA increased nitrogen use efficiency, dry matter (DM). TSS, Pungency in bulbs at harvesting timeand decreased total weight loss percentage after 180 days from storage in both seasons. The relativeincreases in total yield/fad., were about 41.96 and 61.11% for the interaction between fertilizinggarlic plants with 120 kg N/fad., and spraying with lithovit at 2 g/l over 90 Kg N without sprayingwith stimulants in the 1st and 2nd seasons, respectively. In the same time, the interaction between 90kg N/fad., and lithovit recorded increases in total yield/fad., were about 9.59 and 10.10% over theplants which received 120 kg N/fad., without spraying with stimulants in the 1st and 2nd seasons,respectively.

Drip irrigation and nitrogen management for improving crop yields, nitrogen use efficiency and water productivity of maize-wheat system on permanent beds in north-west India

The traditional flood irrigation system has led to overexploitation of ground water and low nitrogen (N) use efficiency. In north-western India, maize-based systems with lower irrigation requirement are being advocated as an alternate to rice-based systems to address the issues of declining water table. Bed planting of crops, straw mulching and drip irrigation are known to save precious irrigation water, and improve N use efficiency and grain yields. To this effect a two-year field experiment was conducted with annual wheat-maize rotation on permanent bed system to evaluate the effect of surface drip irrigation, residue management, and N application on crop and water productivity. Maize and wheat under drip irrigation with residue retention system showed significant grain yield increase of 13.7% and 23.1% compared to furrow irrigation with no residue, respectively. Surface drip irrigation with residue retention saved 88 mm and 168 mm of water and increased water productivity by 66% and 259% in wheat and maize on permanent beds compared to the conventional furrow irrigation system with residue removal, respectively. Similarly, fertigation at 10-day interval with five splits in wheat and seven splits in maize under drip irrigation system increased the mean N recovery efficiency by 16.5% and 29% compared to furrow irrigation in wheat and maize, respectively.

Effect of Yeast and Ascorbic Acid Application on Growth and Fruiting of Williams Banana Plants

This study was conducted during two successive seasons (2016/2017 first ratoon and 2017/2018 second ratoon) of Williams banana plants. The plants grown in a private banana orchard, where clay loam soil under flood irrigation system, at 3.5x3.5m apart located at Nakada district, Quena Governorate, Egypt. Forty eight stools each containing three plants were chosen to evaluate the effect of yeast applied as soil drench and spraying ascorbic acid (V.C) on growth, yield and fruit quality. These treatments were arranged in a randomized complete block design in split plot arrangement with three replicates

EFFECT OF PLANTING DATE AND FOLIAR SPRAY WITH POTASSIUM SILICATE ON GROWTH AND YIELD OF SOME GARLIC CULTIVARS

A field experiment was carried out during the two successive winter seasons of2016/2017 and 2017/2018 in a private Farm at Hehia Distrect, Sharkia Governorate, Egypt, to studythe effect of planting date, and foliar spray with potassium silicate on dry weight, bulb yield and itscomponents of Balady and Sids 40 garlic cultivars under clay soil conditions and using flood irrigationsystem. The obtained results indicated that planting Balady cultivar on 1st Oct. and spraying withpotassium silicate (K silicate) at 2 ml/l increased dry weight of leaves/plant, bulb and total dryweight/plant, yield of grades 1, 2, 3 and 4, exportable, marketable and total yield/fad., as well asaverage bulb weight.

Sub-surface drip fertigation with conservation agriculture in a rice-wheat system: A breakthrough for addressing water and nitrogen use efficiency

The future of the South Asia’s rice-wheat (RW) production system is at stake due to continuously depleting aquifers and increasing pressure on underground water under projected climate change scenario. Conventional management factors such as flood irrigation, intensive tillage and residue burning are threatening sustainability of RW system. With increasing adoption of conservation agriculture (CA), sub-surface drip fertigation (SSDF) provides an exceptional opportunity for complementing irrigation water saving benefits. Presently, there is no research evidence on optimum spacing and depth for drip laterals in a CA (direct drilling and residue mulch) based RW system around the globe. This study was therefore, planned to evaluate effects of residue mulch, different spacing and depths of laterals for SSDF on crop yield, irrigation water productivity (WPi), nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) and net returns for CA based RW system in a silt loam soil in northwestern India. Drip laterals were spaced either at 33.75 cm or 67.5 cm, and installation depths were 0, 15 or 20 cm beneath the soil surface and compared with conventional and zero tillage based flood-irrigated RW systems. Grain yield and irrigation water input in rice and wheat were generally similar under different SSDF treatments. Irrigation water savings were 48–53% in rice and 42–53% in wheat under combination of SSDF and CA compared to flood irrigation system. A similar trend in WPi was recorded in both the crops. Residue mulch contributed to higher irrigation water savings, wheat yield and WPi compared to no mulch. Both rice and wheat needed 20% less N fertilizer under SSDF system to obtain grain yields similar to that under flood irrigated crops. Net returns from SSDF system with 67.5 cm lateral spacing were significantly higher compared to flood irrigation system. In conclusion, SSDF system having laterals spaced at 67.5 cm and installed at 15 cm depth provides tangible benefits for substantial saving in irrigation water and energy and increasing NUE and net income for CA based RW system in South Asia.

Leaching of Imidazolinones in Irrigation Systems in Rice Cultivation: Sprinkling and Flooding

ABSTRACT: Herbicides of the imidazolinone group have been used in irrigated rice and presented a long persistence in the soil, especially in floodplain areas with a low drainage, and could cause environmental contamination. This study aims to evaluate the leaching and residual of herbicides belonging to the imidazolinone group in sprinkler and flood irrigation systems. The experiment was carried out under greenhouse conditions, with the application of the herbicides imazethapyr, imazethapyr + imazapic, and imazapyr + imazapic in soil irrigated by flooding and sprinkling. Subsequently, the soil was collected from the layers of 0-5, 5-10, 10-15, 15-20, and 20-25 cm and packed in 500 mL capacity plastic pots in order to sow tomato as a bioindicator plant of the presence of the herbicides belonging to the imidazolinones. Phytotoxicity, length, and shoot dry matter mass of tomato plants were evaluated at 10 and 20 days after emergence. The herbicides of the imidazolinone chemical group presented a high potential for leaching and persistence with effects for more than 180 days after application. Based on the symptoms presented by the sensitive crop, the degradation of imazethapyr, imazethapyr + imazapic, and imazapyr + imazapic in the 0-15 cm layers was higher in soil with sprinkler irrigation when compared to flood irrigation. Thus, non-flooded soils present a greater capacity to degrade the herbicides belonging to the imidazolinone chemical group.

EFFECT OF PLANTING DATE, IRRIGATION LEVEL AND FOLIAR SPRAY WITH CALCIUM AND/OR BORON ON POTATO CROP PERFORMANCE 2. YIELD AND ITS COMPONENTS, CRACKING PHENOMENON AND TUBER QUALITY

A filed experiment was carried out during the two successive seasons of 2016/2017 and 2017/2018 at the experimental farm of El- Gemmeiza, Agric Res. Station, ARC, Gharbiya Governorate (Middle Nile Delta, Egypt) to study the effect of planting date (20th September (Sep) and 10th October (Oct), irrigation water level at 50, 75 and 100 % of filed capacity (FC) and two foliar spray with Ca (1%) as calcium chloride and/or boron (60 ppm) as boric acid besides unsprayed treatment (control), and their interactions on yield and its components, tuber cracking and tuber quality under clayey soil conditions using flood irrigation system. The adopted treatments were arranged in a split - split plot design with three replicates. The planting dates were arranged in the main plots, irrigation water quantities were arranged in the sub plots, while Ca and/or B foliar sprays were randomly distributed in sub - sub plots. The obtained results indicate that, the tertiary interaction of planting on 10th Oct. , irrigation at 100% FC and sprayed plants with Ca + B resulted in higher values of total tuber yield, average tuber weight , number of tuber № plant-1 , tuber yieldplant-1 ,N, K, Ca and B contents and DM percentages in 1st and 2nd seasons. Total carbohydrates were the highest with the interaction of planting on 10th Oct. and irrigating at 100 %FC and sprayed plants with B. The increases in total tuber yield were about 253.75 and 177.82 % for tertiary interaction of planting on 10th Oct , irrigation at 100% FC and sprayed with Ca + B over the interaction of planting on 20th Sep , irrigation with 50%FC and unsprayed plants, in the 1st and 2nd seasons, respectively. As for tuber cracking %, the lowest values were obtained with the tertiary interaction of planting on 10th Oct, irrigation with 75 %FC and sprayed with Ca + B (11.37 and 10.41 %) in the 1st and 2nd seasons, respectively, while the highest values were obtained with the tertiary interaction of planting on 20th Sep, irrigation at 100 %FC and without Ca and B (25.38 and 26.57 % in the 1st and 2nd seasons, respectively). Conclusively, under similar conditions it could be concluded that , the tertiary interaction of planting on 10th Oct , irrigation at 100 % FC and sprayed plants with Ca + B was superior for enhancing both total tuber yield and quality. Furthermore, on reducing tuber cracking, combination of planting on 10th Oct, irrigation at 75% FC and spraying the plants with Ca + B is recommended.

EFFECT OF PHOSPHORUS FERTILIZATION AND INOCULATION WITH MYCORRHIZAE ON PLANT DRY WEIGHT AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF TWO ONION CULTIVARS

One field experiment was carried out during the two successive winter seasons of2015/2016 and 2016/2017 at a Private Farm in El-Sowa Village, Abo Hammad District, SharkiaGovernorate, Egypt, to study the effect of cultivars, mineral phosphorus, and mycorrhizae fungiinoculation on plant dry weight and chemical composition of onion plants under clay soil conditionsand flood irrigation system. The experiment included 18 treatments which were the combinationsamong two onion cultivars (Giza 20 and Beheri improved), three levels of mineral phospours fertilizer(0, 30 and 45 kg P2O5/fad.) and three levels of mycorrhizae (0, 2 and 4 kg/fad.). These treatments werearranged in a split split plot design system with three replicates. Cultivars were randomly arranged inthe main plots, levels of P2O5 were randomly distributed in the sub plots, while mycorrhizae levelswere randomly arranged in the sub sub plots. The triple interaction treatments among onion Giza 20cultivar, P2O5 at 45 kg/fad., and inoculation with mycorrhizae at 4 kg/fad., significantly increased dryweight of roots, bulbs, leaves and total dry weight/plant at 75 days after transplanting, as well as, N, Pand K uptake by roots, bulb and leaves at 105 days after transplanting.

Design and Installation of Controlled Drip Irrigation System

Globally, agriculture sector uses major share of available freshwater. Pakistan is an agricultural country and its major economy depends upon the agriculture sector. In Pakistan, freshwater sacristy rate is increasing due to poor sanitation and water management system, increase in population and food demands, and use of fresh water flood irrigation system to irrigate the agricultural land. This ultimately poses harmful effect on the economy of country. About 73% of freshwater resource is consumed for the irrigation purpose in Pakistan. The increase in population and the food demand is an impetus to adopt drip irrigation system at large in the country. In such a scenario, controlled drip irrigation system serves the suitable technique to limit the water supplied to the crops at regular interval for agriculture, and replaces the flood irrigation system. Besides ordinary drip irrigation system, the controlled drip irrigation system monitors and controls the soil moisture and temperature of the crops using sensors and actuators. This study is aimed at designing and installation of controlled drip irrigation system for crop fields at Nasarpur, Sindh, Pakistan. It was expected that agricultural sector will become more productive by effectively using the fresh water resources. The study has shown that converting conventional irrigation into controlled drip irrigation has saved freshwater to a greater extent and marginal excessive use energy used in pumping and the control system. On the other hand it has also minimized the energy usage for pumping fresh water through large tube wells.

Growth of Sugar Cane Under Cultivation Flooded at Different Speeds Lowering of the Water Table

In order to study the effect of downgrade rate of water table in the growth of sugar cane (Saccharum spp, cultivate 867515), an experiment in was carried under randomized block design with factorial arrangement (3 &amp;times; 5 + 1) and 4 replications, applying the flood irrigation system in 3 stages of development (67, 210 and 300 days after planting - DAP) with 5 downgrade rate of water table (3, 6, 9, 12 and 15 days) and the control (no flood). The plants were grown in soil columns of 240 liters, filled with Yellow Oxisol by 300 days after planting and monitored as the height of the stem, number of leaves, stem diameter, number of internodes, number of tillers, leaf area, growth increment, rate relative growth, leaf area index, leaf area ratio and specific leaf area. The stages of development that the flooding was applied at a rate of lowering of the groundwater level variables influenced the growth of cane sugar. The plants drenched at 210 days after planting for 12 days had higher growth of stem, leaf number, leaf area and leaf area index. Plants exposed to water logging after 67 and 210 days after planting obtain better physiological indices that the witness and those who received the 305 DAP waterlogging. It is recommended that the spacing between drains is estimated to be able to lower the water table, after a reloading project to 30 cm deep in 15 days.

EFFECT OF PLANTING DATE , IRRIGATION LEVEL AND FOLIAR SPRAYING WITH CALCIUM AND BORON TREATMENTS ON POTATO 1. PLANT GROWTH , PLANT WATER RELATIONSHIP AND PLANT CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS

ABSTRACT A filed experiment was carried out during the two successive seasons of 2016/2017 and 2017/2018 at the Experimental Farm of El- Gemmeiza, Agric Res. Station, A. R.C., Gharbya Governorate (Middle Delta, Egypt) to study the effect of planting date (20th September (Sep.) and 10th October (Oct.), irrigation water level at 50, 75 and 100 % from the filed capacity (FC) and two foliar spray treatments with calcium chloride (1%) and boron ( 60 ppm) singly or in combinations, beside unsprayed treatment as well as their interactions on growth, plant water relationship and plant chemical compositionof potato(Mondial cv.) under clay soil conditions using flood irrigation system. These treatments were arranged in a split split plot design with three replicates. Planting date was arranged in the main plots, irrigation water quantities were in the sub plots, while foliar spray treatments were randomly distributed in the sub sub plots. The obtained results indicate that, the tertiary interactions of planting on 10th Oct., irrigation at 100 % of FC and spraying potato plants with calcium and boron in combination gave the highest values of plant height , both fresh and dry weight of shoot/ plant, total and free water % as well as total chlorophyll ( a+b) in leaf tissues, N, P, K, Ca , Boron and total carbohydrates contents in shoots in both seasons. While the tertiary interactions of planting on 20th Sep., irrigation level at 50 % from FC and unsprayed with calcium and boron gave the highest values of bound water % and proline amino acid in leaf tissues in both seasons. Conclusively, under similar conditions it could be concluded that , the tertiary interaction of planting on 10th Oct , irrigation at 100 % FC and sprayed plants with Ca + B were the best interaction treatments for enhancing plant growth and chemical constituents in shoot of potato grown in clay soil under the same conditions.