盐碱地排水沟水体盐分变化规律

为了研究陕西卤泊滩盐碱地排水沟在排水出路受阻,上游灌区退水导致排水沟周期性较高水位运行条件下的水体盐分变化情况,选择研究区3条排水沟,进行野外水盐监测试验,测定了排水沟水体盐分随时间的变化规律.研究结果表明:在当前条件下影响研究区排水沟水量的主要因素为干旱蒸发和上游灌区退水.干旱期排水沟水量较少,上游灌区低含盐量的退水进入研究区排水沟内,致使水量显著增大,在研究区下游排水沟内水深达1.15 m;排水沟水体电导率值在干旱季节较高,盐分从上游至下游呈现出一定的富集现象;上游监测点位水体电导率基本维持在2~14 ms/cm,下游水体电导率值高达25.2 ms/cm;研究区上游灌区退水在排水沟内大量蓄积,使得排水沟水体电导率值降低至1.9 ms/cm,稀释率高达10倍,表明退水可以稀释排水沟中的盐分水平,维持排水沟水体盐分平衡,达到排盐效果.     

Long term use of saline water for irrigation

Use of saline drainage water in irrigated agriculture, as a means of its disposal, was evaluated on a 60 ha site on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley. In the drip irrigation treatments, 50 to 59% of the irrigation water applied during the six-year rotation was saline with an EC_w ranging from 7 to 8 dS/m, and containing 5 to 7 mg/L boron and 220 to 310 g/L total selenium. Low salinity water with an EC_w of 0.4 to 0.5 dS/m and B 0.4 mg/1 was used to irrigate the furrow plots from 1982 to 1985 after which a blend of good quality water and saline drainage water was used. A six-year rotation of cotton, cotton, cotton, wheat, sugar beet and cotton was used. While the cotton and sugar beet yields were not affected during the initial six years, the levels of boron (B) in the soil became quite high and were accumulated in plant tissue to near toxic levels. During the six year period, for treatments surface irrigated with saline drainage water or a blend of saline and low salinity water, the B concentration in the soil increased throughout the 1.5 m soil profile while the electrical conductivity (EC_e) increased primarily in the upper l m of the profile. Increaszs in soil EC_e during the entire rotation occurred on plots where minimal leaching was practiced. Potential problems with germination and seedling establishment associated with increased surface soil salinity were avoided by leaching with rainfall and low-salinity pre-plant irrigations of 150 mm or more. Accumulation of boron and selenium poses a major threat to the sustainability of agriculture if drainage volumes are to be reduced by using drainage water for irrigation. This is particularly true in areas where toxic materials (salt, boron, other toxic minor elements) cannot be removed from the irrigated area. Continual storage within the root zone of the cropped soil is not sustainable.     

Growth and water use of eucalypt trees irrigated with saline drainage water

Leaf chemical composition, growth and water use of Eucalyptus camaldulensis (Lake Albacutya provenance) were measured in the 4th year of a split-plot salinity by nutrition trial. The main plot consisted of irrigating with five different water salinities: 0.5 dS/m (S0.5), 2 dS/m (S2), 5 dS/m (S5), 7.5 dS/m (S7.5) and 10 dS/m (S10). The subplot treatments consisted either of annual additions of 200 kg N and 100 kg P per hectare (+ N + P) or no addition of nutrients (– N – P). Irrigation with water from a drainage system (treatments S2, S5, S7.5 and S10) added about a further 100 kg N/ha annually. Leaf concentrations of N and P were higher in the + N + P treatments. In S0.5, nutrient addition stimulated growth. In + N + P treatments, raising the irrigation salinity from 0.5 to 2.0 dS/m increased leaf Na and decreased the growth rate, however, further increases in salinity affected neither leaf Na nor growth. In – N – P, growth rate depression due to inadequate nutrition was overcome in S2 and S5 by the 100 kg/ha of N in the drainage water. At higher salinities, the N added by drainage water did not overcome the effect of inadequate nutrition. On days when the reference crop evapotranspiration (ETo) was less than 3 mm/day, the correlations between water use of trees in litres per day and ETo and between water use of trees in litres per day and the basal area of the tree butt were highly significant. On days when the ETo was 3 mm/day or greater, the correlation between tree water use and basal area was highly significant, but that between tree water use and ETo was not significant. Received: 15 March 1996     

Modeling soil carbon sequestration in agricultural lands of Mali

Agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa is a low-input low-output system primarily for subsistence. Some of these areas are becoming less able to feed the people because of land degradation and erosion. The aim of this study is to characterize the potential for increasing levels of soil carbon for improving soil quality and carbon sequestration. A combination of high- and low-resolution imagery was used to develop a land use classification for an area of 64 km² near Omarobougou, Mali. Field sizes were generally small (10–50 ha), and the primary cultivation systems are conventional tillage and ridge tillage, where tillage is performed by a combination of hand tools and animal-drawn plows. Based on land use classification, climate variables, soil texture, in situ soil carbon concentrations, and crop growth characteristics, the EPIC-Century model was used to project the amounts of soil carbon sequestered for the region. Under the usual management practices in Mali, mean crop yield reported (1985–2000) for maize is 1.53 T ha⁻¹, cotton is 1.2 T ha⁻¹, millet is 0.95 T ha⁻¹, and for sorghum is 0.95 T ha⁻¹. Year-to-year variations can be attributed to primarily rainfall, the amount of plant available water, and the amount of fertilizer applied. Under continuous conventional cultivation, with minimal fertilization and no residue management, the soil top layer was continuously lost due to erosion, losing between 1.1 and 1.7 Mg C ha⁻¹ over 25 years. The model projections suggest that soil erosion is controlled and that soil carbon sequestration is enhanced with a ridge tillage system, because of increased water infiltration. The combination of modeling with the land use classification was used to calculate that about 54 kg C ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ may be sequestered for the study area with ridge tillage, increased application of fertilizers, and residue management. This is about one-third the proposed rate used in large-scale estimates of carbon sequestration potential in West Africa, because of the mixture of land use practices.     

咸水灌溉对覆膜棉花生长与水分利用的影响

为了揭示棉花生长发育对咸水灌溉的响应特征,采用小区对比试验,研究了不同矿化度咸水灌溉对棉花出苗、株高、叶面积、果枝数、地上部干质量等形态指标以及产量构成、耗水量和水分利用率的影响.结果表明,棉花出苗率和成苗率随着灌溉水矿化度的增大而减小,但3 g/L灌水处理与对照间的差异不具有统计学意义,而5,7 g/L处理与对照间差异极具统计学意义.在移栽补全苗情况下,咸水灌溉对棉花形态生长指标产生了一定的抑制效应,灌溉水矿化度愈大,抑制作用愈大;对株高、叶面积和地上部干质量的影响在蕾期最明显,花铃期之后开始逐渐减弱;对果枝数和棉铃生长的影响程度随着棉花生育进程的推进而降低.处理间棉花的耗水量差异不具有统计学意义,籽棉产量和水分利用率的大小顺序,按灌水处理依次为3,1,5,7 g/L,其中7 g/L处理与对照间的差异具有统计学意义.与灌水前初始值相比,试验结束后1,3 g/L灌水处理的0~40 cm土层盐分未增加,5,7 g/L灌水处理则形成了积盐.研究结果可为咸水安全利用提供重要参考.     

The use of insulated time-domain reflectometry sensors to measure water content in highly saline soils

In a conducting medium, the energy of a time-domain reflectometry (TDR) pulse is dissipated and the signal is attenuated. Above a certain high conductivity, however, the signal is completely attenuated and the soil short-circuits the sensor. This behaviour of the signal with conductivity severely limits the TDR technique in measuring water content in highly saline soils. By reducing the direct contact between the conductive soil and the metallic sensor the energy of the pulse is better maintained. Different combinations were tried: we insulated the central wire, outer two wires, and all wires of a three-wire sensor with two different insulators. The first insulator was an adhesive polyethylene sheet usually used as a transparent cover and the second insulator was an adhesive tape. The insulated sensors were used to measure dielectric constants in non-saline soils and water and in saline soils. The sensors with the insulated centre wire preserve maximum energy and maintain a clear signal in saline soils. The insulating materials have very small dielectric constants. The TDR exerts a larger influence in the vicinity of the wires of the sensor during measurements. Therefore, the insulated sensor measures a dielectric constant which is smaller than the apparent dielectric constant of the surrounding medium. The type of insulating material also has an effect on the dielectric constant. Therefore, it is necessary to calibrate the sensors for the specific insulator. Received: 30 December 1996     

Model-based evaluation of low-cost drip-irrigation systems and management strategies using saline water

A drip-irrigation module was developed and included in an ecosystem model and tested on two independent datasets, spring and autumn, on field-grown tomato. Simulated soil evaporation correlated well with measurements for spring (2.62 mm d⁻¹ compared to 2.60 mm d⁻¹). Changes in soil water content were less well portrayed by the model (spring r ² = 0.27; autumn r ² = 0.45). More independent data is needed for further model testing in combination with developments of the spatial representation of below-ground variables. In a fresh-water drip-irrigated system, about 30% of the incoming water was transpired, 40% was lost as non-productive evaporative flows, and the remainder left the system as surface runoff or drainage. Simulations showed that saline water irrigation (6 dS m⁻¹) caused reduced transpiration, which led to higher drainage and soil evaporation, compared with fresh water. Covering the soil with plastic mulch resulted in an increase in yield and transpiration. Finally, two different drip-irrigation discharge rates (0.2 and 2.5 l h⁻¹) were compared; however the simulations indicated that the discharge rate did not have any impact on the partitioning of the incoming water to the system. The model proved to be a useful tool for evaluating the importance of specific management options.

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Modeling solute transport in sub-surface drained soil-aquifer system of irrigated lands

A two-dimensional finite element model of solute transport in a tile — drained soil — aquifer system has been applied to study the effects of the depth of impervious layer and quality of irrigation water on salt distribution during drainage of an initially highly saline soil. The model assumes steady state water movement through partially saturated soil and to drains in the saturated zone. The exact in time numerical solution yields explicit expressions for concentration field at any future time without having to compute concentrations at intermediate times. The model facilitates predictions of long-term effects of different irrigation and drainage practices on concentration of drainage effluent and salt distribution in the soil and groundwater. The model results indicated that the depth of impervious layer from drain level, d_I, does not significantly influence the salt distribution in the surface 1 m root zone of different drain spacings (drain spacing (2S)=25, 50, 75 m; drain depth (d_d)=1.8 m), its effect in the aquifer becomes dominant as drain spacing increases. It was also observed that d_I significantly governs the quality of drainage effluent. The salinity of drainage water increases with increasing d_I in all drain spacings and this effect magnifies with time. The model was also applied to study the effects of salinity of irrigation water in four drain spacing-drain depth combinations: (2S=48 m, d_d=1.0 m; 2S=67 m, d_d=1.5 m; 2S=77 m, d_d=2.0 m; 2S=85 m, d_d=2.5 m). The results indicated that a favorable salt balance can be maintained in the root zone even while irrigating with water up to 5 dS/m salinity in drains installed at 48 to 67 m spacing and 1.0 to 1.5 m depth. Further, irrespective of the quality of irrigation water, the deep, widely spaced drains (d_d=2.5 m, 2S=85 m) produced much saline drainage effluent during the initial few years of operation of the drainage system than the more shallow, closely spaced drains, thus posing a more serious effluent disposal problem.

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Résumé Considérant les conséquences potentiellement sérieuses de la pollution du sol et de l'eau souterraine dans l'agriculture irriguée, il est devenu absolument nécessaire de développer des modèles de simulation en vue d'évaluer les effects à long terme des méthodes agricoles modernes. Un modèle d'éléments finis à deux dimensions du transport en solution dans un système de sol aquifère drainé au moyen de tuyaux a été développé et validé sur le terrain (Kamra et al. 1991 a, b). Le modèle assume le mouvement de l'eau à régime constant à travers un sol partiellement saturé et jusqu'aux drains dans la zone saturée. La solution numérique exacte dans le temps produit des expressions explicites pour le champ de concentration à un temps future quelconque sans avoir à calculer les concentrations aux temps intermédiares. Le modèle facilite les prédictions des effets à long terme des diverses méthodes d'irrigation et de drainage sur la concentration des effluents de drainage et sur la distribution de la salinité dans le sol et dans l'eau souterraine. Les résultats du modèle relatifs aux effets de la profondeur de la couche imperméable et de la qualité de l'eau d'irrigation sur la distribution de la salinité lors du drainage d'un sol fortement salé à l'origine sont mentionnés dans la présente communication.Les résultats du modéle ont indiqué que la profondeur de la couche imperméable depuis le niveau du drain, d_I, n'influence pas d'une façon significative la distribution de la salinité dans la zone superficielle radiculaire de 1 m des divers écartements de drains (écartement de drains, 2S=25, 50, 75 m; profondeur des drains, d_d=1.8 m); son effet dans l'aquifère devient dominant à mesure que l'écartement de drains augmente. On a aussi constaté que le niveau du drain d_I influence d'une manière significative les effluents du drainage. La salinité de l'eau de drainage augmente à mesure que d_I augmente dans tous les écartements de drains et cet effet s'amplifie avec le temps. Le modèle a été aussi appliqué pour étudier les effets de la salinité de l'eau d'irrigation dans le cas de quatre conbinaisons d'écartement de drain et de profondeur de drain: (2S=48 m, d_d=1,0 m; 2S=67 m, d_d=1,5 m; 2S=77 m, d_d=2,0 m; 2S=85 m, d_d=2,5 m). Les résultats ont indiqué qu'un bilan de salinité favorable peut être maintenu dans la zone radiculaire même en irrigant avec de l'eau d'une salinité de 5 dS/m dans des drains installés à un écartement de 48 à 67 m et une profondeur de 1,0 à 1,5 m. De plus, indépendamment de la qualité de l'eau d'irrigation les drains profonds à grand écartement (d_d=2,5 m, 2S=85 m) produisaient une grande quantité d'effluents salés de drainage durant les quelques premières années de l'exploitation du système de drainage par rapport aux drains peu profonds à écartement serré, posant ainsi un problème plus sérieux d'évacuation des effluents.Les résultats du développement et de l'évaluation du modèle on montré qu'il peut être utilement employé en vue d'une évaluation judicieuse de la variation de temps escomptée dans la salinité des effluents de drainage lors de la mise en valeur des sols salins et peut ainsi aider à formuler son règlement plus sûr du point de vue environnement et les projects d'évacuation.

     

A model for the design of drainage in flat agricultural lands

A model is presented that can be used to determine drainage measures and their costs. It has been elaborated for a wet tropical climate, for situations with open field drains, shallow groundwater table and a homogenous soil underlain by an impervious layer. The land is flat and the proposed agricultural use requires control of the groundwater table.A basic element of the model is a scheme to compute the water balance per day for a drainage parcel. Discharge, evapotranspiration, groundwater level and soil moisture storage are estimated as functions of rainfall, potential evapotranspiration, vegetation and soil characteristics and of an assumed drainage intensity. The water balance computation is performed for periods of 5–40 years of daily rainfall data, for a series of drainage intensities. The results can be subjected to a drainage criterion, from which a design drainage intensity and a corresponding drain spacing can be derived.Finally the layout of canals for a block of 4 × 1 km² is determined and excavation and a series of canal characteristics are computed.A summary of some applications is included.     

基于SWAP模型的春玉米咸水非充分灌溉模拟

为了探究石羊河流域适宜春玉米生长的咸水非充分灌溉模式,应用SWAP模型模拟不同灌溉模式下的土壤水盐平衡、春玉米相对产量和相对水分利用效率,并预测了较长时期土壤水盐动态变化规律.研究结果表明:灌溉水矿化度为0.71 g/L和3.00 g/L的春玉米最优灌溉模式为生育期内灌4次水,灌溉定额均为408 mm,2种灌溉模式均能达到节约灌溉用水、提高作物产量和水分利用效率以及减少土体盐分累积量的目的.较长时期土壤水盐动态变化规律模拟结果表明:在冬灌条件下,春玉米最优灌溉模式下的土壤水分和盐分能够在模拟期内保持相对平稳的状态;在不同年份,相同土层土壤含水率随着土层深度的增加而增大,0.71 g/L的淡水灌溉土壤盐分主要累积在40~80 cm土层,3.00 g/L的微咸水灌溉土壤盐分主要累积在10~40 cm土层;5 a的模拟结果表明0.71 g/L和3.00 g/L的水持续灌溉5 a,不会引起土壤次生盐渍化.     

Simulation of water harvesting potential in rainfed ricelands using water balance model

Using daily water balance simulation in rainfed ricelands, the study estimates the probable supplemental irrigation (SI) requirement to meet the water deficits during the reproductive stage of rice and surface runoff (SR) generated that can be harvested in OFR for meeting the aforesaid SI. Value of SI of rice during reproductive stage at 25% probability of exceedence (PE) was found to be 144 mm, neglecting distribution and application losses. Water harvesting potential of the study area indicates that at 50% PE, 85% of SI of rice can be met from the SR generated from the ricelands and stored in OFR. Rest amount of SI can be met from the direct conservation of rainfall in a lined OFR of 2 m depth with 1:1 side slope occupying 9% ricelands. Economic analysis of OFR irrigation system reveals that OFR of 9% ricelands gives net profit (NP) of Indian Rupees (Rs.) 13445 (US $295.49) for 1 ha sown with dry seeded rainfed upland rice with benefit–cost ratio (BCR) of 1.25. Values of NP and BCR indicate that investment in OFR irrigation system is profitable in the study region.     

Water table behaviour in drained lands: effect of evapotranspiration from the water table

Subsurface drain spacing is underestimated by the equations that do not account for evaporation-evapotranspiration (ET) lowering the water table in drained lands. An analytical solution is proposed to evaluate water table behaviour in subsurface drained lands in the presence of ET. A piecewise linear model is proposed and used to describe any realistic functional relation between ET and depth to water table. Characteristics of the solution have been highlighted with the help of numerical examples for which drainage parameters have been chosen from two actually operating drainage systems installed in semi-arid regions. The accuracy of the proposed solution has been verified with the existing numerical scheme as well as by comparing the water table behaviour with the observed field data. Application of the solution in subsurface drainage design has been illustrated which suggests that drain spacing at this particular site could be increased by 9 to 18% if the contribution of ET in lowering the water table is taken into account.     

Supplemental irrigation of wheat with saline water

In arid and semi-arid regions, both rainfall and surface irrigation water supplies are unreliable and inadequate to meet crop water requirement. Groundwater in these regions is mainly marginally saline (2-6 dS/m) to saline (>6 dS/m) and could be exploited to meet crop water requirement if no adverse effects on crops and land resource occur. The fear of adverse effects has often restricted the exploitation of naturally occurring saline water. The results reveal that substituting a part or all except pre-sowing irrigation with saline water having an electrical conductivity (EC_iw) of 8 dS/m is possible for cultivation of wheat. Similarly, saline water with EC_iw ranging between 8 and 12 dS/m could be used to supplement at least two irrigations to obtain 90% or more of the optimum yield. In low rainfall years, the use of such waters for all irrigations, except pre-sowing, produced more yield than skipping irrigations. Apparently, even at this level of osmotic salt stress, matric stress is more harmful. Thus, it would be interesting to use such waters for wheat production in monsoon climatic regions.     

Performance assessment of irrigation water management in old lands of the Nile delta of Egypt

This paper provides the methodology and results of a cross-scale diagnostic performance assessment program of the irrigation water management in the old lands of the Nile Delta of Egypt. The analysis was done at three levels; main canal level, branch canals level and on-farm level of the Meet Yazid command (82,740 ha) for the year 2008?C2009 to highlight areas for improvement. At the main canal level the annual average percentage of irrigation water returning to drains and groundwater was 53% of the total water supplied. Since Meet Yazid lies at tail end of the delta, and there is groundwater salinity, opportunities for reuse are increasingly limited moving north to Lake Burullus. This would indicate opportunities for real water savings. The results of monthly relative water supply of the main canal indicated mismatch between demand and supply especially during the winter months, and when supply is low farmers do reuse drainage or groundwater. Also, the assessment of the three branch canals showed non-uniformity of water distribution and mismatch between demand and supply even when comparing improved and non-improved canals. At the on-farm level in paddy fields, the amount of irrigation flows to drains and saline sinks varied from 0.46 to 0.71 of inflow. In spite of these values of non-uniformity and low depleted fraction, the relative evapotranspiration (ratio of actual to potential) evaporation was uniformly high, indicating most crops of most farmers were not water stressed, which is also confirmed by the high yield values. The average values of productivity per unit water depleted by ET_act were 1.04 and 1.05 kg/m³ for rice and wheat fields, respectively, with yields of rice and wheat at 8 and 6 t per ha respectively. On farm and tertiary improvements alone will not yield real water savings, as excess water in the main canal and drains will continue to flow out of the system. Rather the focus should first be on supplies to the main canal, accompanied by more precise on farm and water delivery practices at branch and tertiary levels, and ensuring that environmental flows are met. There is an added advantage of focusing on this tail end region of Egypt that this response would lessen vulnerability to reuse of polluted and saline water.     

Effect of saline water on cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) yield and water use under drip irrigation in North China

Saline water has been included as an important substitutable resource for fresh water in agricultural irrigation in many fresh water scarce regions. In order to make good use of saline water for agricultural irrigation in North China, a semi-humid area, a 3-year field experiment was carried out to study the possibility of using saline water for supplement irrigation of cucumber. Saline water was applied via mulched drip irrigation. The average electrical conductivity of irrigation water (EC_iw) was 1.1, 2.2, 2.9, 3.5 and 4.2 dS/m in 2003 and 2004, and 1.1, 2.2, 3.5, 4.2 and 4.9 dS/m in 2005. Throughout cucumber-growing season, the soil matric potential at 0.2 m depth immediately under drip emitter was kept higher than −20 kPa and saline water was applied after cucumber seedling stage. The experimental results revealed that cucumber fruit number per plant and yield decreased by 5.7% per unit increase in EC_iw. The maximum yield loss was around 25% for EC_iw of 4.9 dS/m, compared with 1.1 dS/m. Cucumber seasonal accumulative water use decreased linearly over the range of 1.5-6.9% per unit increase in EC_iw. As to the average root zone EC_e (electrical conductivity of saturated paste extract), cucumber yield and water use decreased by 10.8 and 10.3% for each unit of EC_e increase in the root zone (within 40 cm away from emitter and 40 cm depths), respectively. After 3 years irrigation with saline water, there was no obvious tendency for EC_e to increase in the soil profile of 0-90 cm depths. So in North China, or similar semi-humid area, when there is no enough fresh water for irrigation, saline water up to 4.9 dS/m can be used to irrigate field culture cucumbers at the expense of some yield loss.     

盐渍化土壤水肥耦合对向日葵叶水势的影响

采用312-D最优饱和设计方案进行田间对比试验。对盐渍化土壤水肥耦合效应下向日葵叶水势的影响因素及变化规律进行了研究。结果表明,盐渍化地区油料向日葵叶水势的主要影响因素除气象因素外。还包括土壤盐分、土壤水分和施肥量。叶水势与大气水势、叶温呈线性关系。土壤基质势越高,叶水势越高;土壤基质势越低叶水势也越低。施肥在一定程度上可以缓解水盐的胁迫,施肥量的增加使叶水势降低。     

Soil type effects on soybean crop water use in weighing lysimeters

Summary In a previous experiment, evaporation from soybeans (Glycine max L.) in two weighing lysimeters with different soil types was found to differ by up to 30%. This occurred despite good canopy development and maintenance of well watered conditions. The present experiment sought to repeat the previous observation and to define its cause. Soybeans were sown in and around the two weighing lysimeters on 9 December 1987 and were well watered through the entire season. The lysimeters, L1 and L2 contained undisturbed blocks of Hanwood loam and Mundiwa clay loam soils, respectively, both Rhodoxeralfs. Crop growth, radiant energy interception, soil heat flux, canopy temperature and root growth were monitored through the season. Plant growth in L2 was slower than in L1 such that by 46 days from sowing (DFS), L1 plants had one leaf more on average than those in L2 and by 76 DFS plants in L2 were about 0.1 m shorter than those in either L1 or in the area immediately surrounding it. The ratio of L2 to L1 daily evaporation was 0.76 during the period 75 to 84 DFS; this being very similar to the effect observed previoulsy. The crop canopy in a 100 m² area centred around L2 was reduced in height by removing the top 0.15 m at 85 DFS. This treatment caused the L2L1 evaporation ratio to increase to 1.07. The effect of reducing the height of plants surrounding L2 was to increase net radiant energy intercepted in the canopy of the L2 plants and to change the turbulent transfer processes over the L2 canopy. Shading from the taller surrounding plants was estimated to have reduced evaporation by 4% while increased aerodynamic resistance above the L2 canopy as the result of the height discontinuity accounted for a further 20% reduction. This study highlights limitations in the application of one dimensional energy balance theory to non-ideal canopy configurations and to the care needed to ensure plant growth within lysimeters is the same as the surrounds.Visiting scientist     

Characterizing ground water use by safflower using weighing lysimeters

Decades of irrigation on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley without sufficient drainage have created large areas where shallow ground water (<1.5 m) has become a problem for agriculture. Because drainage outflow is restricted as a result of environmental concerns, reducing the amount of irrigation applied is a farm management solution for this situation. One option to reduce the amount of irrigation water is to include shallow ground water use as a source of water for crop production when scheduling irrigation. The objective for this study is to describe soil water fluxes in the presence of saline, shallow ground water under a safflower crop. Two weighing lysimeters, one with and one without shallow saline ground water were used to measure crop evapotranspiration of surface drip irrigated safflower. A saline water table (14 dS/m) was maintained in one of the lysimeters. Ground water use as part of crop evapotranspiration was characterized using hourly measurements of the water level in a ground water supply tank (Mariotte bottle). Ground water contribution of up to 40% of daily crop water use was measured. On a seasonal basis, 25% of the total crop water use originated from the ground water. The largest ground water contribution was shown to occur at the end of the growing season, when roots are fully developed and stored soil water in the root zone was depleted. The applied irrigation on the crop grown in the presence of a water table was 46% less than irrigation applied to the crop without a water table. The reduction of irrigation was obtained by using the same irrigation schedule as on the lysimeter without ground water, but through smaller applied depths per irrigation event.     

On-farm water management in saline groundwater area under scarce canal water supply condition in the Northwest India

The study investigates the possibility of enhancing crop water productivity in the parts of Northwest India where groundwater quality is marginal and canal water supply is severely scarce. Soil, Water, Atmosphere and Plant (SWAP) model was calibrated and validated in three farmers’ fields with varying canal water availability and groundwater quality in the Kaithal Irrigation Circle of the Bhakra Canal system, Haryana. On the basis of predicted and observed soil water content, pressure heads, salt concentration at 2 week intervals and crop yields, the model was found suitable for use in the region. A few nomographs were prepared to provide a graphical method to predict the effect of different combinations of water quality and depth of water application on crop yield and soil salinity and to help develop some guidelines to the farming community. Water management alternatives at the field level were suggested to increase the yield and to maintain soil salinity below threshold level. The application of frequent irrigation in precisely leveled field would help in achieving 10% higher yield even when saline groundwater of 11 dS/m is used for irrigation.