Systematic review: Effect of Irrigation Water Quality and Deficit Irrigation on Crop Yield and Water Use efficiency

Abstract

The main purpose of this paper is to review on the effect of irrigation water quality and deficit irrigation on crop yield and water use efficiency. Low quality water for irrigation can impose a major environmental constraint to crop productivity. If salts become excessive, losses in yield will result. To prevent yield loss, salts in the soil must be controlled at a concentration below that which might affect yield. Irrigation application below the full evapotranspiration requirement is termed as deficit irrigation. Deficit irrigation consists of deliberately applying irrigation water in amounts below the plant’s water requirements. Deficit irrigation can be applied at certain periods during the crop’s growing season or throughout its growing season. Yield reductions also occur in a number of crops when subjected to water stress. Yield reductions depend on the crop’s sensitivity to water stress at its various growth stages. In order for deficit irrigation to be an economically viable practice, the revenue lost due to yield reduction should be lower than savings in total cost of production. The goal of deficit irrigation is to increase crop water use efficiency by reducing the amount of water that is applied or by reducing the number of irrigation events. The interaction effects of water quality and DI illustrated that when the two types of stresses; saline and DI were coupled together, a serious reduction occurred on total dry biomass and total yield. The interaction effects of water quality and deficit irrigation illustrated that when the two types of stresses; saline and deficit irrigation were coupled together, a serious reduction occurred on total dry biomass and total yields.

Keywords

• deficit irrigation
• irrigation water quality
• water use efficiency
• irrigation management
• crop yield