Combined Effect of Leaching Fraction and Salinity on Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) Growth and Salt Distribution

Utilizing marginal quality water requires control of soil salinity by leaching and drainage of excess water and salt. This greenhouse study was carried out to determine the effect of saline irrigation (3 and 13 dS m-1) and leaching process (0.1 and 0.4 Leaching Fraction) on the growth of barley grown on sandy soil. Salt accumulation and distribution were also studied. Soil salinity increased linearly with distance from the emitter and salt concentrations were higher at the border of the wetting front. Salinity distribution with depth was mainly controlled by the quality and quantity of water applied in each treatment. Higher leaching fraction gave lower values of soil salinity even in highly saline treatments. Across treatments, salts were mostly accumulated in the soil surface and within the 20–40 cm depth. For all treatments, soil physical parameters such as infiltration rate and hydraulic conductivity were not significantly (P > 0.05) affected. Barley is a salt tolerant crop so its growth was not completely affected. There was a significant (P < 0.05) difference between low and high salinity. However leaching was mainly affected plant fresh weight and increased water content in plant as leaching fraction increased. That was clearly observed in fresh weight values between leaching fractions of low salinity (P < 0.05). A higher leaching fraction creates a good environment for plant by increasing water content and leaching salts to the lower horizons. Finally, barley can survive and give a good yield if grown under a good management of irrigation and leaching process.