TITLE:
Effect of pulse drip irrigation and mulching systems on yield, quality traits and irrigation water use efficiency of soybean under sandy soil conditions
AUTHORS:
Abdelraouf Ramadan Eid, Bakry Ahmed Bakry, Moamen Hamed Taha
KEYWORDS:
Pulse Irrigation; Mulching Systems; Water Use Efficiency; Soybean Oil and Protein
JOURNAL NAME:
Agricultural Sciences,
Vol.4 No.5,
May
31,
2013
ABSTRACT: Two field experiments
were carried out during growing seasons 2010 and 2011, it executed in research
farm of national research center in Nubaryia region, Egypt to study the effect of pulse
drip irrigation and mulching systems for saving water, increasing and improving
yield of soybean. The study factors were, pulse drip irrigation technology
(adding of daily water requirements on 4 times, 8 times, 12 times compared with
adding of daily water requirements on 1 time) and mulching systems (covering
the soil with black plastic mulch “BPM”, rice straw mulch “RSM” and the control
treatment was soil surface without mulch “WM”). The following parameters were
studied to evaluate the effect of pulse drip irrigation and mulching systems: 1)
Soil moisture distribution in root zone, 2) Growth characters of soybean plant,
3) Yield of soybean, 4) Irrigation water use efficiency of soybean “IWUE
soybean”, and 5) Oil content and oil yield, 6) Protein content and protein
yield, 7) Economical parameter. According to the economical view and the
results of statistical analysis for effect of pulse drip irrigation and mulching
systems on yield, quality traits and IWUE soybean indicated that, applying the
irrigation requirements on 8 pulses/day with using BPM is the best conditions
because under these conditions was occurred the highest value of yield, quality
traits and IWUE soybean and there was significant deference between this case
and other treatments. Where,
pulse irrigation technique increase from water movement in horizontal direction
than vertical direction hence improve from soil moisture distribution and wetted soil volume in root zone and using BPM decrease from
evaporation process rate from soil surface hence decreasing of salts accumulation
in addition to decreasing of weed growth in the root zone. All traits at AIR on
12 pulses/ day are decreased by increasing of pulses, this may be due to
irrigation water was very small with every pulse at AIR on 12 pulses/day in addition
increasing the total time of time-off, this mean, un-sufficient application for
irrigation water to remove water stress in the root zone.