Traditional Irrigation Methods Research Articles

Оценка состояния водно-земельных ресурсов Азербайджана

In the article the problems of assessment of water are concidered according to land resources of Azerbaijan. The authors note that currently in the country out of the total turnover of the land displays a wide area unsuitable for agricultural production due to the construction of individual buildings and structures, elevation of groundwater level, the development of various types of erosion and for other reasons. So, one person in 1959 had 0.36 ha of arable land, 1970 – 0.23 ha in 1979 – 0.21 hectares, in 2006 dropped to 0.155 hectares currently, more than 42.8% of the whole territory of the Republic (70...85 % in some regions) is exposed to various erosive processes. A critical question is the availability suitable for agriculture water resources. By estimations of authors of the water resources of the country amount to 32.5 billion m3, and in dry years this figure is reduced to of 23.16 billion m3. The results of the study revealed that up to 96 % of irrigated land is watered mainly traditional irrigation methods (furrow and overlap, superficial way), and in other ways with the use of low-intensity progressive water saving technologies of irrigation systems with up to 5 % of the total irrigated land. According to the researches, in 2020 the total annual value of water resources per capita in Azerbaijan will be 2 times less than in Armenia, and 7 times less than in Georgia. It is proposed to increase the efficiency of agricultural production in the production unit of crop production from use of water resources by the year 2025 at the level of 1 kg/m3 and 1.5 kg/m3 by 2050.

The Modernization of a Large Irrigation Perimeter to Support Rural Sustainable Development - study Case of Matala (South of Angola)

Matala Irrigation Perimeter (MIP), located in the Cunene river basin, Huíla Province, South of Angola, is under a modernization process, managed by the Angola government. It aims a sustainable rural development, focusing on the socioeconomically aspects and the reduction of poverty of the local populations. This paper describes the MIP and presents the main results of a research study carried out to evaluate this process to establish actions for its improvement. It includes procedures for better water use at conveyance network and on-farm levels, and for higher land productivity through the improvement of crop systems. MIP has an area of 10,732 ha, being the water diverted from the Matala dam, in Cunene River. The irrigated perimeter was built in the 1960s, with a gravity canal distribution system, designed for traditional surface irrigation methods. Since 2002, the MIP was deeply rehabilitated, through the recovery of the main canal and water control structures, the enlargement of the irrigated area and the implementation of agro industrial and animal production units. MIP has several constraints, related with the maintenance of hydraulic structures, the effectiveness of water distribution, and shortage water supply. The main crops grown are potato, tomato, maize, pasture, horticultural and fruit trees, being their irrigation scheduling analysed. The development of on-farm irrigation has been set as an important priority, because the majority of the area applies low effective traditional methods. The modernization of the surface irrigation is a key crucial option, particularly in the flat soils with topographic conditions for gravity supply. The micro irrigation, particularly the drip irrigation, is applied in tomato crop and fruit tree, and the fixed or centre pivot systems used for maize and pastures. The research presented in this paper evaluated those systems, the performance indicators and the main difficulties found, including the requirements of farmer's technical support.

Effects of di-ammonium phosphate on hydraulic, compaction, and shear strength characteristic of sand and clay soils

The large amounts of phosphate fertilizers which are used in agriculture activities in Egypt lead to the contamination of large quantities of soil surrounding the agricultural fields. Also, the use of traditional flood irrigation method makes the problem more worse. An extensive laboratory testing program is carried out to determine the Atterberg limits, compaction characteristics, hydraulic conductivity, and shear strength parameters of clean and contaminated soils. Three types of soils are used including coarse sand, fine to medium sand, and silty clay. Batch tests are used to study the short-term effect of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) contamination on the soil properties. Contaminated specimens are prepared by mixing the dried soil samples with different di-ammonium phosphate concentrations of 5, 10, and 20 %. The results indicate a significant reduction in Atterberg limits and increase in hydraulic conductivity for silty clay soil with the increase of phosphate concentration. The change that is induced by chemical reaction in the micro-structure of the soil is studied by laser scanning microscope before and after soil contamination. For sand soil, γ dmax is significantly increased with the increase of DAP concentrations up to 5 % and slightly increased with concentrations from 5 to 20 % which indicates excess phosphate in the soil. However, the general trend of hydraulic conductivity is towards reduction. In addition, the friction angle of two sand samples decreases about 10 % due to the increase of DAP concentration up to 20 %. For silty clay, the reduction in cohesion is about 20 % and the increase of friction angle is about 10 % with the increase of DAP up to 20 %.

Ecosystem services of traditional irrigation systems in northern New Mexico, USA

Ecosystem services provided by community irrigation systems known as ‘acequias’ include extending the area of green space between such acequias and streams. The traditional gravity flow irrigation methods of these systems remain intact and notably, they enhance vegetative cover and diversity, support wildlife habitat, recharge shallow aquifers, sequester carbon, improve air and water quality, retain storm-water flow, and control flooding. They also provide nutrient cycling and soil formation, ecotourism and environmental education, extension of the irrigation season, and aesthetic enrichment in ecological landscape diversity. We developed a rating system for evaluating the relative extent of ecosystem services provided by acequias through a combination of GIS and field methods to determine riparian health. The rating system evaluated 16 ecosystem services on a scale from ‘poor’ to ‘excellent’ for two acequias on the Rio Hondo in Taos County, New Mexico, USA. The evaluation data provide scientific support for the protection of traditional irrigation as an important cultural and ecosystem landscape of value to the broader society, including benefits of rural development, cultural tourism, enhancement of environmental amenities, and local food security of small-scale agriculture.

Design of Agricultural Environmental Parameters Monitoring System Based on Internet of Things

The paper study on the architecture of monitoring system in the field of agricultural environmental based on Internet of things that can achieve real-time online monitoring on more growth morphology of plant, air temperature, humidity, soil moisture, light intensity and CO2 concentration, pH value and crop water environment multi parameter. In this paper, using the CC2430, intelligent irrigation system was designed and implemented according to the actual needs of the decision-making and management of plant irrigation. The system cost compared to similar foreign products decreased 44.8%. Compared with traditional irrigation methods, crop water use efficiency is 22.6%.

Improving Growth and Productivity of Pomegranate Fruit Trees Planted On Sandy Dunes Slopes at Baloza District (N. Sinai) Using Different Methods of Drip Irrigation, Organic Fertilization, and Soil Mulching

This study was carried out during the two successive seasons of 2012 and 2013 at Baloza Experimental Station, Desert Research Center, North Sinai Governorate, Egypt, on Manfalouty pomegranate (cv.) shrubs planted on the slops of sandy dune. All the area subjected to the same agriculture practice. The study aimed to plan such model of farm management for planting the sand dune slops. The experimental work depended on modifying some traditional methods of irrigation, fertilization and protecting soil surface from erosion and water loss. Two irrigation systems (surface and sub surface drip irrigation) with organic fertilization (control 1 (without), compost and goat manure) and soil mulching (control 2 (without), plastic sheets and rice straw) were the main treatments applied to achieve the aim of the work and evaluate the improvement or that highly economic value fruit. The obtained results cleared that, sub surface drip irrigation was better than surface drip irrigation system. In addition, using plastic sheet as a mulching and compost as organic fertilization under sub surface drip irrigation gave the high leaf area, leaf chlorophyll, number of leaves/shoot, shoot length, number of followers / shoot, fruit set %, total yield, fruit length, fruit diameter, fruit weight, grains weight, TSS , total sugar content and vitamin C in both seasons. On the other side, surface drip

Smart Energy and Water Meter: A Novel Vision to Groundwater Monitoring and Management

Water crisis and threat of shortage in water resources have been raised as a direct consequence of various factors such as limitation of precipitation, use of traditional irrigation methods and lack of efficient monitoring and controlling systems in agriculture section. The fact is that dry regions all over the world are facing water shortage and sharp decrease in groundwater tables as a result of over-pumping. In this paper RSA Electronics offers a solution which is an effective management system on monitoring and controlling groundwater resources. This solution for information management includes three main elements: Metering Device, Communication Device and Software. The specific Information of water wells which are calculated and measured by the metering device through a patented method will be transferred to the control center through telecommunication infrastructures; subsequently in control center, data compiling, information processing and reporting is performed by Meter Data Management (MDM) software.

A MODERN APPROACH FOR FERTIGATION UNDER GATED PIPES TECHNIQUE AND ITS IMPACT ON MAIZE PRODUCTIVITY AT NORTH NILE DELTA

For improving nitrogen utilization efficiency by maize crop under gated pipes irrigation technique, a field experiment was conducted at El-Hamoul district, Kafr Elshiekh governorate during the summer season of 2011. The experiment included traditional furrow irrigation, gated pipes and alternative furrows irrigation by gated pipes technique, Two forms of mineral nitrogen fertilizers Urea (CO (NH2)2) and ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) were applied at the recommended dose (135 Kg N Fed-1) either as soil dressing or through irrigation as compared with the control treatment (without nitrogen application), The main obtained results could be summarized as follows: Using gated pipes technique for irrigating maize crop resulted in less amount of water applied compared to traditional furrow irrigation method. On the other hand, gated pipes technique saved irrigation water by 19.74 and 30.77 % for gated pipe and alternative gated pipes techniques, respectively as compared with traditional furrowirrigation. This improved irrigation techniques led to decrease actual water consumptive use, improved water application efficiency and increased the contribution of ground water table in the crop water need. There was no effect on maize yield due to different irrigation techniques. However, gated pipes and alternative gated pipes recorded the highest values of grain yield (3.3 and 2.6 %) and stalk yield (47.6 and 15.1%) over the traditional furrow irrigation, respectively. Whereas, maize grain yield increased by about 62.1 , 59.7, 58.8 and 45.8 over control treatment due to application of ammonium nitrate applied by dressing method, urea applied withirrigation water, urea applied by dressing method and ammonium nitrate applied withirrigation water, respectively. Maize grain yield took the same trend of stalk yield. It can be observed that gated pipes technique for all furrows under ammonium nitrate applied by dressing method achieved the highest grain and stalk yields followed by treatment alternate furrows which irrigated by gated pipes under urea applied withirrigation water. The highest mean values of crop and field water use efficiencies were achieved under gated pipes alternative furrow techniques and Urea applied withirrigation water. Nitrogen use efficiency and N recovery % were increased with gated pipes irrigation techniques under ammonium nitrate applied by dressing method and urea applied withirrigation water Net income from water unit and economical efficiency increased with gated pipes techniques (for all furrow and alternative furrow) comparing with traditional furrow irrigation treatment.

The Design of Remote Intelligent Irrigation System Based on Web Servers

The paper proposed program of lower-cost traditional 8-bit micro-controller with Web servers function, and is designed for remote control system. The system has the flexibility and low cost. And according to the actual needs of the decision-making and management of plant irrigation, intelligent irrigation system was designed and implemented.The system solve the difficult and critical hardware products import prices too high and difficult to promote for distribution of soil temperature and humidity monitoring.The system cost compared to similar foreign products decreased 44.8%.Compared with traditional irrigation methods, crop water use efficiency of 22.6%.The design of software and thinking can popularize and promote practical reference value, the future of smart home system.

Technologies for Efficient Use of Irrigation Water and Energy in China

While the shortage of water and energy is a well-recognized worldwide natural resources issue, little attention has been given to irrigation energy efficiency. In this paper, we examine the potential energy savings that can be achieved by implementing improved irrigation technologies in China. The use of improved irrigation management measures such as a flow meter, irrigation scheduling, and/or regular maintenance and upgrades, typically reduces the amount of water pumped over the course of a growing season. The total energy saved by applying these improved measures could reach 20%, as compared with traditional irrigation methods. Two methods of irrigation water conveyance by traditional earth canal and low pressure pipeline irrigation (LPPI) were also evaluated. Our study indicated that LPPI could save 6.48×109 kWh yr−1 when applied to 11 Chinese provinces. Also, the CO2 emission was reduced by 6.72 metric tons per year. Among these 11 surveyed provinces, the energy saving potential for two provinces, Hebei and Shandong, could reach 1.45×109 kWh yr−1. Using LPPI, potential energy saved and CO2 emissions reduced in the other 20 Chinese provinces were estimated at about 2.97×109 kWh yr−1 and 2.69 metric tons per year, respectively. The energy saving potential for Heilongjiang, a major agriculture province, could reach 1.77×109 kWh yr−1, which is the largest in all provinces. If LPPI is applied to the entire country, average annual energy saving of more than 9 billion kWh and average annual CO2 emission reduction of more than 9.0 metric tons could be realized. Rice is one of the largest users of the world's fresh water resources. Compared with continuous flooding irrigation, intermittent irrigation (ITI) can improve yield and water-use efficiency in paddy fields. The total increments of net output energy and yield by ITI in paddy fields across China could reach 2.5×1016 calories and 107 tons, respectively. So far only a small part of agricultural land in China has adopted water and energy saving technologies. Therefore, potential water and energy savings in China by adapting improved irrigation technology could be significant and should be carefully studied and applied.

Design of Agricultural Intelligent Irrigation System in Green Environment

The intelligent irrigation system can achieve precision irrigation, which is an effective way for the sustainable development of agriculture in arid area. In this paper, using the CC2430, intelligent irrigation system was designed and implemented according to the actual needs of the decision-making and management of plant irrigation. Distribution of soil temperature and humidity monitoring the system to solve the difficult and critical hardware products import prices too high and difficult to promote. The system cost compared to similar foreign products decreased 44.8%. Compared with traditional irrigation methods, crop water use efficiency of 22.6%

SIMULATION OF SOIL WATER AND SALINITY DISTRIBUTION UNDER SURFACE DRIP IRRIGATION

ABSTRACTHigher crop production and better water use efficiency are usually achieved with surface drip irrigation as compared to traditional surface irrigation methods. Increasing competition for fresh water also means a greater use of brackish water in agriculture. For this reason, the effects of soil hydraulic properties, initial soil moisture content (θi), and irrigation regime on soil water and salinity distribution under surface drip irrigation (DI) with brackish irrigation water were investigated. Model simulations were performed using the HYDRUS‐2D/3D model assuming tomato crop in saline soil. Simulation scenarios were conducted including sand, loamy sand, and sandy loam soils, together with daily and alternate‐day irrigation regimes. Two θi values were considered in the simulations. Results revealed that the effect of the irrigation regime on wetting patterns differed according to the soil's hydraulic properties, while the effect of the initial soil moisture content disappeared after a few days. The irrigation regime and θi value did not display any significant effect on soil salinity distribution. Higher soil salinity occurred along the soil surface by the end of the simulation period. The higher soil salinity was more close to the emitter in sand as compared to loamy sand and sandy loam. Water balance calculations showed that as the initial soil moisture content increased, the free drainage component increased. However, the irrigation regime and initial soil moisture content did not affect the evaporation rate and root water uptake rate. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

WATER REQUIREMENTS FOR THE NILE MAIZE CROP USING A LASER BEAM

The aim of this research is to study the optimal time for irrigation, estimate water requirements of maize using visible laser and calculate water use efficiency to irrigate Nile maize crop. The experimental and field setups were carried out at the Institute of Laser Enhanced Science (NILES) and Farm of the Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt. Maize crop (11 hybrid variety) was used in the planting during autumn season of 2012, under the furrow and drip irrigation systems. Also two water regimes used soil moisture depletion (S.M.D) and evapotranspiration of crop (ETc) with three levels of water (10,25 and 50% for S.M.D and 1.25, 1 and 0.75 for Etc). In the meantime the ETc was calculated using CROPWAT program. The experimental setup of laser beam transmission (LBT) measures transmission light through maize leaves considering the moisture content in the canopy leaf for different plants. The obtained results were as follows: 1) The values of laser beam transmission increased by decreasing of the SMD to the best time to irrigate according to use of LBT within range between 30 to 35 mV at water regimes 10% of SMD and 1.25 ETc, 2) The crop water use efficiency (CWUE) was 1.40 and 1.66 kg/m3 under furrow and drip irrigation systems with fully irrigation regimes, while, the traditional methods of furrow irrigation gave low CWUE ( 1.0 kg/m3), and 3) The crop yield increased 856.70 and 531.57 kg/fed, with water saving of 167 and 40 m3/fed for drip and furrow irrigation systems at 10% SMD respectively, compared with traditional furrow method.

IMPROVE WATER SAVING AND WATER PRODUCTIVITY BY NEW APPROACH OF FARM MANAGEMENT UNDER SURFACE IRRIGATION

Two field experiments were conducted during summer seasons of 2007 and 2008 at Zankalon Water Research Station, Water Management and Irrigation Systems Research Institute, Egypt. This research aims to study the effect of new approach of farm layout and management under surface irrigation on water saving and yield of corn. Three irrigation and planting treatments were investigated, treatment A used traditional irrigation method (control treatment) with 80 cm width furrows and one row of plants on each ridge with one plant/hill and 22 cm between hills. Treatment B had 80 cm wide furrows with one row planted in the bottom of each furrow with one plant/hill and 22 cm between hills. Treatment C had 160 cm wide furrows with two rows planted in the bottom of each furrow with one plant/hill and 22 cm between hills. Comparisons were based on the growth, yield, yield attributes, water relations, and the net return of the corn crop (cultivar T.W.C310). Comparing to the traditional practice (treatment A) water saving from using treatments B and C were 2467 m3 ha-1 (30.3%) and 4333 m3 ha-1 (53.2%), respectively. Actual evapotranspiration values for treatments A, B and C were 553, 410 and 293 mm respectively. The values of water productivity (kg m-3) were 0.74, 1.13 and 1.73 for A, B and C treatments, respectively. The lowest irrigation cost was observed for method C and the net profit increased by 19% using treatment B and 32% using treatment C. Significant increase in grain yield was achieved, 6% and 9% for the B and C treatments, respectively.

Scientific Secretary and Technical Assistance

Food is the major route of arsenic (As) intake for humans, and rice is the staple food for more than half of the world's population. Unfortunately, rice bioaccumulates large amounts of As from the paddy field, and the toxicity of this element in the kernel is closely linked to its chemical form. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to have access to an integrated set of analytical methods, capable of measuring the concentration of As in its various chemical forms in soil and rice. Hence, the principal aim of this study was to assess and validate a group of inductively coupled plasma – mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and IC-ICP-MS (IC, Ionic Chromatography) methods designed to measure the amount of the total or extracted As and its main chemical species (As(III), As(V), monomethylarsonic acid, MMA, and dimethylarsinic acid, DMA) in flours of rice grain and in soils. Great attention has been given to the assessment and the optimization of extraction methods of As species from these matrices. No appreciable interconversion among As species has been observed using an aqueous solution 1 mol dm−3 of phosphoric acid and 0.5 mol dm−3 of L (+)-ascorbic acid for the extraction from soils, and an aqueous solution 0.2% (w/v) of nitric acid for the extraction from rice flour. Validation has been successfully accomplished in terms of limit of detection, limit of quantification, linearity and accuracy. In addition to many certified reference materials, these methods have been tested on real samples of soils and rice grains of the Aleramo genotype obtained through traditional or intermittent irrigation methods. Data obtained revealed the critical role of the intermittent irrigation methods in determining the nature and the amount of the As chemical species in rice grains as well as in soils. As(V) is the only species found in soil irrigated by sprinkling, while the most toxic As(III) dominates in soil irrigated by continuous flooding. On the other hand, the most abundant species found in continuously flooded Aleramo rice grains are As(III) and – mostly – DMA, whereas As(V), less toxic than As(III), represents 60% of the total inorganic compounds measured in sprinkler-irrigated rice. Lastly, the total amount of As measured in this rice is 3.8% of that measured in rice irrigated by continuous flooding.

The economics of low pressure drip irrigation and hand watering for vegetable production in the Sahel

Low pressure drip irrigation is being promoted in Sub Saharan Africa as an alternative to traditional methods of small scale irrigation of vegetables. The African Market Garden (AMG) is a horticultural production system for smallholders based on low-pressure drip irrigation combined with an improved crop management package. The agronomic and economic performance of the AMG is compared to two gardens irrigated manually with watering cans. One of these gardens is managed according to the same improved crop management package as in the AMG, this treatment is called Improved Management (IM). The other garden is managed according to common practices of vegetable producers in the area, this treatment is called the Farmer Practice (FP). Crop productivity, labor and water use were monitored for two vegetable species (okra and eggplants). The experiment was performed on-station in Niger on three adjacent 500 m2 plots in a sandy acid soil. It was found that improved crop management practices greatly enhance crop productivity over traditional methods at comparable production costs. The AMG gave higher crop yields and higher returns to investment than the treatments irrigated with watering cans. Labor accounts for up to 45% of the production cost in vegetable gardens irrigated by hand, where 80% of the producer time is spent on irrigation. The total labor requirement for the drip irrigated AMG was on average 1.1 man hours per day against 4.7 man hours per day for the Farmers Practice on a 500 m2 garden. Returns on labor are at least double for the AMG against the other treatments. The returns on land from eggplant were found to be US$ 1.7, 0.8 and 0.1 per m2 for the AMG, IM and FP respectively. The returns on water for the cultivation of eggplant are around US$ 2 per m3 in the AMG, against US$ 0.1 in the Farmers Practice. This experiment showed the strong positive impact of drip irrigation and improved crop management practices on profits at minimal environmental costs, indicating that transformation of existing practices poses a considerable potential towards sustainable agricultural development.

Effectiveness of the erbium:YAG laser and new design radial and stripped tips in removing the smear layer after root canal instrumentation

The aim of this study was to analyze in vitro the debriding ability of an Er:YAG laser system (2,940 nm) equipped with a newly designed radial and stripped tip of 400 µm diameter by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A total of 80 single-rooted extracted human teeth were endodontically prepared with rotary instrumentation and standardized chemical irrigation using 5.25% sodium hypochlorite. At the end of mechanical instrumentation, four different final protocols were used. Group 1 was irrigated for 2 min with saline water as a control group. Groups 2, 3 and 4 were irradiated with an Er:YAG laser at 25 mJ and 15 Hz with a pulse duration of 50 μs and laser spray off using the tip in the coronal opening of the wet root canal. Different solutions and irradiation times were used: group 2 20 s, laser irradiation in sterile distilled water, wet canal; group 3 20 s, laser irradiation in 17% EDTA, wet canal; and group 4 40 s, laser irradiation in 17% EDTA, wet canal. Debridement of and smear layer removal from the apical third of root canals were evaluated by SEM. The study showed that standardized instrumentation, followed by a final Er:YAG laser irradiation in wet canals with EDTA irrigation resulted in more cleaning of the root canal walls and a higher quantity of open tubules in comparison with the traditional irrigation method.

Effects of Furrow Irrigation on the Growth, Production, and Water Use Efficiency of Direct Sowing Rice

Rice farming is the major crop production in Asia and is predicted to increase significantly in the near future in order to meet the demands for the increasing human population. Traditional irrigation methods used in rice farming often result in great water loss. New water-saving methods are urgently needed to reduce water consumption. Three field and pot experiments were conducted to evaluate the furrow irrigation (FI) system to improve water use efficiency (WUE) and production of direct sowing rice in southern China. Compared to the conventional irrigation (CI) system (continuous flooding irrigation), for every square hectometer of rice field, the FI system reduced water use by 3130 m3, or 48.1%, and increased grain production by 13.9% for an early cultivar. For a late cultivar, the FI system reduced water use by 2655 m3, or 40.6%, and an increase of grain production by 12.1%. The improved WUE in the FI system is attributed to (1) a significant reduction of irrigation rate, seepage, evaporation, and evapotranspiration; (2) a significant reduction in the reduced materials, such as ferrous ion (Fe2+), and therefore an increase in the vitality of the root system, evident by the increases in the number of white roots by 32.62%, and decreases in the number of black roots by 20.04% and yellow roots by 12.58%; the use of the FI system may also reduce humidity of the rice field and enhance gas transport in the soil and light penetration, which led to reduced rice diseases and increased leaf vitality; and (3) increases in tiller and effective spikes by 11.53% and the weight per thousand grains by 1.0 g. These findings suggest that the shallow FI system is a promising means for rice farming in areas with increasing water shortages.

The commodity systems of four indigenous leafy vegetables in Senegal<sup>#</sup>

Increasing the production of traditional leafy vegetables that are well adapted to the agro-ecology of Senegal, easy to grow and requiring low inputs, could greatly help to solve the poverty and malnutrition problems in Senegal. However, leafy vegetables are often overlooked by the scientific community. The species of leafy vegetables dealt with in this paper are roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.), cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp), amaranths (Amaranthus L. spp.) and Moringa (Moringa oleifera Lam). To increase production of traditional leafy vegetables, access to good quality seeds is necessary. Two plantcollecting missions were undertaken throughout Senegal by a multidisciplinary research team. Experimentation on Hibiscusregeneration and characterisation was conducted at ISRA-CDH research station. Sixty-four accessions were collected amongthe four species. Forty-eight accessions of roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) were characterised. The level of dissimilarity (63%) within the accessions of roselle confirmed the high degree of intra-species variability. The Richness Index determined for the Diaobe and Matam markets indicated a high degree of genetic diversity of roselle. These are used to select three new lines according to farmers’ preference criteria. In addition, socio-economic surveys were conducted in two pilot villages. It was found that planting dates for leafy vegetablesvaried greatly, depending on species, locality and season. Sowing was mainly done broadcast. Organic fertilisers were commonly applied. Eighty per cent (80%) of the farmers applied an NPK formulation and small quantities of urea. Traditional irrigation methods are often used in the growing of traditional leafy vegetables. The seeds used by farmers were a mixture of varieties. Farmers identified four types of each of roselle, amaranth and cowpea, but could not differentiate any variety forMoringa. Local markets constitute the main roselle seed supply source. Few farmers have developed traditional methods of seed conservation. Selling of seed is not a common activity in rural areas. Generally, farmers exchange gratuitously theirs seeds. Leaves are commonly sold at the field, in the village, in the nearest city and weekly at local markets called ’Louma‘. Average annual income generated by leaves varies from 41 to 500 USD. Leafy vegetables are used as food and for medicinal purposes. Leafy vegetable consumption in Senegal is around 23 g/person·d.

Effect of irrigation management on soil salinization in Manas River Valley, Xinjiang, China

Abstract The irrigated area of Manas River Valley in Northwest China is an example of the successful reclamation of massive land affected by shallow ground water levels and salinization. To determine the effect of irrigation management practices on soil salinization, soil profiles representing various soil types were sampled. The historical records on the characteristics of irrigation management practices, groundwater level and soil salts accumulation in this region at four key periods, namely: flood irrigation without drainage; flood irrigation with drainage but of low efficiency; irrigation in combination with lined irrigation canals and exploitation of groundwater; and irrigation with the application of water-saving irrigation techniques, were analyzed emphatically. In addition, the salinization status of cultivated land in 2010 and 2020 was also predicted by using analogism according to the relationship between soil salinization and irrigation practices. The results revealed that the application of the traditional irrigation methods, such as flood irrigation and ridge irrigation, resulted in a rapid rising of groundwater level and salts accumulation in soil surface layers. However, with the way of well irrigation and well drainage, the groundwater level and the desalinization in soil layers apparently lowered, leading to a substantial increase of crop yield. Currently, the application of drip irrigation under mulch decreased the salts concentration in soil layers and increased the crop yield. With the continuous application of drip irrigation, the average soil desalinization efficiency in soil layers may increase. It is predicted that the percentage of salinized land would be reduced to 35%–40% when irrigation water is utilized reasonably in 2010. With the high efficient utilization of irrigation water after 2020, the salinized land would remain below 30%. It is concluded that with the improvement of irrigation management, an obvious desalinization would appear in the soil surface layers and the area of salinized land in this study area would gradually narrow, but the land salinization problem would be hard to totally solve.