Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 Scientific Board, Agricultural and Natural Resources Research Center, Isfahan, Iran
2 Scientific Board, Agricultural and Natural Resources Research Center, Isfahan, Iran
3 MSc, Agricultural and Natural Resources Research Center, Isfahan, Iran
Abstract
Water deficiency in arid regions especially in Iran, generally reduces the cultivation and considered as a major limitation in green cover re-establishment process in deserted areas. This study aims to overcome on drought and to achieve a strategic way of increasing the water use efficiency and reduction of costs. This study is carried out in a wind-eroded part of Aran and Bidgol county of Isfahan province, Iran and two species of Haloxylon and Nitraria sp were cultivated in treated and check soils in mentioned area. The treatments were adding five of two kinds of polymer water absorbent to the soil of root environment. The check samples were irrigated every 14 days once and the treated ones every 14, 28, 35 and 42 days once. During two years of study, the moisture of root environment was measured in all samples. In third year the amount of live seedlings were also accounted. The statistical analysis showed that there is a significant difference between the treated and check samples in all irrigation periods in significance level of 5%. In other words, increasing of irrigation period in treated samples compared with check treatment hold more moisture in root environment. Mean comparison between treatments showed no differences in volumetric moisture of 21 compared with 28 and 28 compared with 42 irrigation periods. And also there was no difference between two absorbent in all treatments. The increasing rate of live seedlings, after 3 years, between treated and check samples represents that the polymers give a good establishing circumstance to young seedlings. In other words it is resulted that these water absorbents are capable of reducing the moisture stress in root area of irrigation periods and increase the rate of established seedlings. We assume that Aquasorb polymers and TC are successfully increasing the water holding capacity of soils in green cover re-establishing activities of deserted areas. With increasing the water holding capacity they also reduce also the costs by 50-70 percent.
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