Drip irrigation of waxy corn (Zea mays L. var. ceratina Kulesh) for production in highly saline conditions
2012
Wan, Shuqin | Jiao, Yanping | Kang, Yaohu | Hu, Wei | Jiang, Shufang | Tan, Junli | Liu, Wei
A 4-year trial was set up to test the feasibility of growing waxy corn (Zea mays L. var. ceratina Kulesh) in a highly saline wasteland with drip irrigation in the Ningxia plain, northwest China. The original soil salinity expressed as electrical conductivity of the saturation paste extract (ECₑ) averaged 28dS/m in the 0–120cm depth. The experiment included five soil matric potential (SMP) treatments in which the SMP at 20cm depth below the drip emitters was controlled higher than −5, −10, −15, −20 and −25kPa after waxy corn establishment. The results showed that drip irrigation created a favorable soil condition for waxy corn growth through forming and maintaining a high moisture and low salinity region in the root zone when the SMP was maintained higher than −25kPa. Waxy corn growth and yield parameters increased with the increase of SMP from −25kPa to −5kPa, but their responses to SMP decreased with the prolonged period of cultivation. Irrigation frequency and irrigation amount decreased significantly as SMP decreased from −5kPa to −25kPa, and the highest irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE) was available when the SMP was around −15kPa in 2005, and was between −20kPa and −25kPa in successive years. After years of cultivation and drip leaching, the highly saline soil gradually changed to a moderately saline soil. This research suggests that drip irrigation can be successfully used in growing waxy corn in dry and highly saline conditions after appropriate management strategies are adopted.
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